Indigenous Repatriation

We help facilitate the unconditional return of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ancestral remains from overseas collections and the safe return of Indigenous ancestral remains and secret sacred objects held in major Australian museums to their communities of origin, contributing to healing and reconciliation.

For more than 150 years Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ancestral remains and secret sacred objects were removed from their communities for various reasons and placed in museums, universities and private collections in Australia and overseas. During the 19^th and 20^th centuries medical officers, anatomists, ethnologists, anthropologists, and pastoralists collected ancestral remains for ‘scientific’ research linked to explaining human biological differences.

We work with all stakeholders, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, other Australian Government agencies, Australian museums, state, territory and local governments, collecting institutions and overseas governments and institutions.

The Advisory Committee for Indigenous Repatriation advises the government on policy and program issues about Indigenous repatriation from Australian and overseas collections.

• Australian Government Indigenous Repatriation Policy—September 2016

The Indigenous Repatriation Program supports:

• inventory and provenance research
• community visits in Australia by museum staff
• consultants to help communities coordinate returns
• museum visits by community representatives to identify ancestral remains and secret sacred objects
• travel for community representatives to collect ancestral remains and secret sacred objects (in Australia only)
• travel for community representatives to collect ancestral remains from overseas
• preparation, packing, transportation and freight of ancestral remains and secret sacred objects for return.

In addition, the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS) has a pilot project that seeks to return Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural heritage material from overseas collecting institutions back to their original custodians and owners. To find out more about the Return of Cultural Heritage project, visit the AIATSIS website.