Blue Mud Bay Sea Rights Flag

Designer Donald Nuwandjali Marawili (b 1956)

Maker National Flags

Date2016

Object number00054886

NameFlag

MediumSynthetic fabric, dyes.

DimensionsOverall: 1800 × 900 mm

ClassificationsVisual communication

Credit LineANMM Collection

Terms

DescriptionThe Blue Mud Bay Sea Rights flag, designed and drawn in September 2008 by Donald Nuwandjali Marawili at the East Arnhem Land Council office for the Blue Mud Bay Decision Celebrations at Yilpara and for the future celebrations and recognition of Indigenous sea rights in the Northern Territory. The flag is printed and comprises a flag of synthetic fabric printed in four colours.The white represents the Ancestral cloud Wanupini rising up from the sea, the blue representing oceans saltwater, the black for the landowners, the yellow for the sand of the beaches and the red, the suffering and blood of the people.HistoryDonald Nuwandjali Marrawilli originally requested Northern Land Council to assist with the production of a Blue Mud Bay flag that he had designed for the Blue Mud Bay Decision and celebration and Yilpara, and for the future celebrations and recognition of sea rights in the Northern Territory. Nuwandjali Marawili is amongst the artists of the Salwater Barks collection currently at the Australian National Maritime Museum. He is a younger son of the great Madarrpa artist and clan leader Wakuth (b. c. 1921). The Blue Mud Bay case was not an isolated case brought before the High Court. Its roots reach back into the 1960's. The Saltwater Barks in the Australian National Maritime Musuem collection, were painted by the Yolŋu people of East Arnhem Land, and was an effort by forty seven artists from fifteen different clans to educate outsiders about local Indigenous stories, land ownership and sacred sites. The Yolŋu have been active in the struggle for land rights since the 1960's and these barks represent their attempts to gain legal recognition of their traditional homeland, the Marrakulu Saltwater. The paintings are also a visual and traditional representation of the Yolŋu living and interacting with the sea, depicting camps and sea hunting. The barks have a political and legal significance beyond their spiritual meaning as they underpin the Yolŋu community's native sea title claim which was granted in 2008 and known as The Blue Mud Bay decision. The production of the paintings provided an Indigenous tool for community action that could be created into evidence and used in the Australian legal system. The High Court granted the Saltwater People's rights, use of the Arnhem Land coast and therefore precedence over commercial interests and fishing. *Aboriginal freehold title is now recognised down to the low water mark.SignificanceThe Blue Mud Bay Sea Rights flag is unique to the Landmark Blue Mud Bay Case of 2008. Since that descision, the Australian National Maritime Museum is the first Federal agency or any organisation to fly the flag outside of the Northern Territory.
The flag was flown on Friday 27 May 9.30am at a ceremony to mark the beginning of the museum's 2016 National Reconciliation Week activities. The flag raising was conducted with a ceremonial painting on each person who attended. The flag designer Nuwandjalli Marawili painted each person on their forehead with 'gapan' ceremonial pipeclay ochre harvested from his traditiona site. A Yidaki (didgeridoo) was played by Djuwakan Marika.