 eddie koiki mabo (c. 29 june 1936 &ndash; 21 january 1992) was an australian man from the torres strait islands known for his role in campaigning for indigenous land rights and for his role in a landmark decision of the high court of australia which overturned the legal doctrine of terra nullius ("land belonging to nothing, no one") which characterised australian law with regard to land and title. ==early life and family== mabo was born eddie koiki sambo but he changed his surname to mabo when he was adopted by his maternal uncle, benny mabo. he was born on the island of mer (murray island) in the torres strait between australia and papua new guinea. mabo married bonita neehow, an australian south sea islander, in 1959 and the couple had ten children. their daughter, gail is an aboriginal artist and dancer who works with schools in new south wales as a cultural advisor and serves as the family's designated spokesperson. ==university== mabo worked on pearling boats, as a cane cutter, and as a railway fettler before becoming a gardener at james cook university in townsville, queensland at the age of 31. the time he spent on the campus had a massive impact on his life. in 1974, this culminated in a discussion he had with jcu historians noel loos and henry reynolds, who recalled mabo's reaction: "...we were having lunch one day in reynold's office when koiki was just speaking about his land back on mer, or m
1936_births 1992_deaths Australian_indigenous_rights_activists Cancer_deaths_in_Queensland Torres_Strait_Islanders Torres_Strait_Islands_culture