Without the right to negotiate, indigenous people will be forced to go to the courts, which will create delay and uncertainty for industry. The Keating Government extinguished native title on pastoral leases Neither the Mabo decision, nor the Native Title Act dealt with the pastoral lease issue. It was always understood that the Wik decision would resolve the issue. The pastoralist has not lost any rights. Pastoralists have the same rights that they have always had under their lease.
Graziers can continue to run cattle and do all things incidental to running a cattle station.
The High Court explained that pastoralists have an exclusive right to pasture, but not exclusive rights to possession of land. Pastoral leases were introduced because there was no law to cover squatters taking over large tracts of land in the early part of the nineteenth century. The Wik decision has delivered certainty. Indigenous people now know that their native title rights can co-exist with current pastoral leases, and may still exist on vacant Crown land which used to be subject to leases. Pastoralists know that their leases are valid and take priority over native title.