Wali Wunungmurra, one of the 12 signatories to the petitions, describes the background to the petitions as follows: "In the late 1950s Yolngu became aware of people prospecting for minerals in the area of the Gove Peninsula, and shortly after, discovered that mining leases had been taken out over a considerable area of our traditional land.
Wali Wunungmurra, un dos doce que firmaron a petición, describe os antecedentes da petición da seguinte maneira: "A finais de 1950, os yolngu démonos conta da prospección de minerais na zona da Península de Gove, e pouco despois, descubrimos as concesións mineiras que se concederon ó longo dunha área considerábel do noso territorio tradicional.