To coincide with the bicentenary of the arrival of the First Fleet, in 1788 on the banks of what is now known as Kurnell, Sydney and what was the founding of the colony of New South Wales, Burnum Burnum placed an Aboriginal flag on the white cliffs of Dover - British soil – and made this declaration.

26 January 1988 - DOVER

The Burnum Burnum Declaration

Justice with Honour 

I, Burnum Burnum, being an aristocratic nobleman of ancient Australia, do hereby take possession of England on behalf of the Aboriginal Crown.

In doing so we wish no harm to you natives, but assure you that we are here to bring you good manners, refinement and an opportunity to make a Koompartoo – a fresh start.  Henceforth, my face shall appear on your coins and stamps to signify our sovereignty over this domain.

At the end of two hundred years, we Will make a Treaty to validate occupation by peaceful means and not by conquest.

For the more advanced, we bring the complex language of the Pitjantjatjara, we will teach you how to have a spiritual relationship with the Earth and show you how to get food from the bush.

We do not intend to souvenir, pickle and preserve the heads of 2000 of your people, nor to publicly display the skeletal remains of your Royal Highness, as was done to our Queen Truganinni for eighty years.

Neither do we intend to poison your water holes, lace your bread with strychnine or introduce you to highly toxic drugs. We acknowledge the need to preserve the Caucasian race as of interest to antiquity, although we may be inclined to conduct experiments by measuring the size of your skulls for levels of intelligence.

We pledge not to sterilise your young women.

We solemnly promise not to make a quarry of England and export your valuable minerals back to the old country Australia, but to encourage Earth Repair Action to unite people, communities and religions in a common, productive, peaceful purpose.

Finally, we give an absolute undertaking that you shall not be placed into the mentality of government handouts for the next five generations but you will enjoy the full benefits of Aboriginal equality.