Four decades ago, a remote island community in the Indian Ocean voted to become a fully-fledged part of Australia. Malay workers on the Cocos Keeling Islands were promised equal rights to mainland Australians but they're still waiting.

Bantam Village

The Cocos Keeling Islands, a remote island community in the Indian Ocean, marked a significant decision forty years ago, opting to integrate fully with Australia. This move was propelled by the aspirations of Malay workers on the islands who were assured of attaining rights equal to those enjoyed by mainland Australians. Despite the passage of four decades since that pivotal moment, the residents are still in pursuit of the fulfillment of those promises.

These Malay workers, pivotal to the initial agreement, have yet to see the realization of equal rights in comparison to their counterparts on the Australian mainland. The lingering wait underscores a struggle for recognition and equality within the Australian territory, highlighting issues of disparity and unfulfilled commitments.



Cocos Islands' 40 years of struggling to be heard

This unique island community, 2,700 kilometres northwest of the mainland, is proud to be Australian. But behind the smiles, there's discontent. Ramni Mokta's ancestors were brought to the islands as labour in the 1820s to work in the copra industry under control of the Clooneys Ross family. The Cocos Malay's rights were limited. Many were paid in a makeshift currency. Forty years ago, they voted to integrate with Australia in a United Nations Act of Self-Determination, marking the end to the Clooneys Ross rule. Cocos Malay leaders met then Prime Minister Bob Hawke and were promised equal rights. But some of those promises remain unfulfilled. The way the Commonwealth dealt with it, it's left the community here in a very difficult predicament to be able to own houses or get land tenure. These people want to own their houses, but the land is held in trust for the community with the shire's name on the title. The shire has engaged a legal firm to investigate the land tenure. We're going to have to spend an inordinate amount of money trying to do something that the Commonwealth's responsible for. And that's just a smack in the face for the people of Cocos Keeling Islands. And that's, you know, it's not acceptable in this day and age. While a government spokesperson says housing is the responsibility of the shire. The significance of the anniversary is acknowledged and it's providing $170 million for services and infrastructure on the islands this financial year. The island's elders hope the anniversary will reinvigorate political will to give them the equal rights they seek.

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