Traditional owners given back Qld land A LARGE chunk of land in far north Queensland has been handed back to traditional owners who will have freehold title over the 730,000 hectare area. It is the largest Aboriginal freehold deed issued in Queensland. The deed formally recognises the Wik and Wik Way People as owners of the land at Aurukun, on the western side of Cape York Peninsula, about 200 kilometres south of Weipa. State Natural Resources and Mines Minister Andrew Cripps says the community now has the power to decide how to use the land for social, cultural and economic benefits. Meanwhile, another group of Traditional Owners on the Cape have been granted Native Title over 330,000 hectares of land south of Laura and north-west of Mount Carbine. The determination was handed down to the Western Yalanji People in the Federal Court in Cairns on Monday after more than a decade of negotiations. Elder Walter Snider said it is an important day for his people. "This recognises our traditional laws and customs that tie us deeply to the land, and that have been handed down to me by my ancestors and their ancestors who came before them," he said. Native Title is the legal recognition that some indigenous people have rights and interests to their land that come from their traditional laws and customs.