Victoria's First Peoples' Assembly will have its inaugural meeting on Tuesday with leaders from the central Victorian region sharing their voices.
The assembly, which is the first democratically-elected body of Indigenous people in the state's history, will help establish the framework for Treaty negotiations with the Victorian government.
The 32-member assembly is made up of 21 general members who were elected by Aboriginal Victorians across five voting regions.
Eleven seats were reserved for members of formally recognised Traditional Owner groups.
Bendigo and District Aboriginal Co-operative chief executive Raylene Harradine was chosen as a representative for the north-west region after a month-long election process.
She joins Jacinta Chaplin and Jason Kelly as representatives for the region, which covers Bendigo, Horsham, Swan Hill, and Mildura.
Trent Nelson, who is the chair of the Dja Dja Wurrung Clans Aboriginal Corporation, has been chosen as the representative for the Dja Dja Wurrung.
The assembly will meet over the next two days at Parliament House in Melbourne.
The main priorities of the meeting will be to set up a Treaty Authority or independent watchdog for the negotiation process; establish a fund for Aboriginal clans to ensure a level playing field; and debate what laws need to be addressed in treaty negotiations.
Have you signed up to the Bendigo Advertiser's daily newsletter and breaking news emails? You can register below and make sure you are up to date with everything that's happening in central Victoria.
Tara Cosoleto
Journalist covering courts and general news at the Bendigo Advertiser.
Journalist covering courts and general news at the Bendigo Advertiser.
