On the 27th January 2012 protesters at the Aboriginal Tent Embassy in Canberra have fronted an emotional press conference to defend their actions during yesterday's protest and reclaim their sovereignty over Australia (see video | Transcript).

Embassy founder Michael Anderson, Selina Davey-Newry of the north-east Kimberley, Wiradjuri Nation spokesperson Paul Coe and former political candidate Barbara Shaw stood in front of a smoking fire with about 3000 fellow protesters around a sovereignty sign at the embassy.

The Aboriginal Tent Embassy invites Julia Gillard to collect her lost shoe

More protests are planned from the Aboriginal Tent Embassy in Canberra, Darkinjung land council leader Sean Gordon has warned.

He said everyone turned up to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Tent Embassy and the incident at the adjacent restaurant could have been avoided had Ms Gillard spoken to the gathering or refuted an "arrogant" claim made by Mr Abbott' who in his insolence, then turned up at a restaurant not 200metres away from the Tent Embassy camp.

"When you've got people in riot gear and others who are emotional things are bound to get a bit chaotic." Mr Gorden said.

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Many hundreds of people marched in the capital on the Anniversary of the Tent Embassy, calling for land rights and Aboriginal sovereignty.

... Then Tony Abbott made a statement on radio, that "it is probably time to reconsider the relevance of the Tent Embassy". In protest to the opposition leader's statement, many demonstrators surrounded an adjacent building to the Tent Embassy where Abbott and Gillard 'just happened to be'.

The huge numbers of police and press reporters had a field day.

Thousands of people poored into Canberra for the 40th Aboriginal Tent Embassy and the day was very successful contrary to press reports. As Michael Anderson said in an interview, the government are on thin ice legally and will do 'anything' to maintain control over the land.

The fact that Tony Abbott made such an extraordinary radio comment on the Tent Embassy in the morning and then followed this by attending a function in an adjacent building, along with Julie Gillard with an entourage of police and journalists is amazing - and one must wonder whether it is a coincidence. - Our photo page

Wherever you are globally, please pitch your tent or beach umbrella and put an Aboriginal Embassy sign on it to demonstrate your support. You can send in a picture of your 'Aboriginal Embassy' to 'Australians for Native Title & Reconciliation' Antar.

There will be a mini-embassy in Melbourne from 1:00pm Thursday 26th January 2011 will commemorate the anniversary in solidarity with events in Canberra ... "It started with an umbrella" ...

A direct link to the the A4 sign: [Aboriginal Embassy Poster]

The last survivor of the four young Black Power men who set up the Aboriginal Embassy in 1972, Michael Ghillar Anderson, says he has received intelligence that there is a move to destroy him personally and the Aboriginal sovereignty movement in which he plays a large role.

At the time of his involvement in the 1972 Tent Embassy beginnings his mother's and Aboriginal neighbour’s houses were blown up in Surrey Hills and the blast shattered the windows for blocks. His mother and her neighbours were relocated under police watch.

The Anniversary is taking shape fast and from the sounds of people from Communities all over the nation, we are in for a big turn out. We ask for your support and understanding because of the nature, size and importance of this gathering.

We hope that by all chipping in any way we can, together, we can make this our last stand in gaining international awareness and support - to put an end to this illegal occupancy. We are working overtime to ensure the needs and infrastructures are in place to cater for the large numbers expected.

40th Tent Embassy Radio Broadcast: 3CR 8.55AM - Digital - Listen on your computer
Special broadcast on Thusday 26th January with live crossings to Robbie Thorpe in Canberra

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Michael Anderson

Michael Anderson has condemned proposals for writing Indigenous people into the constitution as a treasonous act and serious fraud against Aboriginal peoples, because it does not represent their interests across the nation.

The proposals, handed to the Gillard government by the "Expert Panel" on Constitutional Reform, fail to deal with the central and substantive issue of sovereignty and true land rights.

Community consultations around the country cannot and do not reflect Aboriginal interests in this matter because the panel represent less than one percent of the Aboriginal population.

With a new and exciting future ahead, Michael Anderson reminds us of where we have been in the past 40 years in respect of our struggle for land rights, sovereignty, restitution and compensation, and what has been said and acted upon by the governments.

He presents an overview of our struggle for sovereignty and outlines the importance of standing our ground. This article includes examples of the concerns the state and territories have in respect of our potential claims that will come their way.

  Michael Anderson's speach at Occupy London - December 2011   Audio - mp3

Few Australian political protests can claim to have made an impact as great or as lasting as the Aboriginal Tent Embassy in Canberra. First set up on the lawns of Old Parliament House in January 1972, the embassy has been a focal point for the struggle for Aboriginal rights.

Green Left Weekly provides a brief history of the embassy. The article includes Jim McIlroy's interviews with Aboriginal leaders Michael Anderson, Sam Watson and Lara Pullin about the significance of the tent embassy’s 40th anniversary and the struggle for Aboriginal sovereignty.

  Wayne 'Coco' Wharton calls indigernous People to 40th Aboriginal Tent Embassy