| Woorabinda Queensland |
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Woorabinda
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| Population: | 851 (2006 Census)[1] |
| Established: | 1927 |
| Postcode: | 4713 |
| LGA: | Woorabinda Aboriginal Shire Council |
Woorabinda (English pronunciation: /ˈwʊərəbɪndə/)is an Aboriginal community in central Queensland, Australia, inland of Rockhampton. At the 2006 census, Woorabinda had a population of 851.[1]
Woorabinda was first established in 1927 as a replacement for the Aboriginal camp at Taroom. People from at least 17 different language groups were forcibly placed in the camp[2] and were under the control of the Chief Protector of Aborigines.
In 1942, during World War II, a Lutheran Aboriginal mission at Cape Bedford on Cape York in far North Queensland was closed and the Aboriginal people were forcibly relocated to Woorabinda. Many died from sickness due to the poor sanitation and inadequate shelter from the frost and cold winter nights of the inland climate. One estimate puts the number of deaths of Bedford people during this period at 235.[3] The survivors were allowed to return to Cape Bedford in 1949 to what is now known as Hopevale.
The Woorabinda community is the only DOGIT Aboriginal community within the Central Queensland region. DOGIT communities have a special type of land tenure which applies only to former Aboriginal reserves. The land title is a system of community level land trusts, owned and administered by the local council.
Woorabinda is about two hours' drive west of Rockhampton and has a population of around 1000 people. There is a much higher proportion of people under the age of 18 in Woorabinda than in the wider non-indigenous community. Woorabinda has in recent years been the most violent indigenous community in Queensland, with a rate of hospitalisations for assault 45 times the state average.[4]