Gove Peninsula Northern Territory | |
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Coordinates | 12°17′0″S 136°49′0″E / 12.28333°S 136.81667°E |
Territory electorate(s) | Mulka |
Federal division(s) | Lingiari |
The Gove Peninsula is at the northeastern corner of Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory of Australia. The peninsula became strategically important during World War II when a Royal Australian Air Force base was constructed at what is now Gove Airport. The peninsula was involved in a famous court case known as the Gove land rights case, when local Yolngu people tried to claim native title over their traditional lands in 1971, after the Australian Government had granted a mineral lease to a bauxite mining company without consulting the local peoples. Today the land is owned by the Yolngu people.