Waiben to host 90th anniversary week for 1936 Maritime Strike

A week of public events to mark the 90th anniversary of the 1936 Torres Strait Islander Maritime Strike will be held on Waiben from 12 – 16 January.

Organisers Gur A Baradharaw Kod Torres Strait Sea and Land Council (GBK) said the program will include formal ceremonies, cultural exhibitions, historical displays and academic presentations.

The main formal proceedings are scheduled for Wednesday, 14 January, and will be officiated by Governor-General of Australia Sam Mostyn AC, according to GBK.

GBK said the anniversary will also begin an “Awareness Phase” leading towards the strike’s centenary in 2036.

GBK Chair Mr Lui Ned David said the 1936 action was not widely understood, and placed it in a longer political arc for the region. “The 1936 Maritime Strike was the first organised Indigenous maritime strike in the country” Mr David said.

The strike is described as a coordinated work stoppage by Torres Strait Islander men working in the pearling industry, with opposition centred on government control over wages, movement and working conditions, and the local Protector system.

A curated public exhibition is also planned, bringing together photographs of strike leaders and pearling life with historical records and analysis, as well as sound recordings, oral histories, maritime songs and biographies.

GBK said AIATSIS staff will attend to support community engagement, including family history support and consultation work connected to a proposed National Resting Place for repatriated ancestral remains.

Sea governance is also on the program, with GBK flagging a Sea Alliance Forum (in partnership with ReefTO) and a Sea Rights Conference involving Native Title Representative Bodies from across northern Australia.

GBK said further commemorations are planned across 2026 in the Torres and Endeavour Straits, with a full order of proceedings for 14 January to be released closer to the date.