Ken Colbung


Kenneth Desmond Colbung AM MBE, also known by his indigenous name Nundjan Djiridjarkan, was an Aboriginal Australian leader from the Noongar people who became prominent in the 1960s. He was appointed an MBE and an AM for his service to the Aboriginal community.

Life

Colbung was born on the Moore River settlement. His mother died when he was six, and he was then taken to live at Sister Kate’s Home for Children. He worked for a time as a stockman. He joined the Australian Army in 1950, and served in Japan and in the Korean War.
He was made a Justice of the Peace in 1980. Amongst his positions, Colbung was also deputy chairperson and then chair of the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies. He also had close links with the Western Australian Museum, and worked with them on their representations of Aboriginal issues for over thirty years.
He died after a short illness on 12 January 2010. He was 78.

Activism

Colbung campaigned for the recognition of cultural and human rights for Aboriginal Australians, and was involved in the Australian Black Power Movement of the 1960s. He was instrumental in the development of the Aboriginal Heritage Act 1972 for the protection and preservation of material of cultural significance.
Colbung became particularly known for his leading role in ensuring that the severed head of his ancestor, the Noongar warrior Yagan, was repatriated from Britain to Australia in 1997.