Big business responds
"Richard Court sets off alone on his risky Mabo path" ran the editorial in the November 5 issue of the West Australian.
Reflecting the concerns of a section of big business that believes a better approach would be a negotiated agreement with the Keating government, the editorial worries that Court's strategy "remains morally questionable, economically risky and, despite the confidence he expressed in its ability to withstand constitutional scrutiny, there is no guarantee that it will survive the inevitable challenge in the High Court".
But support for the legislation has been expressed by the WA Chamber of Mines and Energy, the Australian Mining Industry Council, the Pastoralists and Graziers' Association and the WA Farmers' Federation.