Australia's first treaty with Aboriginal people set to be signed in Victoria

Australia's first treaty with Aboriginal people will today be signed and formalised as law.

Victoria's treaty will become Australia's first modern treaty agreement with the country's Indigenous owners, in a move labelled "historic" by the United Nations human rights chief.

While treaties with Indigenous groups are commonplace in countries colonised by the British, such as New Zealand and Canada, Australia has long been the exception.

The absence of treaties in Australia has been an enduring reminder of the denial of First Peoples' rights, including to land , throughout Australia's colonial history.

Treaty to become law

The road to treaty in Australia has been a long one.

Despite countless promises for a treaty , including at a national level, and generations of advocacy by First