As most know, the Australian Labor government is planning a referendum on introducing an Indigenous Voice to Parliament, but what is it, do we need it, and what will it achieve?
Simply put it is claimed to be a proposed advisory body for First Nations people to provide a permanent means to guide the Australian Parliament and Federal Government on the views of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, on matters that affect them.
However, although this seems a perfectly reasonable proposal there is considerable opposition to it, including from within the indigenous community.
One example is Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price who is part of a six-member committee leading the “No” campaign, arguing the legislation will significantly change the way Australia is governed and not improve the lives of First Nations people. Ex-Nationals leader John Anderson will be enlisted as a key spokesperson for the committee.
In balance, the committee also has former Labor Party president Nyunggai Warren Mundine and will be run by former Labor minister and charities commissioner Gary Johns, so has a good balance between the political left and right.
Further opposition comes from DjabWurrung Gunnai Gunditjmara woman, Senator Lidia Thorpe who was cheered by the public in Melbourne after voicing her rejection of the proposed Voice. At the time Senator Thorpe was a member of the Greens party and was given permission to break party policy enabling her to vote against supporting the Labor proposal but later resigned from her position in the party so she could act and speak more freely on behalf of indigenous sovereignty.
“We are sovereign and this is our land, and we deserve better than an advisory body. We have had enough. We want real power and we won’t settle for anything less”, Senator Thorpe said.
During protests in Sydney, activist and Dunghutti, Gumbaynggirr, Bundjalung woman, Auntie Lizzie Jarrett strongly urged attendees to vote “No” and said:
“We don’t want a voice; we have a voice. We don’t want a whitewash!”
Auntie Lizzie Jarrett is correct, there is already a government department focused on Indigenous affairs called the ‘National Indigenous Australians Agency’ plus various other smaller departments and outside services, so there is no shortage of advisory sources available.
So, the question remains, do we vote “Yes”, and change the constitution when what it is asking for already exists and it will not satisfy the indigenous community?
That you must decide.