This resource was written by the Centre for the Advancement of Indigenous Knowledges at UTS to promote informed understanding and discussion about the forthcoming referendum on establishing an Indigenous Voice to Parliament.
The facts and the history behind a Voice to Parliament
What is the Voice?
The Voice will be an independent, representative advisory body for First Nations people. It will provide a permanent means to advise the Australian Parliament and Government on the views of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples on matters that affect them.
A set of principles that describe how the Voice will work were agreed to by the First Nations Referendum Working Group.
The Voice is a body that will:
provide independent advice to Parliament and Government
be chosen by First Nations people based on the wishes of local communities
be representative of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities
be empowering, community led, inclusive, respectful, culturally informed and gender balanced, and include youth
be accountable and transparent
work alongside existing organisations and traditional structures.
It will not have a program delivery function, or a veto power.
The structure and role of the Voice would be decided by Parliament through legislation, with members to be chosen by First Nations people.
The referendum is part of the Government's commitment to implementing the Uluru Statement from the Heart in full.
The Voice to Parliament referendum
Words proposed to be added to the Constitution
In recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Peoples of Australia:
There shall be a body, to be called the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice;
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice may make representations to the Parliament and the Executive Government of the Commonwealth on matters relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples;
The Parliament shall, subject to this Constitution, have power to make laws with respect to matters relating to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice, including its composition, functions, powers and procedures.
Referendum question:
A Proposed Law: to alter the Constitution to recognise the First Peoples of Australia by establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice
Do you approve this proposed alteration?
Why is the Voice Needed?
With substantive constitutional change and structural reform, we believe this ancient sovereignty can shine through as a fuller expression of Australia’s nationhood.
Proportionally, we are the most incarcerated people on the planet. We are not an innately criminal people. Our children are aliened from their families at unprecedented rates. This cannot be because we have no love for them. And our youth languish in detention in obscene numbers. They should be our hope for the future.
These dimensions of our crisis tell plainly the structural nature of our problem. This is the torment of our powerlessness.
We seek constitutional reforms to empower our people and take a rightful place in our own country. When we have power over our destiny our children will flourish. They will walk in two worlds and their culture will be a gift to their country.
We call for the establishment of a First Nations Voice enshrined in the Constitution.
Extract from The Uluru Statement From the Heart 2017
The Uluru Statement from the Heart identified “the torment of...powerlessness” experienced by Indigenous Australians
Describing the current relationship between Indigenous communities and the government as “dysfunctional”, Professor Peter Yu argues that Indigenous communities “constantly call for, but are hardly anywhere given, any meaningful say in the decisions taken that impact our lives”.
Indigenous Australians and the Constitution
Indigenous Australians were not consulted when the Australian Constitution was drafted prior to Federation in 1901.
The original wording of the Constitution prohibited the federal government from making laws in relation to Aboriginal people. This resulted in an array of state-based legislation which differed from state-to-state and imposed extensive controls and restrictions on the rights of Aboriginal people.
What is self-determination?
The right to freely determine your political status is a human right we all possess. It entails the right of a people to have control over their destiny and to be treated respectfully; to be free to determine their political status and pursue their economic, social and cultural development.
According to the Australian Human Rights Commission, the right to self-determination has particular application to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as Australia’s first peoples.
The right to self-determination is based on the simple acknowledgment that Indigenous peoples are Australia’s first peoples and have the right to preserve their cultural identity. They have the right to participate in decision-making and to exercise meaningful control over their affairs.
Many would argue that the loss of this right to live according to a set of common values and beliefs, and to have that right respected by others, is at the heart of the current disadvantage experienced by Indigenous Australians.
A timeline of Aboriginal representation to Government
1973-1977: Gough Whitlam’s National Aboriginal Consultative Committee (NACC).
1977-1985: The NACC was replaced by the incoming Malcolm Fraser government who established the National Aboriginal Conference (NAC).
NACC and NAC advised government on policy, and importantly communicated issues to their community and interested public.
1990-2005: When the Labor Government returned to office and with Bob Hawke as Prime Minister, the most enduring Aboriginal representative structure to date was designed –The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (ATSIC) operated during this period. It was both a representative body with smaller zones electing their official and a bureaucracy with responsibility for delivering programs and funding in community.
2005-2007: The Howard Government replaced ATSIC with a 12-member hand-picked advisory group known as the National Indigenous Council (NIC). It was unrepresentative and unfunded; its role ill-defined and with no clear influence or interest in convening wider community informed policy discussion. By the end of 2007 it had fizzled out.
Towards constitutional recognition of First Peoples
The consultation process has been extensive and has continued in various forms over 50 years since the idea of constitutional recognition was first proposed.
1983: Two Hundred Years Later report, Senate Report standing committee recommends constitutional change occur by the nation’s 1988 bicentenary.
1988: While visiting Arnhem Land, then Prime Minister, Bob Hawke, was presented with the Barunga Statement. Hawke committed government to a treaty by 1990.
1999: Howard’s referendum proposes constitutional preamble honouring ‘Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders...for their ancient and continuing cultures.’ Failed.
2010: Gillard government appoints the Expert Panel on Constitutional Recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples to investigate how to give effect to constitutional recognition. Reported in 2012.
2012: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples Recognition Bill 2012 (Cth). Recognise campaign commences.
2013-2015: PM Tony Abbott appoints Joint Select Committee of Parliament in 2013; recommends a referendum be held ‘at or shortly after the next election in 2016’2015 - Turnbull government appointed the Referendum Council December. Deliberative dialogue process.
2017: The Uluru Statement from the Heart proposes a constitutionally enshrined Voice to Parliament. Turnbull government rejects the Voice.
2018: Joint Select Committee on Constitutional Recognition relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples presents its final report.
2021: Marcia Langton and Tom Calma provide the Indigenous Voice Co- Design Process Final Report to the Australian government, outlining details of proposed local and regional voices and a National Voice.
2022 May: new Federal Albanese Labor Government commits to a referendum in 2023 to include Indigenous ‘voice’ in the Australian Constitution.
What would the Voice to Parliament do?
The Voice would be able to advise the Parliament and the Executive Government.
Under the draft constitutional amendment, the Voice would be empowered to make representations to the Parliament and the Executive Government about matters, including existing or proposed laws, policies or decisions that have a connection to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
The Voice does not have a “veto” power. The draft provision does not in any way provide the Voice with a veto power over the functions or powers of the Parliament or the Executive. The function of “making representations” reflects its advisory role.
Local and Regional Voices
The Voice to Parliament would be complemented by the establishment of local and regional voices, to provide Indigenous Australians with opportunities to have input into government decision-marking at all levels.
Enhanced arrangements for local and regional decision-making and regional governance are seen as the key to the success of the Indigenous Voice proposal overall.
Nine key principles would underpin local and regional voices:
Empowerment
Inclusive Participation
Cultural Leadership
Community-led Design
Non-duplication and Links with Existing Bodies
Respectful Long-term Partnerships
Transparency and Accountability
Capability Driven
Data and Evidence-based Decision Making
Source: Indigenous Voice Co-design Process Final Report
Do other countries recognise Indigenous peoples in their constitutions?
Other countries recognise the unique status of their first peoples within their nation’s founding documents.
The Canadian Constitution was amended in 1982 and 1983 to recognise 'aboriginal rights’.
The Norwegian Parliament passed an amendment to the Constitution recognising Sami constitutional rights in 1988.
Locally, the Queensland, NSW and Victorian state Constitutions recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
The 1967 Referendum
One of the most misunderstood moments in Australian history, the 1967 Referendum did not grant Aboriginal people citizenship, the right to vote or include them in the census for the first time.
The 1967 Referendum altered the Constitution by amending s.51 (xxvi), which excluded the federal government from making laws in relation to Aboriginal people, and deleting s.127, which excluded Aboriginal people from being counted when the population was enumerated to determine parliamentary representation.
The Referendum was notable for the overwhelming Yes vote (over 90%), the result of a decade-long grassroots campaign led by Indigenous Australians and their allies.
The Uluru Statement from the Heart
The outcome of an extensive deliberative dialogue with First Nations peoples, culminating in a Convention at Uluru in 2017.
Calls for a constitutionally- enshrined Voice to Parliament, and the establishment of a Makarrata body to oversee truth-telling and the negotiation of a Treaty.
Opposing the referendum - The NO vote
Key Arguments | Response |
More information *detail* |
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‘Egalitarian’ narrative: Recognising Indigenous peoples detracts from others or would be racially divisive |
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Third chamber: would interfere with the operations of government democracy. |
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Not all Indigenous Australians support the Voice |
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