Get Involved - Parliament

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice

Published on: September 2023

Record: HANSARD-1323879322-135504

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice

Ms FELICITY WILSON (North Shore) (18:32:39):

In just a few weeks on Saturday 14 October, Australia will be asked to vote on a very simple but important question: whether we will support an Indigenous Voice to Parliament. This referendum will be a pivotal moment in our journey towards reconciliation with our Indigenous and Torres Strait Islander brothers and sisters. As I have previously said in this place, I believe that we need to work in partnership with our First Nation peoples, their communities and their organisations so that we can truly move forward in reconciliation but also make strong investments into their communities working towards a truly equal society.

The Voice to Parliament is a concept of profound importance, not only for Indigenous Australians but also for our entire nation. It represents a crucial and long overdue step towards addressing historical injustices, empowering indigenous communities and fostering reconciliation across our diverse country. The Voice is a step towards healing the wounds of the past, closing the gap of inequality and building a more inclusive and equitable Australia for all her people. It is also about recognising the oldest continuing culture in the world in our country's founding document, the Constitution. That means recognising more than 65,000 years of Indigenous culture in Australia's 122-year-old Constitution.

Uluru Statement from the Heart

The Voice has been developed over decades and through dialogues between Indigenous communities, and in 2017 they presented us, the Australian people, with the . Those communities and those individuals are asking for a seat at the table, and they are asking us for a voice. We know in this place that when we listen to people on the matters that affect them, we get better results, and that is what the Voice to Parliament aims to do. It is an advisory body that will provide advice to the government of the day on the matters that affect them. We know that we are still not meeting the Closing the Gap targets. We know that we need a new way of doing things better. We must acknowledge the deep-seated inequalities that continue to plague our Indigenous communities. Disparities in health, education, employment, infant mortality, domestic violence, drug and alcohol abuse demand our immediate attention.

If the Australian people do not vote in favour of this Voice to Parliament, then the biggest danger for us is that nothing changes. The danger for Australia is a continuation of the status quo. On almost all economic and social measures, there is a massive gap between Indigenous Australians and all other Australians. By consulting with Indigenous Australians, we know that we can work together to help close those gaps. I will give a couple of examples of the economic and social gaps between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples, some of which are really profound to me. One example is infant mortality. Indigenous infant deaths are 1.8 times higher than other Australians; that is almost twice as many babies who die from Indigenous births. Nearly half of all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people live at or below the poverty line. What about housing? One in five Indigenous families are living in accommodation that does not have a kitchen or sanitation. Imagine if that was your life. The Aboriginal suicide rate is almost 2½ times higher than other Australians, and an Indigenous boy is currently more likely to go to prison than to university. If we do not act, the biggest danger for us is that none of this will change.

The Voice to Parliament embodies the principles of self-determination and empowerment. It respects the right of our Indigenous communities to have a say on the matters that directly affect them. The Voice to Parliament will be a mechanism in which those issues can be brought to the forefront of our national agenda, ensuring that Indigenous communities have direct access to our elected representatives, enabling them to make the case for changes and the support that is needed to address those challenges. We know that this is not a partisan issue. Many supporters from many parties are all standing together to say yes. It enjoys broad support from all sides of politics because it transcends politics. It is about reconciliation and acknowledging the rightful place of our First Nation peoples in the story of Australia.

As a Liberal, it is incredibly important to me that we listen to people who are most affected by the decisions we make as politicians. It is a core tenant of Liberal philosophy that individuals can take on responsibility for their own outcomes. Our Indigenous brothers and sisters have asked us for this change. It is a humble, safe and modest change to our Constitution. They have asked us for the opportunity to take ownership and control of their own lives. We Liberals say that individuals are best placed to make decisions for themselves to resolve the challenges that they face and to strive for the best outcomes and opportunities that they can have. Many people in my community ask me what my position is. I will be voting yes on 14 October. I invite everyone to join me in saying yes. The Voice to Parliament is not merely a political initiative; it is a moral imperative. If not now, then when?