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Australians will vote on October 14 on whether to recognize Aboriginal people in the constitution, in what the country’s prime minister, Anthony Albanese, called a “once in a generation opportunity” to improve the lives of Aboriginal people.
Acknowledging that the country’s 1 million Indigenous people have long been victims of discrimination and prejudice was one of the Labor prime minister’s central election promises.
“This is a time for our Australian character. For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, it’s a marathon. For all of us, it’s a sprint,” Albanese said in announcing the referendum date on Wednesday. The referendum was called a “voice,” said the Times.
The debate surrounding The Voice, which will also set up an Indigenous affairs consultancy, has proved politically and socially divisive.
Indigenous activist and Australian Football League executive Tanya Hosch spoke alongside Albanese and said “our silent toxic legacy” is in government data on suicide rates, youth unemployment and child development obvious.
Leaders of the opposition Liberal and National parties have spoken out against the amendment and have questioned what powers the advisory body has, amid concerns its constitutional status will allow it to challenge political decisions in the High Court.
Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, the Liberal Party’s Indigenous affairs spokeswoman, said the vote would damage the country’s relationship with Indigenous peoples. “We will not allow this prime minister to divide our country along racial lines in the constitution,” she said.
Some Indigenous leaders opposed the referendum because it failed to produce a treaty agreement similar to the ones Canada and New Zealand signed with their Indigenous peoples.
Warren Mundin, a former Labor politician and one of the leading indigenous activists who voted no, said the referendum was not a “magic wand” for Albanians to solve indigenous problems. He criticized the prime minister for spending “hundreds of millions of dollars” on the referendum and flying across the country with “joyful applauding crowds”.
Support for the “Yes” movement has dropped below “No” in recent weeks. An Essential poll released in early August showed support for The Voice slipped to 43 percent, compared with 47 percent who voted “No” and 10 percent who were undecided.
The referendum faces a high hurdle to pass because it requires a majority of Australians, as well as a majority in the country’s six states, to vote for constitutional reform.
South Australia, where Albanese launched the “Yes” campaign, and Tasmania, where Price and Mundin spoke, appear to be key battlegrounds. According to recent opinion polls, Victoria and New South Wales have strong support, while Queensland and Western Australia are expected to vote against the vote.
“We rose to the occasion, like the kangaroos and emus on our badge,” Albanez said. “They never backed down, they just went forward. So do we.”
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