An Aboriginal senator believes having a ‘Indigenous vote’ in parliament would only act as ‘a new layer of bureaucracy’ and would not meet the needs of First Nation Australians.
Anthony Albanese on Saturday announced the country’s first referendum in 20 years, where Australians will be asked whether they support an Indigenous vote in the constitution to advise parliament on issues affecting Aboriginal people and the people of Torres Strait Islanders.
But exact details about how the historic change will work have yet to be ironed out, with the Prime Minister saying he didn’t want Australians bogged down in the amendment’s fine print.
Though the move was largely welcomed in the political aisle, Senator Jacinta. of the country’s liberal party Price told ABC’s Q&A on Monday that she has her doubts.
“My main concern with this idea of a constitutionally enshrined Vote to Parliament is the fact that it’s a different bureaucracy,” she said.
Key Aboriginal voices discussed the Indigenous Voice referendum on Q&A on Monday
‘We want less bureaucracy in our lives, so that we can take control of our lives.’
She claimed the representatives pushing for a referendum are part of “an industry built on the misery of Indigenous Australians.”
“It also suggests that as Indigenous Australians we will always be marginalized and we will always need something like this,” she said.
“If we were equal to everyone, we wouldn’t need a single voice.”
Mr Albanese revealed on Monday that he had asked her to read Labor’s proposal carefully and become more involved in drafting a possible mandate.
Anthony Albanese said the Vote to Parliament would be an opportunity to ‘elevate our nation’
New Aboriginal Senator Jacinta Price has slammed welcome to ceremonies in the country for being symbolic gestures and “throwaway lines” (pictured during her maiden speech on Wednesday)
“I think respectfully, if Senator Price looks at what’s being proposed in terms of the wording, then the idea that this is anything other than a unifying moment for the nation, I just don’t believe it stacks up,” Albanian said on Sky News Monday.
“I understand there’s tremendous frustration out there about the gap there is… but there’s nothing about this that slows down practical action.
“What it simply says is that people should have a voice. This is a process that has been consulted extensively with First Nations communities.”
Fellow Q&A panelist Linda Burney also addressed Ms Price’s comments.
“What it means going forward, everyone, is that it’s not just about symbolism,” the Indigenous Australians minister said.
The prime minister revealed the potential question that could be asked in a referendum: ‘Do you support a constitutional amendment that introduces an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander vote?’
‘This is final – This is, finally, our people who can advise Parliament on whether Parliament is doing well or not.
Will it tackle child abuse? Will it tackle domestic violence against women? Is it about educational outcomes? Will it tackle the issues that affect our daily lives?
“And that’s so important. There hasn’t been. And unless we have a voice, there isn’t one.’
While there is no timetable for the referendum yet, Labor prefers to vote next year.
Senator Price also recently spoke out about ‘symbolic’ gestures towards Indigenous Australians and said welcome to land ceremonies had reached the point of overkill.
“We’re just completely fed up with it,” she said on Thursday. “It actually removes the sanctity of certain traditional cultures and customs.
“And it’s almost become a throw-away rule.”
The former Deputy Mayor of Alice Springs was elected Country Liberal Party Senator for the Northern Territory and delivered her first speech in traditional costume on Wednesday.
She used the moment to protest Labor’s proposed indigenous vote to parliament, an elected body of First Nations representatives enshrined in the constitution that would advise the government on issues affecting them.
“I’m tired of being symbolically recognized,” she told 2GB’s Ben Fordham on Thursday.
“I’ve had enough – they really haven’t done anything to improve the lives of really marginalized people.
In her maiden speech, she attacked Mr Albanese’s commitment to introduce the Voice in Parliament, which was proposed by indigenous groups.
“We hear the platitudes of maternity declarations from our now prime minister, who suggest without any evidence that a vote to parliament bestowed upon us by the virtuous act of symbolic gesture of this government will empower us,” she told the Senate on Wednesday. .
Senator Jacinta Price opposes Labor’s proposed indigenous vote to parliament, an elected body of First Nations representatives