Kamahl changes his mind about the Voice to Parliament referendum and will be voting YES after all – so is this a sign all is not lost?

Kamahl has changed his mind about Indigenous Voice in Parliament, saying he is voting yes, in a shock to the proposal three weeks before the referendum.

The Malaysian-born Australian artist took to X on Thursday evening to say he had changed his mind, just a week after announcing he would vote no.

Kamahl revealed he endured “sleepless nights” determining how he would vote before deleting the tweet Friday morning.

“After spending sleepless nights weighing the pros and cons, I will be damned and I will vote YES,” he wrote.

“Coincidentally, I was in ‘Journey out of Darkness’ in 1967 as an Aboriginal prisoner, just before THE referendum.”

The sudden change of heart was sparked by Wednesday’s meeting with comedian Dane Simpson and constitutional lawyer Eddie Synot, after Kamahl admitted to Daily Mail Australia last week that he was not completely informed about The Voice .

‘I am embarrassed. Until Monday or Tuesday, I didn’t realize that they (indigenous people) were not considered human beings,” he said.

“I can’t…” he said, bursting into tears. “For me, it’s a matter of heart and mind,” he said.

He told Simpson and Synot that “his hesitation was based on insufficient knowledge of how it all worked.”

He said: “I hope the right people, with the right minds, hearts, abilities and knowledge, will make this a reality.”

He said he wished there was a way to “do it without making it seem like one race of people were being advantaged”, but he acknowledged that Indigenous voices had been ignored in the political space .

“At the end of the day, I’m here to help rather than hinder.” If yes helps, so be it,” he said.

“It’s a positive thing to do. I don’t think I would achieve anything by voting no. If I can do good, I would rather do it than regret it again.

The twist comes days after a video emerged of Indigenous sporting legend Cathy Freeman supporting the Yes campaign and urging her fellow Australians to do the same.

Nine days ago, Kamahl said he didn’t understand what the advisory body would mean for the country and shared a meme of John Farnham’s song You’re The Voice, the soundtrack to the Yes campaign , but changed the lyrics to reflect his personal opinion. at the time.

“What is the voice, I just don’t understand it. It’s just noise and it’s not clear. Vote no-o-oh-oh,” read the meme shared by Kamahl on September 13.

“We are not going to vote for apartheid. We don’t want racial privilege. Vote no-o-oh-oh.

Along with the meme, Kamahl said he was voting no because “I don’t understand everything.”

Kamahl admitted at the time that he was not completely informed about the Voice and did not rule out changing his mind.

“I have to admit I could go back and do some more homework before finally voting, I’ve been a bit lazy,” he told Daily Mail Australia.

“I was a bit flippant about the song, I’ve known John (Farnham) since 1971 and I was a bit surprised that the song was used – whether it was used knowingly or whether he was deceived into giving it.”

“I don’t think there’s any doubt about the need for more inclusiveness for Indigenous people, but I don’t know if this is the right way to go about it.”

He gave an update on his conflicting views earlier this week.

“The Voice contradicts the principle of equality of citizens which consecrates and binds our nation.” My heart says YES, my mind says NO. I remain unstable,” he wrote.