Destiny of a People - Opinion Piece

Later this year, all Australians, will have their say in a referendum to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in our Constitution.

Whether you are casting your vote at the local primary school, community centre or in the church hall. Every vote is equal. Every vote is powerful. For in the flick of every pen lay the destiny of a people.

Many have asked, how I will vote later this year. My answer is simple, I will vote, ‘Yes’. And I will encourage every person I meet to do the same.

This referendum provides all of us with an opportunity to recognise our nation’s past while also creating a pathway to a more reconciled Australia. In establishing a Voice for First Nations peoples in our Constitution we will be providing a mechanism by which their voices can be heard on the laws and policies that effect some of our most vulnerable Indigenous Australians.

I don’t support the Voice in spite of being a Liberal, I support it because I am a Liberal. In the Uluru Statement from the Heart, it says:

‘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.’

My Liberal values direct me to do that which empowers individuals and families the most. To do that which equips people with the resources to determine their own future and write their own story. For too long, top-down government policies and backroom bureaucrats have failed to get the positive outcomes we all want for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples still face significant gaps in life expectancy and educational attainment. They are still proportionally the most incarcerated peoples on the planet. Despite our best efforts, we are not seeing the outcomes. As it stands, the gap between Indigenous Australians and non-Indigenous Australians will not close in our lifetime.

The Voice is an invitation from Indigenous Australians for us to set a new way forward. We know that when Indigenous communities are involved in decision making, we get better outcomes. When people’s voices are heard we get better outcomes.

For those who say the Voice is a radical reform that will change the way our country works for the worse, I disagree. As Edmund Burke famously said, ‘a state without the means of some change is without the means of its conservation.’

The change proposed is a modest and practical measure to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in our Constitution. The Voice will not have a Veto. It will not be a Third Chamber. It will not divide Australians. It is a body that will exist to provide advice to the executive and parliament.

It is a change that will improve Australia.

Since 1901, our Constitution has had within in it a gap of silence. A silence that we now have the opportunity to fill with the voices of those belonging to the worlds oldest continuing living culture. A silence that can now be filled with the voices of young and old. Filled with the destiny of a people.

As we all come to consider the referendum, I know there will be people who do not share my position. I know that many people will come to their ultimate decision for a variety of reasons. I believe that every Australia should consider the facts and avoid being persuaded by those who only wish to mislead.

Every Australian should have an open mind to what is being proposed and engage with one another with a generosity of spirit. We must listen and be empathetic to differences of view. We must try to see the other person and understand the invitation that has been provided to all Australians.

As Father Antonios Kaldas writes in Statements from the Soul, ‘What do we lose as an Australian society, by granting Indigenous peoples a First Nations Voice? Who is harmed by this? The benefits are many, the drawbacks minuscule. Our better angels whisper to us that living in a just society that respects its elders, values true wisdom and makes kindness a priority is far better than submitting our souls to self-interest and close-mindedness.’