Explained | What is Australia’s historic Indigenous Voice to parliament proposal? Why it might get rejected?

Australians are set to vote in a historic referendum on Sunday (Oct 14) which could see a change in the country’s constitution for the first time in nearly five decades…or not, and here’s why.Back in March, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s government proposed enshrining a ‘Voice to Parliament’ in the country’s constitution, to recognise the country’s Indigenous people.

However, one of the recent and final opinion polls conducted ahead of the vote showed that Australians are set to overwhelmingly say ‘No’ to the change as debateabout the proposal rages on across the country.

Notably, constitutional referendums are difficult to pass in Australia. So far, the country has approved only eight out of the 44 referendums since independence in 1901. The current referendum asks voters to give only a ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ response to the proposed change.

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The question on the ballot paper will be:

“A Proposed Law: to alter the Constitution to recognise the First Peoples of Australia by establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice.

Do you approve this proposed alteration?”

What is the ‘Voice to Parliament’?

The establishment of the ‘Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice’, simply known as the ‘Voice to Parliament’, was proposed by First Nations Australians following a lengthy and widespread consultation process to find the best way to achieve constitutional recognition of Indigenous people in Australia.

The Voice was recommended by a historic document in 2017 called the Uluru Statement from the Heart, which would recognise Indigenous people in the Australian constitution by creating a body to advise parliament.

The proposal drafted by more than 250 Indigenous leaders in 2017 would lead to the creation of an independent and permanent advisory body, the members of which would be made up of and chosen by First Nations people from communities across Australia.

Indigenous Australians make up about 3.8 per cent of the total 26 million population. They have inhabited the land for about 60,000 years but have not been mentioned in the country’s 122-year-old constitution.

Not to mention, they also performbelow national averages on most socio-economic measures and face disadvantages including discrimination, poor health and education outcomes and high incarceration rates.

While the Australian constitution allows the government to make laws for Indigenous people, the Voice would be a way for them to be consulted on those laws.

The Voice would give advice to the Australian parliament and government on issues which affect the lives of the country’s Indigenous population on issues such as education, health, housing, justice and other policies in the hope that it would lead to better outcomes for the community.

However, the government would not be under any obligation to act on the advice.

The Australian government says the design of the Voice will be guided by the principles which include – providing independent advice to parliament and government; chosen by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people based on the wishes of the local communities; it will be gender-balanced and including youth; will be empowering, community-led, inclusive, respect, and culturally informed; accountable and transparent; work alongside existing organisations and traditional structures.

The Voice will not have a programme delivery function or a veto power.

Arguments in favour of the proposal

In the Uluru Statement, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people say that they feel a “powerlessness” when tackling structural issues to improve their lives.

In addition to the previously mentioned issues that Indigenous Australians face, their life expectancy is about eight years lower than non-Indigenous people.

They argue that this is because of a failure to properly consult them about the solutions.

Non-Indigenous people are making decisions about communities which “they have never visited and people they do not know,” Professor Megan Davis, an Uluru Statement signatory, wrote in an opinion piece last year.

Indigenous Australians say that not only will the government be able to make better decisions to help the community but also save money.

The opposition

While Albanese’s centre-left Labor government has backed the change, most of the opposition Liberal-National conservatives have urged Australians to vote “No” and argued that it will divide the country by race.

The opposition parties also have argued it would not provide practical outcomes for Indigenous people and that regional and local committees in their communities could be more effective than a national body.

Some argue that Indigenous people are already represented fairly in the parliament with 11 Indigenous lawmakers which represent 4.8 per cent of the chamber.

Notably, not all Indigenous people are in favour. Those against it argue that it is a distraction from achieving practical and positive outcomes and would not fully resolve the issues affecting them.

Additionally, the country needs to prioritise the creation of a treaty with Indigenous people which would be a negotiated and legally binding agreement, as per BBC.

Latest opinion poll

The referendum requires a majority of Australians to vote “Yes” in order for the Voice to become a reality as well as a majority support in at least four of the six Australian states.

So far, more than four million people have already cast their ballot after early voting began on October 2 and with less than two days to go, a final poll by YouGov published on Thursday (Oct 12).

The poll shows 56 per cent oppose the proposal while 38 per cent support it.

The YouGov polled 1,519 voters for the survey out of which six per cent were undecided. “Our final poll indicates a sweeping ‘No’ victory – with nearing six in 10 voters intending to cast a ‘No’ vote,” said Amir Daftari, YouGov Director of Polling and Academic research.

The poll also found that young people are more likely to vote ‘Yes’ while older voters overwhelmingly favour ‘No’.

(With inputs from agencies)

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