No Advisory Body is Going to Close the Gap: Lidia Thorpe

The federal government’s next steps towards a First Nations Voice to Parliament and Constitutional Recognition have been criticised by Independent Senator Lidia Thorpe, who said that no advisory body is going to deliver the real-world action Indigenous Australians need.

Thorpe, who is a Gunai, Gunditjmara and Djab Wurrung mother and grandmother, said that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s comment that Australia can’t keep doing the same thing was strange given that is what the Labor government was doing.

“Here we are with yet another advisory body to make this government feel better about the ongoing colonisation of this country and the genocide being perpetrated against our people,” she said.

“High-paid, hand-picked members of the government’s campaign continue to advocate for a powerless body they will call the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice, whilst our communities’ voices are being ignored all around the country.

“Our people are the most incarcerated on the planet. We are the poorest, our life expectancy is shorter than every other person in this country, suicide continues to rattle our communities, and the government is still stealing our children.”

The comments from Thorpe come after Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese revealed last week the exact wording of the upcoming referendum on whether to change the country’s Constitution.

Voters will be asked: “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?”

The change will involve adding these phrases to the Constitution:

“There shall be a body to be called the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice;

“The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice may make representations to Parliament and the executive government of the Commonwealth on matters relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples;

“The Parliament shall, subject to this constitution, have the power to make laws with respect to matters relating to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice, including its composition, functions, powers and procedures.”

An introductory phrase is also proposed: “In recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Peoples of Australia.”

Thorpe Concerned Voice Goes Against Traditional Indigenous Structures

Thorpe, who famously quit the Greens Party to become the first Blak Sovereign Movement representative in the Parliament, said she was concerned that the representatives chosen by the Labor government had endorsed a body that “has no real substance for First Nations people, no veto rights or decision-making power, and makes no immediate impact to saving the lives of First Nations people today.”

She also said that it went against traditional governing structures practised in the Indigenous communities.

“The PM and this group talk about showing respect to First Nations people while their campaign continues to disrespect the voices that have rejected constitutional recognition and have called for self-determination and Treaty for generations,” she said.

“High-paid, hand-picked members of the government’s campaign continue to advocate for a powerless body they will call the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice, whilst our communities’ voices are being ignored all around the country.

“It might sound lovely and may make people feel good, but this proposed Voice goes against the governance structures that have existed in our communities since time immemorial. It moves our Elders further away from decision-making roles which goes against our cultural protocols.”

High Court Challenges A Potential Side Effect of the Voice

Meanwhile, Indigenous Country Liberal Party Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price said she was very concerned that the current provision that allows the Voice to “make representations” to the “Executive Government,” which she argued could enable the representatives to High Court challenges, Sky News Australia reported.

“If they do not agree with what the executive has to say or what they want to legislate, there is no guarantee that they will not take this to the High Court to challenge,” Senator Price said in Canberra on Thursday.

“Not even a cabinet minister has the right to make a challenge in the High Court about decisions that they don’t agree with.

“If you think they’re not going to challenge the government of the day, the executive, within the high court … this will then put a strain on the rest of the nation for decisions being made for all Australians.”

“This voice proposal, the question going forward and the fact that it refers to the executive is very dangerous. This is a warning to Australians to really understand what’s going on here,” she added.