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Julia Gillard wants Indigenous people recognised in constitution

Kellie Lazzaro reported this story on Monday, November 8, 2010 18:14:00

MARK COLVIN: One hundred and ten years on from federation, Australians are to vote on whether Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders should be recognised in the Constitution. The vote will happen sometime in the next three years.

The Prime Minister Julia Gillard made good on Labor's election promise and announced the plan for a referendum in Melbourne today.

A panel made up of MPs, community leaders and Indigenous people will advise government on how best to amend the Constitution. But the Prime Minister admits that referenda rarely succeed and the process will be a challenging one.

Kellie Lazzaro reports.

KELLIE LAZZARO: John Howard said he supported the idea. Tony Abbott does too. And today the Prime Minister Julia Gillard said now is the right time to start talking about a referendum on whether to recognise Indigenous Australians in the Constitution.

JULIA GILLARD: And we certainly believe that constitutional recognition is an important step to building trust and respect.

KELLIE LAZZARO: Labor promised the referendum during the election campaign. Ms Gillard says the time is ripe because constitutional recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders has widespread parliamentary support.

JULIA GILLARD: Prime minister John Howard made a landmark address about this very matter to the Sydney Institute in 2007. Tony Abbott, the Opposition Leader, supports constitutional recognition. The Australian Greens have expressed their support for such a referendum, as have the Independents in the House of Representatives, Rob Oakeshott, Tony Windsor and Andrew Wilkie.

Now this broad base support in the Australian Parliament gives us a rare opportunity in the life of our nation. Support this widespread across the Parliament means we have a once in a 50 year opportunity for our country.

KELLIE LAZZARO: But referenda rarely succeed. Australia last held a referendum in 1999 when voters rejected a move to become a republic. In fact only eight of the 44 referenda since federation have been successful.

The Attorney-General Robert McClelland says there's hope for this one because one of those that did succeed was the 1967 referendum.*(see editor's note)

ROBERT MCCLELLAND: That had some 90 per cent of Australians supporting it so with the historic opportunity, with bipartisan support, with good will, with consultation and appropriate advice we are confident that this presents an historic opportunity for Australians.

KELLIE LAZZARO: The Aboriginal Affairs Minister Jenny Macklin says the referendum is the next step in the process of closing the gap in Indigenous disadvantage, which she says started with the national apology to the Stolen Generation.

JENNY MACKLIN: We are very optimistic that this change can be brought about and that's the job of the expert panel - to build that consensus across the political spectrum and across this very big country of ours. So this is a very significant day, a very significant step forward in that journey that we began with the apology.

KELLIE LAZZARO: The expert panel will be established by the end of the year, made up of Indigenous and non-indigenous people, MPs, constitutional lawyers and community leaders. Its job will be to advise how best to amend the Constitution and then embark on a national conversation to build voter support for a "yes" vote.

Prime Minister Julia Gillard says the panel will report back to government by the end of next year.

JULIA GILLARD: This expert body will work closely with organisations with expertise and history of engagement on this issue and that includes the Australian Human Rights Commission, the National Congress of Australia's First Peoples and Reconciliation Australia. Now I'm certain the work of this body will give the referendum every chance of success.

KELLIE LAZZARO: But the Prime Minister wouldn't say whether the referendum will be held before or at the next federal election in 2013. Nor would she be drawn on how the referendum question would be worded or how much it would cost.

The Australian Greens wasted no time taking credit for the move, saying the referendum was part of their agreement with Labor to help form government. The Greens Indigenous spokeswoman, Rachel Siewert, says it's important the debate is not bogged down by politics.

RACHEL SIEWERT: There needs to be very widespread and detailed consultation so that the question that is asked is supported by the community and we need to make sure that the community has a clear understanding of what is being included into the Constitution. This is why it's so important that we get it right because it is so important that, we believe, that this gets up.

KELLIE LAZZARO: To succeed a referendum must attract a majority "yes" vote in a majority of states as well as a majority of the national vote overall.

MARK COLVIN: Kellie Lazzaro.

*EDITOR�S NOTE: 10.11.10 This transcript and story audio have been edited to correct a reference to the 1967 referendum which implied it gave Aboriginal people the vote. The referendum approved a change to the constitution barring Aborigines from being counted in the census, effectively giving them citizenship with the attendant rights. It also gave the Commonwealth the right to make laws for Aborigines.