Australian governments still have a “missionary zeal” of wanting to “deal with Aboriginal people” that hasn’t changed, and unless there is an Indigenous voice advising governments the present dysfunction will continue, the former minister for Indigenous Australians Ken Wyatt has told a parliamentary committee hearing in Perth.
Wyatt, a Yamatji man, said the dysfunction has led to what he called “a futility syndrome” among Indigenous young people, who feel despair that they have no future in the nation because they are never listened to.
“And what do you do, if you are not listened to? You rebel,” Wyatt told the joint committee on the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander voice referendum.
matters relating to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice, including its composition, functions, powers and procedures.</li></ul><p><strong>How would it work?</strong></p><p>The voice would be able to make recommendations to the Australian parliament and government on matters relating to the social, spiritual and economic wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.</p><p>The voice would be able to table formal advice in parliament and a parliamentary committee would consider that advice. But the voice co-design report said all elements would be non-justiciable, meaning there could not be a court challenge and no law could be invalidated based on this consultation.</p><p><strong>How would it be structured?</strong></p><p>The co-design report recommended the national voice have 24 members, encompassing two from each state, the Northern Territory, ACT and Torres Strait. A further five members would represent remote areas and an additional member would represent Torres Strait Islanders living on the mainland.</p><p>Members would serve four-year terms, with half the membership determined every two years.</p><p><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2022/dec/05/what-is-the-indigenous-voice-to-parliament-referendum-australia-how-would-it-work-why-should-we-have-it-explainer?CMP=cvau_atom">For more detail, read our explainer here.</a></p>","image":"https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/3f4ecb2112db6f08a6fc70b8f6fe593d9bdb02b4/0_191_4222_2534/4222.jpg?width=620&quality=85&auto=format&fit=max&s=10944b10d1e732ddbace73d627aa86da","credit":"Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP","pillar":0}”
Quick Guide
What is the Indigenous voice to parliament and how would it work?
