“It seems to me that the co-design process, overseen by Marcia Langton and Tom Calma, has landed us in the best of all possible worlds at this point in time,” Mark told Indigenous affairs reporter Paige Taylor.
“We have their recommendation that the government should note the overwhelming support in the community for constitutionalising the Indigenous Voice. We have work proceeding immediately on the local and regional voices to give Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians input into, not only federal policy, but also state/territory and local policy-making. And for those of us who believe that enabling legislation around the National Voice should be developed now but only passed subsequent to a successful referendum, that door remains open.”
“Ultimately, we all want the same thing, for the voices of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians to be heard and respected, and we now need constructive bipartisanship to get on and deliver it.”
Mark commented that, since there clearly isn’t enough time for legislation to be introduced before the upcoming federal election, depending on the result of that election, we have an opportunity for a referendum and complementary legislation to happen in the next term.
“This lines up neatly with the growing body of community attitudes research from surveys and polling that indicates strong support for a constitutionalised Indigenous Voice. The single strongest theme running through the report and associated commentary is the imperative of respecting what Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians have asked for, which is a body protected through its inclusion in the Constitution.
“Ultimately, we all want the same thing, for the voices of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians to be heard and respected, and we now need constructive bipartisanship to get on and deliver it.”
Mark’s views are also cited in The Australian’s editorial today, which notes that he is a strong supporter of constitutional recognition and “pleased with the state of play”.
To read the online edition of the article, click here.
To read the print edition of the article, click here.
To read the editorial, click here.
