Students for the Voice: Inside the Next Chapter
By Saffron Geyle
On 14 October, Australia’s first referendum in twenty-four years will take place, and potentially change Australian history forever. Deriving from the Uluru Statement From the Heart, issued at Uluru on 26 May 2017, the Voice to Parliament referendum is set to structurally and effectively be a turning point in the political and judicial systems of current Australia.
The Uluru Statement From the Heart is a foundational document that was officially issued to the people of Australia at a gathering near Uluru on 26 May 2017. The statement contained amendments from thirteen regional dialogues and was endorsed by the National Constitutional Convention attended by 250 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders.
The Referendum Council released a Final Report on July 30 2017 detailing the formation of this statement and surrounding dialogues. The statement essentially proposed three elements to Indigenous Australian constitutional and historical recognition; “Voice, Treaty, Truth”.
The Voice to Parliament referendum falls under the first element put forward by the Statement of the Heart, calling for a constitutionally enshrined Aboriginal voice in Parliament. This would entail an independent advisory body being permanently established to make representations to the Australian Parliament and Executive Government regarding policies and legislation regarding and affecting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
This body will be known as ‘The Voice’. The Voice will be chosen by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples based on the wishes of local communities. These members will not be appointed by the Executive Government, and members would serve for a fixed period of time to ensure accountability for their communities.
Members of The Voice will be Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, with representation from each state and territory, as well as the Torres Strait Islands. The Voice will also “have balanced gender representation”.
On 4 April of this year, former Vice-Chancellor Brian Schmidt released a statement from the ANU Council regarding the university’s standpoint on the upcoming referendum, alongside a personal message from his viewpoint posted in this update.
The statement read that the University Council “unreservedly supports enshrining an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice in the Constitution”.
“The Council acknowledges that differing views exist within the University community and that the University is a place where respectful informed debate and freedom of expression are actively encouraged.”
Schmidt continued to write and acknowledge that the university has a diverse range of views on the Voice and that it is his personal opinion and the Council’s that are officially aligned. Schmidt wrote that he is in support of ANU community members engaging in discussion and the referendum “from an informed position”.
“As I’ve said before, my personal view is that establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to Parliament and enshrining it in the Constitution is a positive step for our nation.”
From the level of involvement with the Voice referendum coming from the position of Vice-Chancellor onwards, students have also been actively creating discussion and action towards the referendum. In May of this year, a new ‘Students for the Voice’ campaign was launched. The formation of the group was to hold an on-campus campaign for a national issue, aligning and collaborating with the Yes23 national campaign.
Observer spoke to co-founders Brandon Lee and Ashlyn Horton on their experiences with running the Students for the Voice campaign, and the impacts that movements like these can have on students at the ANU and nationwide. Brandon Lee stated that the campaign and its founding this year was not reduced to simply himself and his co-founder, but rather was of significance to all students at the ANU and across Australia.
“It’s really not about us two in particular, it is really about sort of consultation and collaboration with different group dealings to start a specific effort to engage students here on the referendum in a very respectful capacity.”
Lee also stated that the campaign has not only been collaborating with other nationwide campaigns and groups, they have also focused on holding ongoing discussion with the ANU Indigenous department and have taken into consideration the seriousness of the “circumstances on campus”.
“We really respect the indigenous department space for being inclusive of its students’ diversity of viewpoints on the Voice, and they’re taking an official neutral position.”
Lee stated that they had held conversations with the Indigenous department to ensure accountability, while “starting a complementary ‘Yes’ campaign that is separate to the educational campaign the Indigenous department is running”.
“In addition to being under the direction of the NUS First Nations officer, we have worked with the Indigenous department on making sure that our efforts here are very respectful.”
Ashlyn Horton, co-founder of the ‘Students for the Voice’ campaign, also stated that the conversations with the Indigenous Department occurred before the launching of the movement and continue to take place.
“You know, it’s a constant conversation. And we’re doing whatever we can to support the interest department in their educational campaign.”
Horton emphasised the importance of education in relation to the vote, stating that the campaign has been supporting and promoting the Indigenous department’s education campaign “because education is a huge part of getting the vote”.
The campaign has facilitated informative and social events for students since its launching throughout the year such as meetings, movie nights, campaign training sessions, an ‘ANU for Yes’ calling party, and a doorknocking event in Queanbeyan last month. Being part of the on-campus group for the founders meant allowing access and tangible opportunities for “students who wish to partake at a once in a generation movement for reconciliation”.
“It’s about building sort of a community on campus with new students who might not feel like there’s any way to approach a campaign or approach this movement or engage with what the Uluru Statement from the Heart invites us to partake in.”
While the Students for the Voice campaign has launched as an on-campus body of involvement in this referendum, the ANUSA Indigenous Department has also been running educational forums around this topic.
Additionally to this, a ‘Walk for Yes’ rally was held on September 17, which saw a turnout of up to 5000 people, including many ANU students and staff. The rally involved participants gathering on the lawns in front of the Australian National Library, and walking to Parliament in support of the ‘Yes’ vote for the referendum.
Speaking at the rally was Ngunnawal Elder Aunty Violet Sheridan, who spoke in favour of the ‘Yes’ vote.
“This isn’t just about the past, it’s about the future, our voices deserve to be heard in the decisions that shape our lives of our children, our grandchildren.”
Observer spoke to Emma*, a second year student studying at the ANU who was one of the thousands in attendance at this event.
“I chose to attend the voice walk because I believe this referendum represents a possible tipping point in the history of Australia.”
Emma spoke on the turnout of students that she noticed at the rally, commenting that while she “would have loved to see more of a turnout from ANU students”, she was impressed with the turnout and left feeling “hopeful for the upcoming referendum”.
“We did hear from some incredible young indigenous people who attend ANU, their words were incredibly wise and impactful.”
Emma also commented on the surrounding dialogue and discourse that she has noticed on campus around the Voice to Parliament referendum, and noted that she observed that most students have been “reluctant to talk about it”.
“I do think that as we are getting closer to the date of referendum people are engaging a bit more but there is definitely not as much discourse as I expected there to be on a university campus.”
While rallies, on-campus campaigns, and the university showing their support for the ‘Yes’ vote, there are also ‘No’ campaigns engaging in political discussions nationwide. Spearheading the ‘Recognise a Better Way’ campaign has been former ALP president Warren Mundine, who has stated that “we don’t need another body of bureaucracy we need to recognise those traditional owners”. Running against the ‘Yes’ vote alongside Mundine has been Senator Nampijinpa Jacinta Price, who commented on the “divisive nature” of the upcoming referendum.
“The funding highlights that the government is finally acknowledging the divisive nature of its referendum.” Senator Price stated.
It is essential as with any vote, that irrespective of a student’s political beliefs surrounding this topic, each individual makes an informed decision in the upcoming referendum.
Researching historical context, especially surrounding the Uluru Statement from the Heart is an accessible and effective way to form a foundational understanding of this historically momentous decision.
Understanding the perspectives of the ‘Yes’ campaign and the ‘No’ campaign can be a helpful and informative way to contextualise understanding and making a final decision.
Information on voting can be found on the AEC official website. Students who wish to submit an early vote can do so either by post or attending an early voting centre before the date of the referendum, which will be held on Saturday 14 October.
Students selecting this option must meet the eligibility requirements for an early vote submission. If choosing to vote in-person on the day of the referendum, students will attend a polling centre and submit their ballots, writing either ‘Yes’ or ‘No’
When speaking to Ashlyn Horton, co-founder of the ‘Students for the Voice’ campaign on-campus, Horton left Observer with a message.
“If the referendum, if it doesn’t go through, we will be moving 30 years back in terms of reconciliation, instead of moving just a little bit forward. I would like to move forward.”
Observer recommends all students to educate themselves on correct information that can be found in the websites included above.
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Graphics by Will Novak
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