Australia to hold historic Aboriginal rights referendum on October 14

August 30, 2023

Australia will hold a historic referendum on Aboriginal rights on October 14, aimed at giving them a “voice” in Parliament, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced on Wednesday, but the plan is dividing the country and risks being rejected according to the surveys.

“On this day, every Australian will have a unique opportunity to bring our country together and change it for the better,” the Labor prime minister said. “I ask all Australians to vote yes”.

If the project, launched several months ago, is adopted, the Australian Aborigines, whose ancestors have lived on the continent for at least 60,000 years, will be recognized for the first time in the Constitution, and will have the right to be consulted by government about laws impacting their communities.

But the supporters of the “yes” not arriving for the moment at the top of the polls, some fear that a failure of the referendum will divide Australian society, and will tarnish the country’s reputation internationally.

“Voting no gets you nowhere, it means nothing changes. Voting no closes the door on this opportunity to move forward,” Mr. Albanese said, urging his country to “rise to the situation”.

“Don’t close the door on the next generation of Aboriginal Australians,” he said.

For “yes” activists, the reform could address the inequalities faced by Australian Aborigines.

For the leader of the opposition (liberal) Peter Dutton, this reform would add unnecessary bureaucracy. It is not “in the interest of our country”, he said.

Many Aborigines feel that the proposal does not go far enough.

More than 200 years after British colonization and subsequent persecution of Aboriginal people, these populations suffer severe economic and social inequalities, being more likely to be poor, undereducated, sick or imprisoned, according to studies.

Mr Albanese said that according to some polls, 80% of Australian Aborigines were in favor of the project.

Conservative Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, an Australian Aboriginal “no” activist, believes that this referendum is “the most divisive” ever seen in Australia.

“I think we’re all looking forward to it being over, so we can get down to the real work and tackle the real issues facing our country,” she said ahead of Ms. Albanian.

The first opinion polls had shown broad support for this reform, but this has faded in recent months as political wrangling has followed, according to pollster William Bowe.

A poll taken the day before Mr Albanese’s announcement showed little support for the reform in the key state of South Australia. In another poll, conducted in Tasmania, the first people questioned leaned towards the “no”.

To pass, the amendment to the Australian Constitution must obtain a majority of votes in favor across the country and in most of the eight states.

Former Conservative Foreign Secretary Julie Bishop warned this week that a failed referendum would send a “very negative message” to the rest of the world about Australia’s respect for the principle of equality.