Cathy O'Toole (Herbert, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Along with my colleagues, I welcome the report of the Joint Select Committee on Constitutional Recognition Relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples 2018. I am very proud to rise to speak to the report and, in doing so, I believe it is only fair that I acknowledge the Bwgcolman people of Palm Island, the Wulgurukaba and the Bindal people in my electorate of Herbert.

It has been more than a quarter of a century since the High Court's Mabo decision first acknowledged that terra nullius was a myth and, in fact, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are and always have been the traditional owners of this great land we call Australia. During that time, a whole generation of younger Australians have grown up with a sense that the Constitution, written in the days of White Australia, needed to be changed to reflect the unique status of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in this country, yet little progress has been made because of deep disagreements over what form recognition should take.

As a nation, we asked our First Nations people: what does recognition mean to you? They delivered, in most recent times, the Uluru Statement from the Heart, which was promptly rejected out of hand by this government. So Labor did what Labor does best: we fought for those people who have been ignored and left behind, our First Nations people. This commitment was pushed by Labor and, as a result of the report that I am speaking on here today, has been led by Labor. This report addresses some of the most important challenges for us as a nation—that is, acknowledging and including our First Nations people, recognising our First Nations people, and truth-telling about our history. Most importantly, it addresses how we as a nation can move forward together as a united and fair nation.

I want to acknowledge the hard work and dedication of the members of the committee; in particular, Senator Patrick Dodson, Senator Malarndirri McCarthy, the Hon. Linda Burney and the Hon. Warren Snowden. I also pay tribute to the committee's co-chair, the member for Berowra, Julian Leeser. This committee has had the enormous responsibility of travelling across Australia and listening to the stories of First Nations people. The committee has heard their stories, some of which were incredibly difficult for people in those communities to tell, especially the people who felt forgotten and ignored. The committee has arrived at some shared understanding on a way forward for the parliament to consider. The committee was established in March and presented its interim report in July. It held 27 hearings in communities around Australia. In June and July the committee held hearings in Kununurra, Falls Creek, Fitzroy Crossing, Broome, Canberra, Dubbo, Sydney, Adelaide and Perth. The committee also attended a meeting of the four Northern Territory land councils in Barunga. Barunga commemorated the 30th anniversary of the promise of a treaty that was made by Prime Minister Hawke.

In September and October the committee conducted additional public hearings in Canberra, Wodonga, Shepparton, Melbourne, Thursday Island, Townsville, Palm Island, Brisbane and Redfern. I attended the hearings in Townsville and on Palm Island. The stories and experiences that were shared by people in my communities were incredibly moving. I refer to Lynore Geia, an academic with a PhD, who was born on Palm Island. Her story is one of incredible resilience: a young woman born, raised and educated on Palm who now has a PhD in the field of health from James Cook University. But what was really sad was listening to her talk about how, even as an academic with a PhD, at times she did not feel that she was equal to her peers.

One of the elders, whose mother grew up in the dormitories on Palm Island, said that recognition would take time. She wondered if this nation was even ready for such a huge reform. She talked about the need for truth-telling. She asked how we can reform if we don't know the truth of what actually happened.

Those people who lived on Palm Island at that time—in excess of 47 language groups—lived by the bell; they had no choice. A bell rang, and you got up. A bell rang, and you did your jobs. A bell rang, and you went to bed. Those people had no say in how they lived. Their children were separated from their parents. Their parents were sent to the mainland to work in domestic roles when they were as young as 17 or 18. Those people on Palm, particularly the elders, listened and gave evidence in the committee hearing with some trepidation and some real concern for what it would mean for them. They could not go through a 1967 referendum again, as Townsville was one of the two places in the country that voted no. The concerns for them were very real, and they want time for the yarning to happen; they want time for people to hear their story.

On top of the hearings, the committee also received nearly 500 submissions and 47 supplementary submissions. This is a huge workload, and I want to genuinely acknowledge all of the senators and members and the secretary involved in this committee. As my colleagues have said before me—but is worth noting again—although differences exist between the parties on these nationally significant issues, we do appreciate the efforts of the committee members to find common ground and to enable the parliament to go forward.

In the interim report, the committee considered in detail the proposal coming from the Statement of the Heart for a voice to parliament. Since July, the committee continued to seek the views of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and others about how best to achieve constitutional recognition. In this final report, the committee endorses the proposal for a voice. The committee recommends a process of co-design between government and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to work through the details of the voice during the term of the 46th Parliament. The committee also recommends that the legal form and role of the voice should be determined following the process of co-design. These recommendations are significant steps for the parliament to discuss and consider in the hope of moving us towards a cross-party and agreed approach to constitutional recognition.

The committee also makes important recommendations in relation to truth-telling about Australian history. Seeking a fuller understanding of Australia's history will lead to a more reconciled nation. As one important example, the committee recommends the establishment of a national resting place in Canberra for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander unknown remains that cannot be returned to country. It will be a place for commemoration, healing and reflection. Labor will be guided by the committee's report on this issue.

As a party, we remain committed to using this report as one step towards the future of a reconciled Australia—an Australia that recognises First Nation people in our Constitution, values the history of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to a modern Australia and entrenches recognition in our nation's birth certificate: our Constitution. Labor remains committed to all elements arising from the Statement from the Heart and we will continue to work with First Nations people for a voice to parliament, constitutional entrenchment of the voice and a truth-telling and agreement-making process.

These are high-order issues for Labor, and quite rightly so. There has been some quite intense discussion on what should come first: a referendum, legislation or co-design. In some ways, this is a matter of political judgement, working through all of the legal consequences that words bring to constitutional consideration to achieve a successful outcome for First Nations people and the broader Australian community.

A matter not covered in this report is the issue of a republic. Labor is also keen to hold a conversation—an important conversation—with the Australian people on the issue of a republic. The republic will be an important conversation, but we have committed to constitutional change relating to acknowledging our First Nations voice as our first priority and our very clear focus.

Labor has led the way on this important issue of reconciliation. There is a general desire to get on with it, to get things done quickly but thoroughly, and to push for an early referendum. All of this will take political courage—political courage for the government of the day in passing the law, making it possible for any constitutional change to occur. Then it will take political courage for the opposition of the day and those on the cross benches to support the question and the process of the referendum. Finally, it will take courage amongst the Australian people—courage to decide the future that we want to see for our great nation, courage to say yes to recognition and reconciliation and the courage of the majority of the voters nationally and the majority of the states to vote in favour of the questions that have been put to the nation.

I now ask all senators and members to respectfully read the report. Read the stories of those in our nation who have felt forgotten. Then we must ask ourselves the question: what sort of Australia do we want to be? Do we want to be a nation that excludes minority communities, or do we want to be a nation and a parliament that represents all Australians? The debate must be respectful in this place if we are to be true leaders. It's time for senators and members to honour our First Nations people in our Constitution so that it might be a constitution for every Australian living on this land.

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