Kate Thwaites (Jagajaga, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

[by video link] I begin tonight by acknowledging that I am speaking from the land of the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation, and I pay my respects to their elders past, present and emerging. I also acknowledge that the chamber where you are is on the land of the Ngunawal and the Ngambri peoples and again pay respects to those owners and custodians of the land.

When Prime Minister Kevin Rudd delivered the national Apology to the Stolen Generations in February 2008, he made it clear that saying sorry wasn't enough, and it's still not. There is no more important task in front of this parliament than closing the gap. Even in the middle of a pandemic, this is the greatest challenge facing this nation, and it is one that we must bring a new approach, new ideas and new commitment to.

I want to commend the work done by the Coalition of Peaks, led by Pat Turner, to get us to this point with this refreshed Closing the Gap. We do have to realise that Aboriginal people and Aboriginal communities are in the best place to know what's needed to change and how to deliver that change. We have to have an approach that's not just set here in Canberra, and we can't expect one approach to work in communities across the country; we must be prepared to do things differently. That's why I'm very proud to be part of a Labor team that is committed to genuine change, and that must start by acting on the Uluru Statement from the Heart—the statement that First Nations people went to so much effort and took time to put together to tell us what they wanted for themselves: to have a voice to parliament that's recognised in our Constitution.

We do all know that changing Australia's Constitution isn't easy. It shouldn't be undertaken lightly. But this is a process that has been going for many years now, and it has not been undertaken lightly. We are at a turning point, and it will require passion and dedication from all of us in this chamber and outside to succeed, and we must succeed to go through a process of truth-telling and treaty-making so that, on the other side, we emerge as a stronger, fairer country.

I'm proud that a future Labor government is committed to establishing a makarrata commission as a matter of priority. We have to tell a different story about this country. We have to reckon with our past so that we can close the gap for the future. I'm proud that a future Labor government is committed to strengthening economic and job opportunities for First Nations people and communities. Employment outcomes are of course interconnected to other quality-of-life outcomes such as health, education and housing. I'm proud that a future Labor government will recognise that First Nations people have authority, knowledge and experience derived from so many millennia of custodianship over their land and their water, and that we will recognise that through doubling the number of Indigenous rangers to 3,800 jobs by the end of the decade. I've seen firsthand just how powerful that program is in so many communities, and I know what a difference rolling that program out more broadly will make.

For eight years, this coalition government has shifted the responsibility for progress on closing the gaps to the states and territories. It's not good enough. The government has clearly walked away from having a voice to parliament. This is not good enough. We have seen an absolute lack of action from the government. Even though we know there are members on their own side who support having a voice to parliament, they're captured by the voices who say, 'It's too hard.' It is not too hard. It is the job of all of us in this place to act on the Uluru Statement from the Heart.

I welcome the reparations for the stolen generation which were announced by the Prime Minister. I acknowledge that it is too late for too many survivors who have already passed away. We must understand that there are ongoing issues, ongoing problems and intergenerational trauma, and that trauma is felt not just by individual people but by whole families and whole communities. As a nation, we must dedicate ourselves to addressing that.

As I said, there is no more important challenge in front of this community. Knowing that only three out of the 17 targets are on track must commit all of us to doing better. We must take a new approach. We must work together, we must listen to Indigenous people and we must lift the quality of life for all First Nations people and for future generations across our country.

See this speech in context