Mark Coulton (Parkes, Deputy-Speaker) Share this | Hansard source

I rise tonight to speak on the Constitution Alteration (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice) 2023. I come to this place tonight to speak on this with a feeling that, whichever way this referendum goes, it's not going to be good for our country. I am concerned, and I will point out the reasons why I have concerns about the proposal and I'll talk about the other side of it. But I just want to put on the record that I believe that the Parkes electorate has the second-highest percentage of Aboriginal people of any seat in this room: 16½ per cent of my constituents are Aboriginal people. There are Aboriginal people among the citizens of all the communities in my area. Many of them are in leadership in local towns. Indeed, two of my electorate staff in my office are Aboriginal people. They weren't chosen to work in my office because they were Aboriginal people; they were chosen because they were the best people for the job, and they are doing an excellent job.

At the last election, I believe, I was one of a few people on this side of the House that actually got a swing to them. That was largely because the communities that have high proportions of Aboriginal people supported me. I actually got a 17 per cent swing to me in Brewarrina, and in the election before I got a 34 per cent swing to me in Goodooga. I actually won the seat of the town of Wilcannia, which is the home of the Indigenous-Aboriginal Party of Australia. I'm telling you this because I wear the burden of responsibility of representing these people who have given me their support very, very dearly. For nearly 16 years I have been their voice in this parliament. One of the things that I have been finding upsetting—I'm sure many in my electorate have too—has been some the patronising contributions we have heard from the other side of the chamber from people who clearly are speaking from an intellectual or philosophical level without having an understanding of what they are talking about.

Since this proposal has become a definite that was going to happen, I have been meeting with community leaders right across my electorate—people like Alistair Ferguson, who heads up the Bourke Tribal Council. They were instrumental in setting up the Justice Reinvestment Program, a program that has got national attention for dealing with issues in their local community—a success driven by local leadership. If I go up the river a little to Brewarrina, six of the nine councillors on Brewarrina Shire Council are Aboriginal. The general manager of the council is an Aboriginal man, and they are doing an amazing job in that community. They are paving roads. Eighty per cent of the workforce at Brewarrina Shire Council are Aboriginal people, and they are doing an incredible job of developing that part of the world around Brewarrina, Goodooga and Gongolgon. It's the home of the fish traps, one of the oldest manmade structures on earth; it apparently predates the pyramids. Bradley Hardy does an incredible job of explaining to visitors the history of the traps and the cultural history of the people on the river there—the good and the bad as well; not glossing over history.

What I am finding incredibly disappointing is the speeches from people who don't know who are claiming that nothing has happened. I find that offensive to the people that I represent. I can talk you about young men and women that I met as students in schools in Moree and Brewarrina and other places who now have senior roles in state and federal government, who are practising doctors, who are high authorities in land management with the Rural Fire Service—a whole range of occupations and local leadership. Most of my shire councils have Aboriginal people on them, including someone I have a great admiration for, Vietnam veteran Vic Bartley, who is a long time councillor at Bourke. These are local leaders. To say that Aboriginal people haven't had a voice and a say in their destiny is incredibly offensive.

I can tell you, from speaking to my constituents, they are concerned about a voice that is selected by this parliament. They are concerned that there will be people who may have political allegiances making up the Voice. They are convinced that there will be no-one represents them and their individual circumstances that would get an opportunity to be a part of that voice.

The other issue is: who is an Aboriginal person? I suspect that's why the Voice will be selected and not voted upon. As I said, 16½ per cent of the people in my electorate identify as Aboriginal people. But they are just people. They go to work every day, they've got their kids at school, they probably do better than average in the local sporting teams. If you go to my towns and see the local footy teams, or the golf course, there is no way that people are treated by race. Now we are looking at putting into the Constitution something to identify people by race permanently. I can't possibly see the upside of doing that. By putting it in the Constitution it is there forever, I believe. Some of the older members of my community have memories of ATSIC; they certainly don't have fond memories of that time. They are concerned we will end up with a group of people that's not accountable especially to those people.

I said I have concerns if this goes either way. I am concerned that if it doesn't get up—and I am definitely not voting for it, and I suspect it might not get up—that also is quite negative. I only wish the government had put some more thought into it and put up something that was acceptable to the Australian people. The idea that this could be legislated by parliament is not a strange one. I'm on the record; if you go back to my first speech, I talked about constitutional recognition for Aboriginal people. I'm certainly not opposed to that. What I am opposed to is a body that, once it is in place, is there forever. If it comes to a position where the people I represent feel they aren't being represented by that body, what is the mechanism for them to have some say and get their voices through? We've seen some of the proponents be quite aggressive and disrespectful to people with an alternative point of view in this whole process.

I'm incredibly proud of the efforts of the people I represent. Last year there were over 70 Aboriginal students who did the HSC in Dubbo. That is an incredible result from what it was 10 years ago. We see that the REDI.E corporation are running a supermarket where the people of Wilcannia can get fresh food for the same price as they can at large centres. We've seen a young lad of 18 go to New Zealand and beat the Kiwis at the Golden Shears shearing competition—a real role model to other young people to go into the shearing industry, which is a well-respected and time-honoured tradition for young people getting a start in life. Many people I know start off shearing and move onto other things.

I've listened to the contributions in this House. I find that they're patronising. I find they're really not speaking on behalf of real people. I am concerned that the people I represent, that have put their faith in me for the last 15½ years, are not going to gain a benefit from this proposal. I am concerned with the way this is going.

Debate interrupted.

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