Lidia Thorpe (Victoria, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I want to start by saying that this country is one of only a few that does not have a treaty with its First Nations people. Instead, we are going down the road in reverse and wanting to put First Nations people into the colonising Constitution that was born in 1901 over the top of the oldest constitution on the planet. I will park that for now.

I wish to speak in general support of the intentions of the Referendum (Machinery Provisions) Amendment Bill. It is providing much-needed updates to how referendums are conducted in this country to keep up with our times. It is also a way to prevent foreign interference with matters in this country, and they are truly ours to resolve.

But I also think that the bill fails to address some key matters, in particular, when it comes to the provision of independent and factual information on the referendum cases and accessibility to voting for those who cannot easily attend a voting booth due to various reasons but also accessibility in regard to cultural and linguistic background. Not everyone is white in this country anymore, right? Last, but not least, it's about accessibility for First Nations people to vote, particularly in the upcoming referendum. Given you wiped out 97 per cent of our people and there's only three per cent left, basically it's up to the majority white people in this country to decide what's best for us. On a First Nations voice to parliament it is absolutely essential that First Nations people are getting as much say as possible, which we know we are not given that it is pretty much a white majority in this country who will decide what is best for us.

The debate around the referendum has already lasted many months and will last many more. We've seen politics playing out strongly in the course of this debate, including the separation in communities, being asked, 'Which camp are you in? Are you in the 'yes' camp or the 'no' camp?' and not even taking into account that we have a progressive 'no' who want a treaty and the end to the war that was declared on First Nations people in this country. 'But we'll park that because that doesn't feel good out there'—the fact that genocide still continues in this country against First Nations children. Let's get back to the warm and fuzzy of a voice.

I appreciate that the government has put forward an amendment to their bill to enable the pamphlets to be produced for the referendum after all. However, we have heard, coming out of this Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters report on this bill, that people are concerned about politicians developing these materials. Imagine politicians developing these materials—look at this place!—particularly for the upcoming Voice referendum. And we have heard that there should be an independent entity responsible for developing the pamphlets. Who trusts the politicians in this country anyway?

This is why I am moving today an amendment which would put the responsibility for preparing these materials for the Voice referendum in the hands of the Australian Human Rights Commission. The AHRC is very well respected by all and in a good position to ensure the referendum's implications for human rights are fully considered—because you know politicians in this place don't really care about people's human rights, so how can you trust them? The AHRC would be responsible for ensuring that information is clear and factual and accessible to culturally diverse communities and First Nations communities. Imagine that! Understanding what a referendum actually is about is incredibly important, so that people can make an informed decision, which is what politicians don't want the people of this country to do. They don't want you to know the information that makes the decisions in this place. And this bill goes into that.

Accessibility to information but also to the voting process count in any electoral matters, and it is time we ensure that those who cannot easily physically access a voting booth or who live in remote areas can still vote. Beyond what you all think, their votes actually matter, and you need to make it available to these people, instead of the ableism that occurs in this place too often.

This is why I have proposed that mobile-polling-booth periods in remote areas be extended to 19 days, instead of the turning up then leaving after half an hour, when you've had enough of being in that community. I appreciate that, after conversations with the government on this matter, they actually agreed to my amendment, and therefore I won't putting that forward, because they did see the importance of having the polling booths available for people for a lot longer than they normally are.

Whilst this provision will assist First Nations people in remote communities to vote in referendums, there is more that needs to be done to ensure as many First Nations people as possible can vote, particularly in a referendum which decides over us being put in the colonial Constitution—or not. Senator Dodson just stated that the Constitution is the people's document. Well, since 1901, it has been the white people's document, not ours. Now our people are supposedly going to get acknowledged by this document, but once again we don't get a real say and we certainly don't get any real power.

Something that would make a real difference for the First Nations vote is allowing provisional voting and enrolment on the day, which is why I will move amendments to extend this today. If this government is going to claim that this referendum supports self-determination of First Nations people, then it needs to be doing everything it can to ensure that as many blackfellas as possible vote. We might only be three per cent of the population due to the genocidal acts of previous governments that wiped out 97 per cent of my people. We don't get a say. It's up to everyone else. Where's the self-determination in that?

The government has expressed reservations about allowing provisional voting, even though we have heard of the benefits of it in the inquiry process from the Australian Electoral Commission themselves. I quote the Electoral Commissioner, Mr Rogers, who said:

I would really like to see it for the referendum—

referring to enrolment on the day.

I think it's important. … I know that may not necessarily make it into legislation, but … We think it is a failsafe mechanism … I guarantee that when we get close to the event it will become significant … I think it will be a problem if we don't have it.

So, when First Nations leaders, which you love referring to all the time, and now the Electoral Commissioner himself are going for the inclusion of provisional voting, what will it say if the government does not support this provision? How much faith does this give us that the government listens to advice such as that provided by the proposed First Nations Voice to Parliament?

We know it's a tokenistic gesture from the Labor government. It's the black cladding that you need. But you won't even listen to the advice about ensuring that blackfellas actually get a say in matters that affect them. You're showing your colours now. You talk about voter fraud despite there being no evidence that this actually occurs. That's what you came back with during the negotiations: you're worried about voter fraud if our people get to enrol and vote on the day. Do you know what that is? It's racist. With the AEC dismissing concerns around this, fears of voter fraud are simply racist rhetoric that conservatives have used to suppress First Nations people. Provisional votes still require some form of ID, whether that be a Medicare card or a Centrelink card, and can involve an elder attending the booth to help verify people in the community. It's alright for your Labor elections—you'll allow all that to happen—but, when it comes to this business, you're not doing the same thing. It is not hard to do, and it would be a shame to see this government reject the advice from First Nations people and the Australian Electoral Commission on this measure that would significantly increase the First Nations vote. You would think that, in good faith, you would just do it, but you're going to make it hard for blackfellas to vote. Well, wave the flag.

Article 5 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples states:

Indigenous peoples have the right to maintain and strengthen their distinct political, legal, economic, social and cultural institutions, while retaining their right to participate fully, if they so choose, in the political, economic, social and cultural life of the State.

I know you don't care about the UNDRIP. We know that Australia is only a signatory to it and it's just a token gesture, saying: 'Oh, we're signatory to the UNDRIP, but we really don't care about it and we're really not going to make it part of the law in this country. It makes us feel good that it's just over there somewhere.' This right and the right to citizenship are undermined if First Nations people are not able to exercise their right to vote, especially on a matter which foremost concerns us as a people.

Today I'm also proposing telephone voting provisions similar to those that we were using during COVID to be made permanent so that people in remote areas, in residential care, in hospitals—not just blackfellas but everybody—or in places affected by emergencies, which we know this country is full of, can vote through a secure telephone line. This would also apply to those overseas who have no access to a postal vote or an overseas polling place and would allow homeless people to vote. I mean, you're not looking after them fellas in the first place; at least let 'em vote! Or is it that you're scared they might vote you out when they get the right? All of these matters are incredibly important to ensuring that people—in particular, First Nations people and those from diverse backgrounds—can engage with and access the next referendum; in fact, any referendum.

You talk about the people, you talk about the Voice—you talk, talk, talk. There's no action. Don't talk self-determination when self-determination means that the government control what we decide. It doesn't make sense, and you're in breach of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. And this country is still guilty of genocide, with 22,000 Aboriginal children in out-of-home care today. So give us the right to participate in the democracy you are so precious about. Allow those who aren't as able as all of you are to pick up the phone to vote and to enrol on the day and vote. Allow the people to determine their own destiny, instead of bullying your way through and shutting voices down. I ask you all to consider this properly and I would ask you all to think seriously about supporting my amendments to this bill.