Dorinda Cox (WA, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

When I came to this place a few years ago, I hoped I wouldn't have to continue to repeat myself by way of explaining history. It's the reason Senator Shoebridge and I pursued and pulled together a private senator's bill on a makarrata commission. The word 'makarrata', contrary to what the Prime Minister told everyone and continues to tell everyone, is about a struggle, coming together, a conversation. It's the Yolngu word gifted in the Uluru Statement from the Heart from 2017.

History in this country can be turned on its head. History in this country can be manipulated by people opposite for the following of people who listen to One Nation politicians who come into this place with motions like this—a referral to the Legal and Constitutional Affairs References Committee for an inquiry into native title. Senator Ayres is exactly right; last year there was this same conversation. It feels like groundhog day in this place. We have to get up and continually tell this to people who don't show up all the time, who are not attuned to what is happening in communities, who are not listening to what's happening in committees and who are blind and deaf to the fact that we have 65,000 years of history and culture, connection, people, rock art, song, dance, ceremony, teachings and learnings. That 'farce' Senator Hanson refers to describes this referral; this motion is a farce.

I will highlight some of the things Senator Hanson said. First Nations people don't pay tax in this country. You know how we pay tax? Through our blood, sweat and tears. What happened in this nation was what they did to rip apart our families. In Western Australia and Queensland, where y'all come from, it's the history of the 1905 act—the assimilation policy, the White Australia policy and the history of that, the colonial legacy of this nation. And it's being perpetuated through stunts like this, Senator Hanson, for your donations, for people following you, for social media and, I don't know, to sell gin or vodka or whatever you're selling this week—that this is about how all Australians feel about First Nations people in this country. Well, I've got news for you, Senator Hanson and One Nation followers: it's not how all Australians feel about First Nations people.

I am a very proud Noongar Yamatji woman who comes from five generations of my family being disconnected. The legislation in this country allowed my ancestors to be removed from their country. With the attempt to disconnect us from our native tongue, they might as well get a pair of scissors and cut our tongues off. We weren't given the gift of being able to learn our language. That was your law, not ours. The legislation in this country, at the state level, allowed us to be placed alongside the environment—flora and fauna. That's not a myth. That's actually true. The segregation and the deliberate acts of removal of our children are what helped cause the situation that we are currently in.

When we talk about the law, native title came off the back of the Mabo No. 2 determination. This is like a history lesson, because I feel like I've said this so many times before, about the concept of terra nullius. The British didn't just turn up and find this land vacant. That's not true. That's why the Mabo determination, the two High Court challenges, enabled us to disprove terra nullius. There's 30,000 years of connection and culture that, in my clans, I can prove. I can prove that. The High Court has determined that. They use legal instruments like the Native Title Act, the act you now want to review as part of your erasure policy, to erase us. You want to put your sunset clause in there. That's the bit that you said out loud, and then you thought, 'I'd better not put that there', so you get up and amend it. Well, guess what? It's too late. Everyone sees the hollowness in what it is that you are trying to do.

Senator Ayres was actually pretty on point with what he said about extremism, because this level of extremism is pointed to the first chapter of the history of this nation, the precolonial history, which actually is Australia's history. Australians should be proud of that. We want them to be proud of that. We want to share that. Senator Hanson, you don't want to share that. You don't want that for Australia. That's really, really clear, because every time you come in this place all you do is rubbish Aboriginal people—every single time. It's like you've got people on that side of the chamber now who—