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

Today I want to talk about truth-telling. Australia has a dark past, and as a nation we need to acknowledge our shared history and the hurt and trauma that this history continues to cause. Only then can we move forward together. The impacts of colonisation, dispossession and forced removal are still felt by First Nations peoples, families and communities every single day. On 25 January, the last day of freedom, I, along with many other prominent Western Australians, called for the establishment of an independent truth-telling commission for Western Australia. The truth can be painful, which is why we shy away from it, we ignore it and we pretend it didn't happen. That only maintains the oppressive structures that have led us here in the first place.

Having an independent truth-telling commission will cut through the misinformation of intergenerational trauma experienced by First Nations people and highlight our enduring resilience and active resistance always. It will provide an opportunity for First Nations people to document and protect their stories, their truth, and uncover the untold and unrecognised parts of our history, something that will enrich the lives of all Australians.

Truth-telling allows First Nations people to share cultural heritage and the truth on their terms. It acknowledges sovereignty and self-determination and is an opportunity for healing and justice. I'm encourage by the comments by the former WA Governor Kim Beazley, who said truth-telling on the frontier wars at the Australian War Memorial will give Aboriginal people 'the dignity of resistance'.

Truth-telling can and must take many forms. First Nations people face injustices that go unanswered, and we need a mechanism to hold governments to account for their inaction on these injustices. Truth-telling and treaty-making are essential parts of a reconciled society, and as a senator for Western Australia I call on the WA government to establish a truth-telling commission and on the federal government to take action on advancing the work of the makarrata commission.