In these politically divisive times leading up to the Voice referendum, I’m impressed with the calm, positive approach by the ‘Yes’ side. This contrasts with the alarmist, ‘sky’s gonna fall’ approach of the ‘No’ side.
Hypocrisy is front and centre of the ‘No’ campaign. Mr Dutton would have us believe he can support those elements of the proposed constitutional change that would recognise the Indigenous people’s long occupation of this country, but not the part that allows them to have an early involvement through a representative council in how laws affecting them are made. To me that’s both duplicitous and a disturbing political ploy.
Yet, it is axiomatic that unless there is an Indigenous focal group deliberating, resolving internal differences and then speaking ‘as one’, the Indigenous policy area is going to continue to be dismissed by governments as ‘too hard’. And instead of acting in concert with the citizens affected, a government will be forced to ‘send in the troops’ (a sure sign of policy failure) as it did in the case of the NT intervention.
I would like to make the reader an offer: There will soon be an occasion when you can exercise very effective ‘sovereignty’ in this regard. Historically, ‘sovereignty’, in the form of a person, meant the right to make laws, rule others, and control a domain. In Australia, sovereign power rests with the people and is exercised through representative bodies such as federal and state parliaments. And each of these parliaments has different areas of law-making power. For example, the Commonwealth makes defence laws and the states make laws about education.
On the occasion of this referendum each citizen has exactly as much power as any Peter [Dutton] or Anthony [Albanese]. It’s a unique opportunity to tell politicians how they are to involve Indigenous people in making laws that affect Indigenous people. You don’t have this opportunity even at elections.
So, best not to waste the referendum opportunity as it may be the only time you have such sovereign power in your lifetime. There is no exercise of citizen sovereignty by voting ‘No’ as things (like ‘closing the gap’) will likely continue in their perilous state.
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
