A prominent Northern Territory Aboriginal leader has labelled the Prime Minister's plans for constitutional change as "hopeless" for First Nations people.
A day after Anthony Albanese’s landmark speech at the Garma Festival in North East Arnhem land, there are renewed calls to prioritise a national treaty rather than a voice to parliament.
"Voice itself, it's hopeless it's not much at all," Yingiya Mark Guyula told NITV News.
"It's not good enough, that's not what we want. People here don't want voice, we want voice included into treaty, and we want truth-telling into treaty."
The Labor government is committed to implementing the Uluru Statement from the Heart in full, with a treaty the second aspect of the process.
Mr Guyula, who is an Independent member of the NT Legislative Assembly, said his people have been waiting decades for action on a treaty, which would give Aboriginal communities the right to veto.
"Through a treaty we want to say, no we don't want that policy, we don't want your policy, you listen to us," he said.
"It will roll back the intervention, it will roll back stronger futures, it will send families to move back onto their Country and give us strength and power again.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (left) shakes hands with Yothu Yindi Foundation chair Galarrwuy Yunupingu. Source: AAP
Question before detail
Mr Albanese proposed a "simple" referendum question for the country to consider as well as three draft changes to the constitution.
“Do you support an alteration to the Constitution that establishes an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice?" he said.
Speaking to the ABC on Sunday, Albanese said that despite immediate calls for detail, the legislation of the structure of the Voice "won't happen before the referendum."
"One of the things I'm trying to avoid - as occurred at the end of the last century when a referendum wasn't successful - is people looking for all of the detail and saying well, if you disagree ...with one out of the 50 (clauses) but 49 are OK, vote no," he said.
'The right start'
Garma attendees continued to discuss the proposals. Former Liberal candidate and Bundjalung and Yuin man Warren Mundine said the Voice should be legislated as opposed to constitutionally enshrined.
But he said Albanese's words were "the right start to the conversation" and he hopes for unity in the discussions going forward.
"We need to stop the arguments, the stupidity. This is very important for us in whatever the end result is. We've got to work together and have that conversation together," he told NITV News.
Uphold and Recognise chair Sean Gordon said there needs to be a "clear, coordinated strategy" for a successful referendum.
He also estimated the yes campaign would need about $20 million, saying much of that would need to come from non-Indigenous Australians, who make up 97 per cent of the population.
"We now have to do that as Indigenous people and if we can't, this thing's dead in the water," he said.
Pitjantjatjara woman Sally Scales, who is also part of the leadership group of the Uluru Statement, called on non-Indigenous people to come on board as they would ultimately decide the fate of the referendum.
"What are you going to do? how are you going to use your privilege, your voice to give us a voice?" she said.
- With AAP
