Voice campaign starts

A CAMPAIGN to encourage people to have conversations about the proposed First Nations Voice to Parliament has kicked off in the region.

The six-week education advertising campaign “History is Calling” will run on television, aiming to raise awareness about the Federal Government’s Voice proposal which will be the focus of a referendum later this year.

The ad features narrator, proud Pitjantjatjara and Nyungar man Trevor Jamieson, as he tells a story about how First Peoples achieved a Voice with the help of all Australians.

The story illustrates what a future might be if locals all supported the Voice at the upcoming referendum.

Alwyn Lyall, Kuku Yalanji man and Uluru Dialogue representative, said the Uluru Dialogue is focused on raising awareness for the Voice in Far North Queensland and that the Voice is a reform that all Australians can be proud of.

“The Voice is the first reform called for in the Uluru Statement and it’s a reform that the men and women of the Regional Dialogues told us would make a real difference to the everyday lives of First Peoples,” Mr Lyall said.

“Broadcasting ‘History is Calling’ in Far North Queensland shows our commitment to building education and awareness.

“It’s our hope people will accept the invitation from the Uluru Statement and understand why the Voice matters.”

Mr Lyall said the Uluru Dialogue is using the “History is Calling” ad to drive conversations about the practical benefits of the Voice.

“We all need to get behind this referendum. The ad shows how powerful these conversations with our families, friends and colleagues are in making change, so let’s keep having them,” he said.

“Over the coming months, we’ll be at market stalls and holding Yarning Circles across Far North Queensland to talk about what the Voice is why it matters and what it will do for the future of this nation.”

FEDERAL Member for Leichhardt, Warren Entsch will oppose the Voice to Parliament which will be subject of a referendum later this year in support of the Liberal Party’s position announced by Opposition Leader Peter Dutton on Wednesday.

Mr Entsch said it was all about “actual change rather than tokenism” and adopting new approaches to improve the lives of Indigenous Australians.

“I’ve always argued that recognition is absolutely overdue and should be in the constitution, and I support that wholeheartedly,” he said.

“However, the Voice as currently put forward by the Government won’t make a tangible difference without involving local popularly elected leaders to present their case for their own respective communities.”

He emphasised that he would support a legislated Voice mechanism, but the focus must be on local voices and addressing a range of issues, including birthing clinics, improved health services, drug and alcohol rehabilitation centres closer to remote communities, and better housing configurations.

“We must engage in local and regional solutions,” he said.

“We don’t need more metropolitan, academic selfappointed leaders dictating to local communities – we can see how well that approach has worked so far.”

Mr Entsch expressed concerns that the current proposal, if passed, would likely not address longstanding issues that have plagued many remote Indigenous communities.

“Enshrining a Voice in the Constitution may seem to some like a solution, but I have significant reservations that it won’t actually address the issues in remote communities and could, in fact, make things worse,” he said.