Key Points
- The Voice to Parliament legislation has been passed by the lower house.
- The referendum is gaining support in multicultural communities, says Constitutional lawyer Shireen Morris.
- Liberal MP Michael Sukkar raises questions on the structure of the executive body of the Voice.
The has passed the lower house, with the Senate to give its verdict on the legislation by the end of this month.
The Voice is a proposed permanent advisory body that will advise the Parliament and the government on all matters pertaining to the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
Dr Shireen Morris is a senior researcher in Indigenous constitutional rights. She has launched a multicultural appeal to garner widespread support for the Voice, with 120 multicultural organisations having signed the appeal so far.
LISTEN TO
Remembering the most successful referendum in Australian history
SBS Hindi
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She says, "I feel that multicultural Australia thinks these conversations are not for them, but the Australian constitution belongs to us all equally."
Every community needs to participate in the nation-building exercise.Dr Shireen Morris, Director, Radical Centre Reform Lab
He says, "This referendum is divisive. Australia is an equal nation. Every community can demand a separate representation on this basis."
Creating an advisory body that advocates only one particular community is creating inequality.MP Michael Sukkar, Shadow Minister for Social Services
Dr Morris, however, says she has seldom received such comparative arguments from multicultural communities.
She says, "Only the Indigenous communities were historically dispossessed in Australia. All they are demanding is an advisory body that looks out for their interest to undo the years of discrimination, which is not much."
Dr Morris began her research on Indigenous constitutional rights in the year 2011. She herself is a Fijian-Indian Australian and says that she understands the feeling of 'otherness'.
MP Sukkar is a Lebanese-Australian. He says apart from creating a racial divide the Voice legislation is also unclear on its executive details.
MP Michael Sukkar speaks with SBS Hindi. Credit: SBS/Vrishali Jain
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Voice referendum: Supporters gather at Uluru as Parliament debates
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The Voice to Parliament referendum is expected to be put to vote at the end of this year.
While Dr Morris says it is the responsibility of every individual to educate themselves better on the details of this referendum, MP Sukkar feels that whatever one's views may be, communities need to remain respectful.
"That is the essence of democracy. We have different views, but we remain respectful, we remain open," he says.
