The Uniting Church in Australia
Synod of South Australia
20 April 2021
Submission to the Indigenous Voice Co-design Process
The Uniting Church Synod of South Australia strongly affirms the invitation to all Australians
contained in the Uluru Statement from the Heart to hear, recognise and respect the First
Peoples of this country. Only by enabling and empowering First Peoples towards active,
equitable and respectful participation in shaping the future of Australia can the opportunity
for them to take their true place in the nation be realised. For that, First Peoples need a
Voice.
A longstanding covenant proudly exists between the Uniting Church in Australia and the
Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress (UAICC). The covenant calls Christians to
carry out faithfully Christ's command to love one another and to order ou r life in the church
in truth and justice. We firmly believe fulfilling this command relies on truly hearing the
voices of First Peoples. Therefore, enabling the Voice of First Peoples to be heard must be
made a national priority.
To this end, we advocate for the Voice to Parliament at both federal and state levels. A First
Nations Voice would both recognise First Peoples unique place in Australia's history and
identity. Likewise, it would assist toward a more just response to the historic suppression of
First Peoples participation in key aspects of Australia's life and governance. Importantly,
membership selection of the National Voice must include previously unheard or overlooked
Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander peoples alongside established First Peoples leaders.
Hence, after establishing a model for the Voice, we would urge the Government to honour
its election commitment to a referendum, and for the appropriate legislation that ena.bles
the introduction of the Voice to follow soon after in a new term of Parliament. we seek to be an innovative, growing church proclaiming Jesus Christ empowered by the Spirit to transform God's world
STREET ADDRESS I Level 2, 2 12 Pirie St, Adelaide POSTAL ADDRESS I Uniting Church SA, GPO Box 2145, Adelaide SA 5001
TEL I 08 8236 4200 COUNTRY CALLERS I 1300 766 956 FAX I 08 8236 4201 WEB I sa.uca.org.a u ABN I 25 068 897 781
Mr. Robert Taylor
Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress Regional Council Chairperson
Moderator
Rev. Lyn Leane
Covenanting Committee Co-Chairperson
Miss. Tarlee Leondaris
Covenanting Officer we seek to be an innovative, growing church proclaiming Jesus Christ, empowered by the Spirit to transform God's world
STREET ADDRESS I Level 2, 212 Pirie St, Adelaide POSTAL ADDRESS I Uniting Church SA, GPO Box 2145, Adelaide SA 5001
TEL I 08 8236 4200 COUNTRY CALLERS I 1300 766 956 FAX I 08 8236 4201 WEB I sa.uca.org.au ABN I 25 068 897 781
