Dear Co-Design Body
Submission for Co-design process
Why do you think the Uluru Statement from the Heart is important?
The Uluru Statement from the Heart is an incredible statement. In a few hundred words, we hear
and see it as it is - the truth of the past and present of this country, the 'structural nature' of the
problem, and what needs to be done - structural reform. It is a generous invitation from Aboriginal
and Torres Strait Islander people to non-Indigenous Australians to walk together and work together
for a better future.
Why do you think it's important to enshrine the Voice to Parliament in the Constitution, rather than
include it only in legislation?
We have seen what happens when 'voice' is not enshrined in the Australian Constitution. Bodies that
represent Indigenous people can be and have been abolished, depending on the views of the
political party in power.
Why is it important for Indigenous people to have a say in the matters that affect them?
Indigenous people need to be able to have a voice in matters that affect them. It is illogical to think
otherwise. Indigenous people need to be able to express their views to the parliament and
government on important issues affecting them. To not have a voice is to be powerless. We can see
what has happened in this country to Indigenous people in only 200 years when they do not have a
voice - that is, a real voice on political matters. The USFTH is proposing another way, but it's a way
that is 'normal' in other countries.
It is time for white people (me included) to listen. It is time for white people to accept this generous
invitation to walk together and to support the statement and the well-thought-through order of
"voice, treaty, truth".
Yours sincerely,
