Professor Megan Davis is an independent expert member of the United Nations Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
AAP/RICHARD WAINWRIGHT
Megan Davis on a First Nations Voice in the Constitution.
The Conversation, CC BY31.4 MB(download)
Megan Davis says the idea of including an Indigenous Voice in the Constitution is being rejected on an understanding that "simply isn't true" but believes Australia has the "capacity to correct this".
The government has announced its plan to put a referendum this term to recognise Indigenous Australians in the Constitution.
Lukas Coch/AAP
Michelle Grattan speaks with University of Canberra Vice-Chancellor Deep Saini about the government's plans to put forward a referendum to recognise Indigenous Australians in the Constitution.
The government’s proposal for a referendum will only happen if it can get consensus on the content of what would go into the constitution, and there’s a high probability of a favourable outcome.
Dan Peled/AAP
It would be another miracle if the Morrison government managed to have a referendum passed to give Australia's Indigenous people constitutional recognition.
Ken Wyatt proposed plans for constitutional recognition for Indigenous Australians during this parliamentary term.
Rohan Thomson/AAP
Ken Wyatt on constitutional recognition for Indigenous Australians
The Conversation, CC BY27 MB(download)
Ken Wyatt says he is "optimistic about achieving [constitutional recognition] because...Australians will generally accept an opportunity to include Aboriginal people" and that he will work with "naysayers".
The Morrison government has begun seeking the counsel of Indigenous leaders on the best way forward on constitutional recognition of Indigenous Australians.
AAP/The Conversation
Ken Wyatt, the Minister for Indigenous Australians, announced plans to hold a referendum to enshrine constitutional recognition of Australia's Indigenous peoples during this parliamentary term.
Abbott’s previous policies on Indigenous issues were characterised by funding cuts, exclusions and silencing – all of which makes his role as envoy highly questionable to Indigenous communities.
Mick Tsikas/AAP
The proposals Abbott has pushed as envoy - more police in Indigenous communities and learning in English - demonstrates his ignorance and unsuitability for the job.
There is broad public support for an Indigenous voice to the constitution, but the political will for change remains elusive.
David Moir/AAP
The final report on constitutional recognition is disappointing in many respects, but Labor's pledge to establish a First Nations voice will give many in the community hope.
Changing the date of Australia Day is the first tiny step for Australia to begin the reckoning with its origins.
AAP/Dan Peled
Reconciliation between the Settler and First Nations populations is a self-evident prerequisite for Australia cutting the ties of colonial dependency with Britain to stand on our own.
Indigenous peoples’ claims to substantive political voice transcend the symbolic.
AAP/Joel Carrett
Michael Courts, The Conversation and Amanda Dunn, The Conversation
2017 has felt like a chaotic year in Australian politics, and one in which policy progress has been swamped by other distractions. We can only hope that 2018 is calmer and more productive.
Trevor Evans, Trent Zimmerman and Tim Wilson congratulate Dean Smith following the second reading of his marriage bill.
Mick Tsikas/AAP
Despite its dubious ancestry, the popular vote on same-sex marriage has done its job, delivering an overall majority and majorities in all states and territories.
Indigenous people feel powerless in their own country, as articulated in the Uluru Statement from the Heart.
AAP
The rejection of the Referendum Council's Report has derailed Indigenous constitutional recognition. Treaties at the state and territory level offer a clear path forward for meaningful reform.
Australia's Human Rights Council election provides an ideal opportunity for it to show leadership and commitment on issues such as refugee flows and the death penalty.
‘We refuse to appeal to the benevolence of White folk for our lives to matter. We remind them every day that we are still here.’
Corey Oakley/flickr
Bodies established around the world to hear 'black' voices have an enduring problem: they advise, but are rarely – if ever – heard.
The Referendum Council’s report is the conclusion of 18 months of consultation and discussion, including six months of regional dialogues with Indigenous people.
AAP/Paul Miller
Implicit in Malcolm Turnbull’s and Bill Shorten's arguments that an Indigenous 'voice to parliament' would be a big change is the notion that it may be too difficult.
Matt Canavan tells The Conversation this mine is only one part of a plan for 'opening up the Galilee Basin' to provide investment opportunities, exports, and employment.
The way ahead for giving Indigenous Australians an appropriate place in the Constitution is problematic.
Lucy Hughes Jones/AAP
At the same time as it’s become clear that Indigenous people won't accept a limited change, the right in Australian politics has become more determined to oppose any amendment.
