Anthony Albanese to wait for Indigenous advice on treaty and truth after referendum defeat
A politically bruised Anthony Albanese faced a second day of grilling while Indigenous Australians partake in a week of mourning the Voice defeat before deciding what happens with treaty and truth telling.
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Labor will not move on treaty and truth telling without input and consultation from Indigenous Australians who remain in a week of mourning following the referendum result.
For a second day Anthony Albanese has avoided committing his government to the future steps outlined in the Uluru Statement from the Heart, telling parliament he respected the outcome of Saturday’s referendum.
The Prime Minister said he had made it “very clear” he had accepted the No result, and said he had “fulfilled” a commitment to Indigenous Australians who had asked for the vote on the Voice to be put to the public.
The Coalition used Question Time to interrogate the government about its commitment to treaty and truth, despite also arguing Labor was too “obsessed” with the Voice.
Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles was also asked if he stood by Mr Albanese’s previous commitment to implementing the Uluru statement “in full”.
Mr Marles said in light of the Voice referendum result the government had made it clear it would not be pursuing reconciliation or Closing the Gap through constitutional reform.
“But we are completely committed to a process of reconciliation and we are deeply committed to a process of Closing the Gap, and we are going to take on Indigenous Australians ... have said in the aftermath of the last weekend and that is allow time for the dust to settle,” he said.
“We will work with them about how we can best as a nation achieve the objective of Closing the Gap.”
On Monday, a politically bruised Anthony Albanese will wait for Indigenous Australians to end their week of silence mourning the Voice defeat before deciding what happens with treaty and truth telling.
The Prime Minister avoided directly answering when asked during Question Time if Labor was committed to the other elements of the Uluru Statement from the Heart, which in 2017 invited Australians to consider a constitutionally enshrined Voice, followed by a treaty and truth process.
“What I am committed to post the referendum is respecting what Indigenous people have said, and what they have said is that they are undertaking a week … to deal with (the referendum result),” he said.
Mr Albanese said he believed it was “reasonable” to wait for Indigenous leaders, who in the wake of the resounding referendum loss announced a “week of silence” to mourn and regroup, before making a decision on the future.
“One of the things about this issue is that I have sought to grant agency to Indigenous Australians, to accept the invitation that they offered, that they worked through, that they had, hundreds of meetings involving thousands of people about,” he said.
Prior to the referendum the federal government’s 2022 budget allocated $5.8 million over four years to commence work on a Makarrata Commission for truth telling and treaty making.
So far about $500,000 of the allocated budget has been spent on preparatory work, research and staffing costs, with consultation on the body due to begin some time after the October 14 referendum.
Makarrata is the Yolngu word for “coming together after struggle”.
The Coalition pushed Mr Albanese to reveal his plans for a Makarrata process, which the PM said he had been clear about on referendum night.
On Saturday when asked if Labor remained committed to the Uluru Statement “in full,” Mr Albanese responded by saying: “We had a referendum and it wasn’t successful. I respect the outcome of that referendum.”
He also said his government’s Indigenous affairs agenda would be guided by the principles of “engagement, consultation, listening, progress to Close the Gap”.
Mr Albanese slammed Opposition leader Peter Dutton for all but walking away from an earlier commitment to hold a second referendum on symbolic constitutional recognition of First Nations people.
“The leader of the Opposition is all trailer, no movie,” the PM said.
“He never actually sticks to a commitment.”
Asked if he would hold a referendum if elected Prime Minister, Mr Dutton on Monday said all of the Opposition’s policies were going to be reviewed in a process lead by Coalition Indigenous Australians spokeswoman Jacinta Nampijinpa Price and Senator Kerrynne Liddle.
“I think it’s clear that the Australian public is probably over the referendum process for some time,” he said.
Mr Dutton accused Mr Albanese of being “obsessed” with the Voice instead of focusing on cost-of-living.
The PM rejected the claim, pointing to Labor’s changes to child care, medicine costs and energy bill rebates as helping struggling Australians.
“There is something else we have done ot take pressure off inflation, and that is to turn around the $78 billion (budget) deficit ... into a $22bn surplus,” he said.
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Originally published as Anthony Albanese to wait for Indigenous advice on treaty and truth after referendum defeat