Lidia Thorpe addresses ‘hard truths’ about rights and sovereignty of Indigenous people

Outspoken face of the Blak Sovereign Movement, Lidia Thorpe, has made a bold call on the Voice to parliament while calling for it to be scrapped.

An upcoming referendum on the Voice to parliament is “window dressing” and should be called off, senator Lidia Thorpe says.

The independent senator and face of the Blak Sovereign Movement outlined her criticism of the proposal in her first address to the National Press Club on Wednesday.

Senator Thorpe slammed the Uluru Statement from the Heart for promoting the Voice, which she called a “romanticised spiritual notion” of Indigenous sovereignty.

“When we talk about sovereignty, we are talking about much more than just the romanticised spiritual notion talked about in the Uluru Statement. We are talking about real political sovereign power,” she said.

“I know that might make people feel uncomfortable. But, too bad. That's why the government is scared to acknowledge it.

“We are talking about sovereign rights. Rights to our home lands. Our rights to nurture our lands, water, sea, country, and sky, as we have for millennia.”

Senator Lidia Thorpe says she will not be actively campaigning for a No vote. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Martin Ollman

THORPE CLAIMS VOICE A STEP IN THE WRONG DIRECTION

The Voice to parliament was a key recommendation of the Uluru Statement from the Heart and will be put to Australian voters in October.

But the Senator, a Djab Wurrung, Gunnai and Gunditjmara woman from Victoria, said it was just a continuation of the “colonial project”.

“This country, your system of government, has been built on lies. The referendum for the Voice to parliament is a continuation of these lies. It promise to finally fix the Aboriginal problem,” she told reporters.

“It is false hope, because it is tricking people into genuinely believing that a powerless advisory body is going to protect our country and sacred sites, save our lives, keep our babies at home.

“The voice is the window-dressing for Constitutional recognition. We have rejected Constitutional Recognition before.

“This is just another attempt by a colonial government to make clear that it has power over us, and force its rules upon us.”

But Senator Thorpe said ultimately the whole thing should just be called off.

“It has caused nothing but harm and division. And, for what?,” she asked.

“There won’t be change until this society changes. Until this society’s thinking, values, attitudes and systems have been revolutionised in order to ensure real self-determination, we cannot continue the legacy of the Australian colony.”

Support for the Voice has been flagging in recent months and only Tasmania and Victoria would return a Yes vote if the poll was held this week, according to the Resolve Political Monitor.

Senator Thorpe says she wanted the referendum to be called off. Picture: NCA NewsWire / David Beach

The poll, conducted for the Nine Newspapers, found support for the voice had fallen to 46 per cent, down from 63 per cent a year ago.

To succeed, a referendum must have a majority of voters across Australia and four out of six states to cast a Yes ballot.

TREATY AND TRUTH THE BETTER PATH, THORPE SAYS

Senator Thorpe confirmed she would not be actively campaigning for a ‘no’ vote but was investing her energy in putting forward an alternative – a treaty.

She said treaty would provide Indigenous communities to negotiate on land and sea rights and other matters important to them.

“This is our chance to mature as a nation. To have the hard conversations with each other and ourselves. To confront the racism we have always been socially conditioned to accept. To sit with the uncomfortable truth,” she said.

“Treaty will bring peace.”

Australia Day celebrations would be replaced by a Treaty day, if the nation ever did sign an agreement with Indigenous communities.

“We don't want to protest no more. Understand, you are dancing on our graves on January 26. It’s Invasion Day,” she said.

“Let’s come up with a day that we can all celebrate. Let’s have a Treaty day.”

Senator Thorpe previously said her speech would contain some ‘hard truths’. Picture: NCA NewsWire / David Beach

REPATRIATIONS WOULD SEND AUSTRALIA ‘BROKE’, SAYS SENATOR

In recent months, No campaigners have claimed the Voice would open the door to financial compensation being paid to Indigenous Australians.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese confirmed he did not support reparations in a podcast interview on Tuesday, insisting it was incorrect to suggest the referendum would lead to it.

Senator Thorpe said Australia would go broke if it paid what it is owed to First Nations people.

“There is a lot of money owed to first peoples. I mean, look at the resources that have been extracted over 200 years,” she said.

“You know, we don’t want to send the country broke. I’ll put that out there now. Otherwise, we could with what is owed.

“That’s why we need to negotiate.”

Senator Thorpe said racist groups had aligned themselves to her. Picture: NCA NewsWire / David Beach

THORPE SAYS RACISM A ‘CANCER’ ON AUSTRALIA

Senator Thorpe is the most high-profile face of what has been labelled the progressive No campaign.

She has confirmed while she won’t be actively campaigning for a ‘no’ vote, she would not be silenced in advocating for treaty instead of the Voice.

Asked how she could reconcile aligning herself on basic level with fringe groups, such as One Nation, and groups who have questioned her own Indigenous heritage, the senator said they’d joined with her not the other way around.

“They’re aligning themselves with us. I don’t align myself with racists … It’s like a cancer. It’s a sickness. It makes us sick.

“I think it’s easy to put the Blak Sovereign Movement into the camp of racists, because that’s convenient.”

She said that whatever result the referendum returns, she would continue to fight for treaty.

“I don't think a Yes or No result is going to make any difference regardless of what it is. If it’s No, well, we know that the country is racist, like it is,” Senator Thorpe said.