No answer on truth and treaty as Albanese defers to Indigenous leaders

Major policies for Indigenous Australians have been thrown in doubt after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese would not say whether he would pursue “truth and treaty” for First Australians despite earlier pledges to set up a commission to hear the truth about their history.

Albanese wavered on the two key promises in the wake of the stunning defeat for the Voice in the referendum on Saturday, signalling a shift in thinking while Indigenous leaders called for a week of silence to consider their response to the bruising outcome.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese did not elaborate on his position on Makarrata when he was asked about it in question time.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

In a separate move that added to the uncertainty about the way forward on reconciliation, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton reversed his stance on his key pledge to hold a second referendum to recognise First Australians in the Constitution after the defeat of the Voice.

Labor promised $27.7 million for an independent Makarrata Commission before the last election in the hope this would be a new forum to supervise agreement-making between governments and First Nations and truth-telling about the past.

The government put $5.8 million toward the project in the budget last October and the design has been under way at the National Indigenous Australians Agency, amid expectations this might one day lead to treaty-making.

Liberal backbencher Melissa Price asked Albanese in question time on Monday: “Is the prime minister committed to Makarrata, truth-telling and treaty?”

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese during question time on Monday.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

Albanese replied: “What I’m committed to, post the referendum, is respecting what Indigenous people have said.”

The prime minister said Indigenous people were taking a week to deal with the impact of the referendum, but he did not elaborate on his position on Makarrata.

“The Voice, with constitutional recognition, was important. Makarrata is simply a Yolngu word for coming together after struggle. I think it’s a good thing that people come together. And I made that very clear on Saturday night, that is my position. I think that that is a reasonable thing to say.”

In a key comment, Albanese made it clear he wanted Indigenous people to lead the debate and would wait for them.

“I have sought to grant agency to Indigenous Australians, to accept the invitation that they offered, that they worked through,” he said of the Voice.

The campaign for the Voice included three central concepts which were summed up as “Voice, treaty, truth” and were outlined in the Uluru Statement from the Heart agreed by Indigenous leaders in 2017.

“We call for the establishment of a First Nations Voice enshrined in the Constitution,” the statement said.

“Makarrata is the culmination of our agenda: the coming together after a struggle. It captures our aspirations for a fair and truthful relationship with the people of Australia and a better future for our children based on justice and self-determination.

“We seek a Makarrata Commission to supervise a process of agreement-making between governments and First Nations and truth-telling about our history.”

While Albanese promised support for the Uluru statement in full when he won the election in May last year, the practical impact of this is unclear when the Voice has been rejected and the Makarrata Commission has not been established as an entity.

The government has not abandoned any of its policies but is waiting for Indigenous leaders to emerge from the week of silence being sought by many of the Yes campaigners in an unsigned statement issued on Saturday night.

Several Indigenous leaders did not respond to requests for comment on Monday because they are honouring the call for silence.

Albanese turned the attack on Dutton by repeating his common complaint that the opposition leader said “no” to every policy and had gone further by “opposing himself” on the idea of a second referendum.

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton said Coalition policy on Indigenous affairs would be subject to review by Jacinta Nampijinpa Price and Kerrynne Liddle.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

Dutton said on September 3 that the Coalition would go to the next election with a policy to hold a referendum to recognise Indigenous people in the Constitution, but without a Voice specified in the document.

“Yes, I believe very strongly that that is the right thing to do,” he said at the time.

That idea was dismissed within days by the Coalition’s spokeswoman on Indigenous Australians, Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, and Dutton retreated on the idea throughout the rest of the campaign on the Voice.

Asked on Monday morning if he would hold a second referendum if he won the election, Dutton said all Coalition policy on Indigenous affairs would be subject to review by Price and the Coalition spokeswoman on child protection, Kerrynne Liddle.

“I think that’s important, but I think it’s clear that the Australian public is probably over the referendum process for some time,” he said.

Albanese pointed to Dutton’s withdrawal from recognition to set up a contrast between his consistent advocacy for the Indigenous Voice and the opposition leader’s change in position.

“The opposition leader is all trailer and no movie – he never actually sticks to a commitment, which is why he doesn’t recognise conviction when he sees it in someone else,” the prime minister told parliament.

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