‘Silence is political’: Universities split over support for Yes vote in voice referendum
A leading architect of the Uluru statement has attacked universities for not collectively backing a Yes vote.
Megan Davis, one of the main architects of the Uluru Statement from the Heart, has attacked universities for not collectively backing the voice to parliament in the coming referendum on the issue.
Professor Davis, a UNSW constitutional law professor and co-chair of the Uluru Dialogue, told the Universities Australia conference in Canberra on Wednesday that universities’ refusal to take a joint stand was “false objectivity”.
She said the decision against supporting a Yes vote, taken by the sector’s peak body Universities Australia, was inconsistent with universities’ willingness to speak out on other issues.
“Silence is political,” Professor Davis said.
Her speech, which received a standing ovation from about 1000 delegates representing the university sector, followed a decision made on Tuesday by vice-chancellors that Universities Australia would not take a position on the referendum vote.
The decision came after vigorous debate that revealed a deep split between individual universities. At least two vice-chancellors, UNSW’s Attila Brungs and the University of South Australia’s David Lloyd, who sit on the nine-member Universities Australia board, strongly back a Yes vote.
The University of Wollongong also supports the Yes case. Vice-chancellor Patricia Davidson said the university was “honoured to support a voice to parliament”.
But most universities are uncommitted, with some saying they need to complete consultations with Indigenous staff and students.
At the conference Professor Lloyd endorsed Professor Davis’s position, saying that universities could and should take firm positions on important matters of public interest. He compared it to the strong stance in favour of vaccination and public health measures universities took during Covid.
“This is exactly the same. This is a constitutional opportunity and we can’t sit on the fence. Our institutions shouldn’t sit on the fence,” Professor Lloyd told delegates.
Although Universities Australia decided not to back a Yes vote on the voice, it supported holding a referendum and praised universities’ ability to educate Australians about the issues raised by the Statement from the Heart.
“As leading centres of learning and scholarship, universities are uniquely placed to educate our communities in relation to important social and political issues,” the peak body said in a statement on Tuesday after the meeting which exposed the split.
Professor Davis, who is also a former pro vice-chancellor (Indigenous) at UNSW, said she did not accept this stance.
“I don’t really stomach that we are mere facilitators of the debate approach,” she said in her speech to the conference.
Professor Davis said universities needed to examine the consistency of their statements.
“Universities say they don’t want to be political but the decision not to take a stance for Uluru and the referendum and the voice to parliament is a political decision,” she said.
“We have strong positions on freedom of speech, which is political. We withdraw from investing in some industries, which is political.”
Professor Davis thanked UNSW’s leaders for their strong pro-voice stance. “It’s important for young minds, and the leaders of tomorrow, and the First Nations collegiate to see what leadership looks like, what courage looks like,” she said.
UNSW deputy vice-chancellor (planning and assurance) George Williams, who is also a constitutional law expert, urged other universities to back the voice.
“If you support Indigenous justice and empowerment you have to walk the walk,” he said.
“Hundreds of organisations have endorsed the voice, including the Business Council of Australia and large corporate bodies.”
Professor Williams said UNSW’s support for the voice did not mean that its academics were bound by that view.
“We recognise that our academics can argue fiercely against if they wish,” he said.
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