Tassie a key voice battleground, say No campaigners, as Yes camp claims island can still be won

Indigenous figures have identified Tasmania has a key referendum battleground, with national No campaigners launching their pitch in the state and a Yes figure believing it can still be won.

Warren Mundine. Picture: Sky News

Indigenous leaders have identified Tasmania has a key referendum battleground, with national No campaigners launching their pitch in the state and a Yes figure believing it can still be won.

Coalition Indigenous affairs spokeswoman Jacinta Nampijinpa Price joined Warren Mundine in Hobart on Wednesday to launch their No campaign, which Senator Price labelled “elitist”.

“This elitist proposal is about division in our country,” she said. “It’s that old rule of divide and conquer that I can’t stand for.

“I’m not going to allow a line to be drawn through the middle of my family within our constitution… I don’t expect … to be treating Indigenous Australians differently to the rest of Australians because of our racial heritage.”

Mr Mundine launched an emotional attack on the Prime Minister, accusing Anthony Albanese of unleashing damaging ‘bigotry’ upon Indigenous people, including himself.

“This thing is about division and dividing the country and the racial abuse that we’ve been hearing in this country for the last few months,” he said.

“Everyone knows the pressure that was put on me, to send me almost to suicidal positions… This is what this Prime Minister has done.

“This Prime Minister from day one has attacked people who had a different opinion to him, called them names, and then opened up the floor for the whole division to start, with all the horrible racial abuse, with all the horrible bigotry...It‘s all Albo.”

Tasmania is emerging as a key battleground in the referendum contest, with Liberal Premier Jeremy Rockliff vowing to campaign strongly for the Yes campaign, but several prominent local Indigenous groups fiercely opposing the voice.

Veteran Indigenous activist and Aboriginal Land Council of Tasmania chairman Michael Mansell said the Prime Minister had bungled the voice campaign timing and it was “doomed to fail”.

“Part of the reason is the public are sick to death of the whole thing and cannot wait to cast a vote to get rid of the whole messy idea,” Mr Mansell said.

“No-one understands what this voice is or is meant to do. People are unclear of its limits and putting it in the constitution was always going to turn many away. All the fanfare in the world will not save Albanese and his referendum.”

However, Tasmanian Indigenous Yes campaigner Rodney Dillon accused the No camp of risking the biggest advancement for Aboriginal people in his lifetime.

“None of them have a plan for what we do next – of what’s better than the voice,” Mr Dillon told The Australian. “It’s the best thing we have at the moment that can make significant change.

“If the No vote did get up, how long would it be before we get anything else?”

He believed the Yes vote could still triumph and that the campaign was bringing Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians together.

“I think Australians have moved towards Aboriginal people and we’ve moved towards them, and I think there’s faith in one another,” Mr Dillon said.

“It’s important for us to have representation. Everyone goes and lobbies and negotiates with the government and the executive, bar us.

“So this is a chance for us to do that and I can’t see a reason why we wouldn’t want to do that.”

Indigenous Australians Minister Linda Burney is expected to campaign for a Yes vote in Tasmania later this week.