Remote Australian communities need an Indigenous voice too

A voice to parliament is the best hope yet for Indigenous people in remote communities to be heard above “high class” Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians.

Martu man Melvin Farmer (left) with family in Kunawarritji, Western Australia.

A voice to parliament is the best hope yet for Indigenous people in remote communities to be heard above “high class” Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians who are used to being listened to, according to Martu man Melvin Farmer.

Mr Farmer, who lives in the remote WA community of Jigalong and is chairman of the local Jamukurnu-Yapalikunu Aboriginal Corporation, says his people did not take part when the Morrison government invited Australians to help shape what an Indigenous voice should be.

Port Hedland and Alice Springs were the nearest places for Aboriginal men and women from Kunawarritji, Jigalong and other western desert communities to attend a consultation on the voice in the first months of 2021. Their absence might be explained by a sign outside Kunawarritji at the intersection of the Canning Stock Route and the Western Desert road to Alice Springs: it says Port Hedland is 750km west and Alice Springs is 1100km east. There is no bitumen for 500km in any direction.

A sign near Kunawarritji shows the distances to the nearest regional centres of Port Hedland or Alice Springs.

Mr Farmer is not surprised that even the Coalition’s extensive consultation process – there were more than 100 meetings in 60 locations, including remote towns Bourke, Weipa and the Tiwi Islands – could not capture everyone’s views. He says this helps to show why Indigenous people in the most remote communities need the voice to work for them.

“None of our people in the desert area had any involvement,” Mr Farmer said. “As I travel through the Pilbara, to the Western Desert and the Gibson Desert in the Northern Territory and into South Australia, in the heart of the country, where people rarely visit, there needs to be consultation.

“We feel like the forgotten people of Australia, you know.”

Mr Farmer says it is not too late and his people want to be involved.

However, he is worried that the debate so far about the voice has been mostly about what Indigenous politicians and other high-profile Indigenous people think.

He sees an Indigenous voice protected in the Constitution as a way to make sure Canberra knows what is important to his people and why. He does not want to see the voice become a platform for Indigenous people who already have influence.

“There are (Aboriginal) people out there who are up there, high class. And we poor people in the bush also want our voice heard and recognised and be in the system,” Mr Farmer said.

“Our voice hasn’t been heard deep in the heart of Australia, around desert country.

“It’s been heard around other places, you know – cities, and bigger towns and all that.

“Governments need to talk with the grassroots people and get good information from us.”

Mr Farmer said his people wanted the government to understand overcrowding on homelands encouraged people into towns where they got into trouble.

“What we are trying to do … is save my people from killing themselves in town. Drinking themself to death, smoking marijuana and drugs and all that. We have to get our voice through and into that Constitution.

“We need to be able to talk about our information and our ancient knowledge that we hold, that was handed down to us, it is a strong voice coming from our ngurra (country) and more stronger than the voices in towns, you know.

“The connection is deep rooted into the ground. Our stories and information is so strong. No one comprehends what we know.”