Republic foes Kerry Jones and Tom Keneally join hands to recognise past

THE public faces of opposing camps in the last referendum, Kerry Jones and Tom Keneally agree on the next one, on recognition.

Kerry Jones and Tom Keneally with Recognise supporter John Paul Janke at the National Archives in Canberra. Picture: Gary Ramage

IN the last debate Australia had on constitutional change, they were the public faces of opposing camps.

Now, as the nation prepares for a referendum on indigenous recognition, former head of Australians for Constitutional Monarchy Kerry Jones and key republican Tom Keneally find themselves of similar mind: agreeing that they want the ­nation’s guiding document to change to recognise indigenous Australians.

“I couldn’t agree more with the Prime Minister that this is an issue of fairness, and of completing the constitution,” Ms Jones said yesterday.

In the context of many Australians losing faith in our civics, this is also about renewing that faith and bringing Australians together into a fairer future.

“It’s above the political spectrum and I think we are poised for something extraordinary here,’’ Ms Jones said.

After her key role in defeating the republic referendum in 1999, Ms Jones became chief executive of the Constitution Education Fund of Australia.

That body celebrated a decade of civics education programs at a function at the National Archives in Canberra last night, where guests inspected many of the original source documents for the Australian constitution.

For the past 10 years, Keneally has also served as an education fund board director, and the ­unlikely pair have forged a relationship of respect and genuine affection, albeit with a healthy dollop of mutual ribbing.

Keneally said he was eager to see constitutional recognition of the first Australians and the ­removal of the remaining racially discriminatory sections of the constitution, which “read disgracefully in modern Australia”.

He also thought it would be an opportunity for national unity on a rare scale. “Since John Howard left, politics has been so bitter on both sides,” Keneally said.

“I think people are really hungry now for consensus — we want an end to the knee-jerk insults and division. If we can stand together on this as Australians, it will be a wonderfully refreshing thing for our political system.”

Ms Jones said civic leadership from community leaders would be every bit as important to a recognition referendum as the cross-party leadership of political figures.

“Neither Tom nor I have ever been politicians but in a sense we have both represented the Australian people,’’ she said.

“We know the faith in the political system needs to be rebuilt, and that will be a long, hard job for our nation.

“But I think the Australian people have this concept of fairness and this referendum is about addressing things that weren’t ­addressed at the beginning.”

Recognise supporter John Paul Janke, whose lineage is both Aboriginal and Torres Strait ­Islander, welcomed the unity on recognition from the former ­rivals. “This is going to be a great step forward for the nation,” he said. “We should take great pride in our indigenous heritage as a country and this will help to ­reflect that.”