Arguments FOR and AGAINST Entrenching a First Nations Voice in the Constitution | AUSSIE LAW

in 1967 we were counted in 2017 we seek to be heard this phrase is in the last paragraph of the ruleru statement from the heart the Uluru statement from the heart was the result of over 250 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander delegates coming together to seek constitutional reforms to empower First Nations people and help them in their claim to sovereignty one of the main points of the Uluru statement from the heart was calling for a First Nations voice to be established in the Australian Constitution now fast forward a few years and look at Prime Ministers albanese's speech soon after being elected with a majority of parliament in 2022 I begin by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land on which we meet I pay my respect to their Elders past present and emerging and on behalf of the Australian labor party I commit to the Uluru statement from the heart when he says he commits in full to the Uluru statement from the heart the prime minister is saying he will try to enshrine the voice in the Constitution and that's what he's been doing hello everyone my name is Renato Closter this is Aussie law and today we'll look at the arguments for and against entrenching the First Nations voice in the Australian Constitution foreign for long enough you know that I stay away from this kind of political opinions or these highly controversial topics and even though this topic is but important one and it touches on more defined the Constitution so I thought I could contribute by presenting arguments on both sides of the debate so I've selected five arguments four and five arguments against entrenching an indigenous voice in The Commonwealth of Australia Constitution the time will come very soon for you to vote in a proposed amendment to the Constitution and I want to help you understand the debate before you say yes or no so here we go let's start with what the voice is in very basic terms the voice is an advisory body a body that would make recommendations to the federal Parliament and the executive in matters concerning First Nations there's not much you can say about it because it is basically all the proposal for the Constitutional change says look at the three points that are proposed to be added to the Constitution one there shall be a body to be called the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander voice two the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice May make representations to Parliament and the executive government on matters relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and three the parliament shall subject to this constitution have power to make laws with respect to the composition functions powers and procedures of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice by the way you can read the proposal by clicking on the link that I've left in the description of this video so now that we understand the idea that this voice is a body that makes representations to Parliament in the executive it's time to hear the arguments for and against its entrenchment in the Constitution let's start with five arguments four entrenching the voice in The Commonwealth of Australia Constitution one the voice is about legitimately recognizing indigenous peoples it is part of the Uluru statement for First Nations to be heard and so the voice would provide a body to make that voice laudable enough this is more than a symbolic recognition though having a body that makes recommendations to family it in matters related and relevant to First Nations translates the unique status of contributions of indigenous peoples in Australia and acknowledges the impact that colonization has had on indigenous communities two The Voice will Empower First Nations peoples a second argument for entrenching the voice in the constitution is that it would give indigenous peoples a formal mechanism to participate in decision-making processes that affect them in their communities before legislative matters that somehow affect the First Nations the federal Parliament would need to hear the opinion of the indigenous communities through the voice and this relates to the third argument an improved indigenous self-determination in governance the inclusion of a First Nations voice in the Constitution it is argued would improve the governance of indigenous Affairs and contribute to their claim towards sovereignty since the voice is to be heard before the enactment of legislation by the federal Parliament The Voice ensures that indigenous perspectives are considered in the development of laws and political policies fourth reconciliation entrenching an indigenous voice in the Constitution would be a significant step towards reconciliation between indigenous peoples and non-indigenous Australians The Voice kind of provides this link between the legal system that evolved since the First Fleet and during the colonial times in Australia and the particular injustices that have been experienced by indigenous peoples under this system five compliance with International obligations the final argument for the entrenchment of the voice is that it would bring Australia closer to complying with some International obligations entrenching a First Nations voice in The Commonwealth Constitution would put Australia in line with some International demands that Parliament must consult with indigenous peoples on matters that affect them before legislating now these are the arguments for the voice but many First Nations peoples and non-indigenous Australians are also opposing the entrenchment of the voice in the Constitution here's why let's see five arguments against the voice in the Constitution first it is said that the voice will produce a duplication of existing structures some argue that there exists some bodies just like the voice already in place the indigenous advisory councils for example serve the exact same purpose and an indigenous voice would in the Constitution and that is not all they say that the representation of the voice does not correspond to the Democratic character of the parliament as of 2022 for example the federal Parliament had says 11 indigenous parliamentarians so the argument is that adding new representatives to advise Parliament effectively undermines the will of the people who chose those 11 parliamentarians for example second there's no detail about the voice another argument against the voice concerns the lack of consensus on what an indigenous voice would entail there is a lack of consensus on what a First Nations voice in the Constitution would look like this is the claim for further detail on what the voice actually is what are its functions what are its powers how are the members chosen on what grounds can they be removed who can throws it how is it controlled what are the first nation methods are the representations binding or not is there a duty to advise Parliament a duty to ask for the representation of the voice recently Peter Dutton the leader of the opposition has questioned the Prime Minister on this pleading for more detail about the voice I've left a link to his letter in the description of this video as well basically without consensus on what this voice will look like some say it is better not to risk entrenching it in the Constitution another argument is the risk of tokenism although reconciliation is one of the arguments for having a voice some say that in trenching an indigenous voice in the Constitution could be seen as merely symbolic rather than a meaningful step towards reconciliation and empowerment of First Nations instead of devolving power to Aboriginal interest rate Islanders The Voice does little more than recruit a small number of First Nations peoples to make recommendations to Parliament that they say will have no meaningful effect this argument is that the Constitutional entrenchment of the voice serves only to give an appearance of reconciliation fourth there's also the argument that The Voice May increase political descent there's a risk that a First Nations voice in the Constitution could become too politicized and be used for political gain rather than to serve the interests of indigenous peoples I mean if you have not been paying attention you may think that this voice is some sort of Labor policy and since you oppose the government you would vote no however this is not any government's policy but the way the referendum has been conducted makes the voice be engulfed by this political rhetoric in the end the argument is that it is becoming too politicized to be entrenched in the Constitution and finally the fifth argument against the entrenchment of the voice in the Australian Constitution is that its implementation May well turn out to have a completely opposite effect it may increase discrimination increase descent and it could end up on the mining existing rights and protections for indigenous peoples well you will soon be asked to vote in a referendum to say whether the voice should be enshrined in the Constitution or not as I said in the beginning I'm not here to tell you what to do I'm here to help you understand the debate and make an informed choice I hope this video has been useful to that effect for more videos about the Australian Constitution and legal system subscribe to Aussie law we have videos about constitutional principles provisions and cases that will help you understand more about the law in Australia I strongly recommend you watching the video there's a pin in your screen as a follow-up to this one because there I explained section 128 and how this training Constitution can be amended I'll see you there ciao

Channel: Aussie Law

Views: 20,660

Keywords: Aussie Law, Australia, Law, Commonwealth, Constitution, australian law, australian constitution, constitutional law, public law, executive, judiciary, legislature, federalism, renato costa, australian constitutional law, high court of australia, federal, constitutional case, explained, australian legal system, australian government, australian parliament, auslaw, legal studies, common law australia, indigenous voice, first nations, first nations voice, the voice australia, referendum, aus

Id: yByf-9-D5lI

Length: 10min 19sec (619 seconds)

Published: Tue Jan 31 2023