Indigenous activist and Voice to Parliament supporter Noel Pearson has condemned Peter Dutton for his ‘Judas betrayal of the country’ in opposing the Voice.
Mr Dutton revealed on Wednesday the Liberal Party would oppose Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s policy in its current form – a decision the PM described as a significant blow in the lead up to the referendum.
On the back of the announcement – which did not come as a surprise to many after weeks of Mr Dutton and senior Liberals questioning the mechanics of the Voice – Mr Pearson revealed he was struggling to sleep.
‘I couldn’t sleep last night, I was troubled by dreams and the Dutton Liberal party’s Judas betrayal of our country,’ he told RN Breakfast.
‘I have a great belief that the Liberal Party and Dutton are greatly out of step with the sentiment of the Australian people this is more about [Dutton’s] calculations of Liberal v. Labor, rather than what’s good for the country.
‘He doesn’t mind chucking Indigenous Australians and the future of the country under the bus to preserve his miserable political hide.. and it’s sad.’
Indigenous activist and Voice to Parliament supporter Noel Pearson has condemned Peter Dutton for his ‘Judas betrayal of the country’ in opposing the Voice
The Liberal party room voted on Wednesday to reject the government’s proposed model for the Voice in favour of establishing local and regional Voices which would be legislated but not embedded in the Constitution
The Liberal Party room voted on Wednesday to reject the government’s proposed model for an indigenous body, known as the Voice, which would be formally recognised in the constitution and give advice on any proposed laws which affected Aboriginal and Torres Strait people.
The Liberals will now campaign against the Voice in the upcoming referendum and would instead propose local and regional Voices which would be legislated but not embedded in the Constitution.
Mr Albanese said he was disappointed but not surprised by the Liberals’ decision and took aim at Peter Dutton’s suggestion the party would support symbolic constitutional recognition for Indigenous people without the element of the Voice.
‘It appears some people don’t want a Voice; they’d rather have a whisper,’ Mr Albanese said.
But Mr Pearson argued the Coalition had 11 years in power to enact a ‘proper proposal for recognition’.
‘I see the leader of the Liberal Party Peter Dutton as an undertaker, preparing the grave to bury Uluru and I think that that is a very sad day for Australia that we can’t have bi-partisanship in this important national enterprise.
Anthony Albanese says he knows Liberal frontbenchers who want to support a constitutionally enshrined Indigenous Voice to parliament
Mr Pearson said it was important that supporters of the Voice ‘meet hate with love, fear with understanding, face negativity with hope’ and, most importantly, ‘not contemplate failure’.
He refuses to believe this decision will be reflected in a referendum later this year and that the Voice to Parliament will be voted down.
‘It’s never going to happen.. Peter Dutton’s decision will highly motivate people.. it makes very clear what the decision is,’ he said.
Key moderates Andrew Bragg and Bridget Archer were quick to break ranks to signal their support for the Voice after their party room agreed to allow backbenchers a conscience vote on the matter.
Ms Archer almost immediately confirmed she would defy the party line and campaign for a ‘yes’ vote and said the Liberals’ verdict on the Voice was the latest in a series of decisions which had tested her faith in the party.
The outspoken Tasmanian backbencher, who has crossed the floor to vote with Labor in the past, told the ABC after the party room meeting that she thought the Voice was worth fighting for and there was a ‘moral imperative’ to back the proposal.
The Albanese government has maintained that amending the Constitution is the form of recognition Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders asked for in the 2017 Uluru Statement from the Heart
Since confirming the wording of the question that will be asked of all Australians in the referendum later this year, the Prime Minister has been inundated with questions from political opponents, the media and the general public about the scope of power the Voice will hold
Senator Bragg released a statement saying he maintained an open mind as a long-term supporter of the Voice ‘concept’, adding he was committed to achieving the ‘best’ possible constitutional amendment to both empower communities and protect ‘institutional framework’.
‘The process to date has been poor, but that is not a good enough reason to oppose the referendum in my opinion,’ Senator Bragg said.
Senator Bragg and Ms Archer will be allowed to support the referendum because neither of them sits on the Opposition frontbench.
But Liberals in the shadow cabinet will have to oppose the Voice, meaning any MPs who support the proposal will need to fall in line behind the Coalition’s position or resign from their frontbench positions.
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Speaking after the Liberals’ party room meeting on Wednesday, the Prime Minister said he was aware of shadow ministers who would like to cross the floor to support the government’s proposal.
‘But it’s a matter for them,’ Mr Albanese told ABC Radio Sydney.
Later on Wednesday, Mr Albanese told ABC’s Hack radio program he had met with Mr Dutton ‘in good faith’ on seven occasions to discuss the Voice.
In publicly confirming his decision on Wednesday, Mr Dutton said: ‘I don’t think this is in our country’s best interests.
‘I have spent literally months, like many Australians, trying to understand what it is the Prime Minister is proposing. We cannot get the basic detail out of them. We think it is deliberate. We are waiting, waiting for advice.’
