Georges River Council committed to supporting the Uluru Statement from the Heart, Voice to Parliament and a Makarrata Commission at its Council meeting on Monday 26 June.
The Notice of Motion (NoM) also included that Council display a framed copy of the Uluru Statement from the Heart within Council Chambers.
The Federal Government will be conducting a referendum proposing to amend the Australian Constitution to recognise First Peoples of Australia by establishing a Voice to Parliament. Council noted that the Honourable Linda Burney, Member for Barton and Minister for Indigenous Australians, is a strong advocate and supports a Voice to Parliament.
Council discussed the need to increase community awareness about the Uluru Statement from the Heart, the upcoming referendum for a Voice to Parliament and a Makarrata Commission. They committed to awareness-raising activities to help educate the community to make an informed decision at the referendum.
Council will now seek to collaborate with Bidjigal Traditional Custodians, local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elders and other interested community and local organisations, Georges River Council Advisory Committees and Reference Groups, sporting clubs/associations, other Councils and businesses that are undertaking awareness-raising activities that support the Uluru Statement from the Heart and a Voice to Parliament.
This motion is consistent with Georges River Council’s Community Strategic Plan 2022-2023.
The Voice Referendum, happening later this year, will allow all eligible Australian citizens the opportunity to vote on whether Australia should change its Constitution to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Peoples of Australia by establishing a body called the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice (voice.gov.au).
Mayor Nick Katris said, “Council is committed to building awareness in the Georges River Council local government area (LGA) about the upcoming referendum. During Reconciliation Week, we set up information stalls at multiple locations within the LGA where we distributed the Australian Federal Government’s fact sheets and information booklets to the community. We also hosted a community information session led by Dr Elisa Arcioni, Associate Professor in Constitutional Law at the University of Sydney Law School.
“This recent adoption is consistent with the support we gave in 2020 for the 2017 Uluru Statement from the Heart to work towards a better future for local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples”.
In late June, Council will join with members of the Working Together Forum to host a half day event at Kogarah TAFE to inform local community organisations about the Voice Referendum so that they can assist their clients, staff, and volunteers to understand and participate in the referendum process.
