Australia at a crossroads: After the Voice Referendum we need to build seeking unity and progress

I published this article in Neos Kosmos on Friday... The day after the referendum, I am republishing here as I think the points I made are even more relevant given the outcome of the referendum...

Soon, we will know the outcome of the Voice referendum. While the polls show that the ‘No’ vote is likely to succeed, whatever the result, we need to find a way to move forward as a nation. Initially, there will be recriminations and accusations of dirty tricks, overspending, wasted efforts, and bad planning – but what is next?

Just like Britain had Brexit and the United States produced Donald Trump, the Voice has become a fault line in Australian society. This is not to say that we have not had such fault lines previously: from responding to climate change to lockdowns and managing the pandemic, we have seen deep divisions emerge. Nothing, however, as compared to the Voice.

There are many reasons for this but one key reason the Voice has been so divisive is that it has revolved around an area that we, as Australians, have repeatedly failed to adequately respond to: the disadvantage of Australia’s First Nations people. Australians of all persuasions have struggled with this issue.

For conservatives, programs aimed at responding to disadvantage have merely been dismissed as perpetuating welfare dependency – sometimes rightly and sometimes completely off the mark. Calls that racism is embedded in some of our institutions that unfairly target Aboriginal people have been dismissed as the fantasies of the ‘academic’ or ‘far’ left.

For progressives, the weight of expectations they place on Aboriginal people is often driven by a romanticisation of First Nation cultures. Not that long ago, Noel Pearson’s warnings of welfare dependency in Cape York were dismissed as the ravings of someone caught by the ‘neoliberal agenda.’

For almost all of us, it is impossible to understand the depth of complexity and consequences of displacement, racism, and persecution.

Like any other population, the diversity of internal politics and divisions within Aboriginal communities can be confounding. But we do bring this on ourselves as we never expect all Greeks or Italians to agree, but somehow, we expect all Aboriginal people to be on the same page.

To add to this, the referendum seems to have given everyone the right to air their grievances: from accusations of racism to wokeness. We have seen statements that this is prime minister Anthony Albanese’s referendum and his way of ignoring the cost-of-living crisis. Likewise, the opposition leader Peter Dutton has been accused of weaponizing the suffering of Aboriginal people as a way of pushing his political ambitions.

Regardless of where you land, the shame is that Australia’s Aboriginal population has become the focus and subject of bile, unrealistic expectations, and demands that have further perpetuated divisions within Australian society. Today, many Aboriginal people are wearing the consequences of a debate that has been utilised to perpetuate divisions.

So, what is next?

The question then, is regardless of the outcome, how do we move forward as a nation? This is something that we must answer and here are three things steps we need to take to start the healing.

The first is that Dutton and Albanese must find a way to come together. No matter what the result, the important thing is that neither party can lead a divided nation. The dysfunction in the United States highlights what happens when the parties prioritise their own ideological position ahead of the nation.

One way to do this is to set ambitious targets to confront Aboriginal disadvantage. The No campaign has argued that the Voice will do nothing to address disadvantage, so let’s develop a clear, well-funded strategy that will do just that. We should look at the failed Close the Gap initiatives and understand why they have failed. This should be a critique of these programs with lessons learnt.

Ironically, this could only be successful if this is driven by Aboriginal leadership – something that the Voice is aiming to establish. If, however, the Voice referendum fails, then a group of Aboriginal leaders free of political interference needs to be established to drive this agenda. Related to this is a ‘Truth’ commission that must listen to the Aboriginal people who have suffered as well as those who have thrived. These stories must shape future policy.

The second step is for both parties to draw a line in the sand for their behaviour. There has been bad conduct on both sides – particularly aimed at the female Aboriginal leadership that has presented both sides of the debate. A press conference with both leaders accompanied by Jacinta Price and Linda Burney, would be an important step.

Thirdly, we need to address the issue of misinformation. Some of the claims made have been absurd including that ‘white’ Australians will have to pay to live in the country. Such comments should never be echoed by a mainstream political party and people making them should be held to account.

Misinformation and disinformation will increasingly shape electoral politics unless we find a way to address this. This cannot be driven by one side of politics alone: it must be jointly discussed and pursued.

The Australian political system has proved to be robust and survived several shocks. In saying that there are countless democratic norms that we take for granted. If we are not prepared to protect the system and find a way to work together, it will only be a matter of time before we undermine the system from within. Under these circumstances, the democratic norms we have come to expect may slowly disappear.