Constitutional Recognition & Treaty
Back to the Future: One of the important aspects of this 2014 submission by Bill Moyle, Gerry Moore and I was the idea of a treaty making power with all Aboriginal First Nations based on traditional territory not on colonially imposed boundaries like States. If treaties could be developed with, for example, the Yorta Yorta people in Victoria and like across Australia, this would truly enhance Australia's prosperity, productivity and sense of local unity and pride. We are a top heavy Commonwealth. It was one of the problems of colonialism and one of the problems that came with the 1967 referendum. If we could have the capacity for local treaties, Aboriginal people would overwhelmingly support a referendum.
We strongly support the measures recommended by the Expert Panel which we believe would:
• remove those traces of racial prejudice that remain embedded in the Constitution;
• help to move Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples away from their colonial legacy of imposed social and economic disadvantage; and
• contribute to national unity by breaking down the attitudes of mutual distrust that the Reconciliation Barometer shows with alarming clarity.
Working Papers, 2022, 6
