With a historic referendum next month, many questions have been raised over what would happen should a Yes or No vote prevail.
Millions of Australians will cast their ballot on whether to enshrine an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice in the Constitution on October 14.
If passed, the referendum would change the Constitution – but it would be up to the federal government to introduce and pass legislation determining how the advisory body would work, a process expected to take more than a year.
The proposal has triggered vigorous debate and discussion from Indigenous leaders, politicians and the public – but what will happen after the final vote has been counted? And how long will it take?
WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF IT’S YES?
If the referendum passes, it is then sent to the Governor-General, who gives assent to it. Then an amendment to Australia’s founding document will be made that says “there shall be a body, to be called the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice”.
According to lawyer and key Voice figure Noel Pearson, if the government “worked hard”, legislation for a Voice could be tabled in parliament within 12 to 18 months after the referendum.
Technically, the government could put forward a Bill immediately after a Yes vote.
This possibility, however, would be “highly unlikely” according to leading constitutional identity scholar from the University of Sydney Elisa Arcioni.
“Given that the Voice is to be a representative institution, there is actually going to have to be discussion with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people across the country about exactly how to set it up,” she said.
A spokesman for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese confirmed that there would be a consultation process with First Nations people, and the wider Australian public, to design the Voice.
This could take a while, given the diversity of Indigenous communities in Australia, with more than 250 different language groups all with their own different cultures, beliefs, laws and customs.
Today, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders represent 3.8 per cent of the Australian population, or 984,000 people.
The Referendum Council, a body set up in 2015 that consulted with hundreds of Indigenous people, took three years to produce the Uluru Statement from the Heart.
After a robust consultation round, draft legislation would then be presented for politicians to debate, a process that could potentially take a matter of weeks or months.
“We could probably expect a continuation of that kind of consultation, as well as discussion within the parliament, because its’s going to have to be legislation that passes both houses,” Professor Arcioni said.
“And just like with any other legislation, there’ll be a period of time where there’s discussion and potentially a committee to investigate different options.”
WHAT IF IT’S NO?
If Australians vote against constitutional change, the government could move to establish an Indigenous consultative body by legislation.
This type of Voice would be different from one enshrined into the Constitution in that it could be tweaked, or scrapped, by future governments.
Mr Albanese has ruled out legislating a Voice because “it is not what they (Indigenous Australians) have asked for”.
“I’m focused on success, not on hypotheticals of what will occur if it is not (a) success,” he said.
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has pitched his support behind establishing local and regional Voices if elected, an idea that has been opposed by The Nationals.
Representatives from remote communities believe there would be no point in setting up a regional Voice without a formal national representative.
“I think that’s silly, you need that connection and that seat at the table,” Gur A Baradharaw Kod Torres Strait Sea and Land Council chairman Ned David told a public hearing in Cairns earlier this year.
Mr Pearson has warned that a No vote could usher the country into years of “almost endless protest.”
“A No vote, it would be a complete tragedy for the country, I don’t know how you could pick up the pieces after this,” Mr Pearson said in May.
“Reconciliation will die, it would be dead.”
TREATY?
Following the referendum, it’s expected attention will turn towards a Makarrata commission. This will facilitate a process of agreement making between governments and First Nations people to recognise Indigenous sovereignty.
Labor allocated $5.8m towards a national Makarrata commission in October to oversee truth and treaty negotiations with the Commonwealth. Mr Albanese said the government would not seek to establish the commission in its current term.
Senator Lidia Thorpe, who is against a constitutional Voice, has called for immediate truth-telling about Australia’s “brutal past and ongoing colonial violence” in addition to a treaty for each Indigenous clan.
Treaties are under way in states and territories, with Victoria expected to be the first to begin formal negotiations towards the end of 2023.
Uluru Statement from the Heart architect Megan Davis said since the referendum was announced, communities had been faced with an avalanche of misinformation and racism.
She said a vote at the ballot box meant the country could “kickstart real proper change” and start to close the gap
“The fundamental message to Australians who are undecided or thinking of voting no, they can see, like First Nations peoples, that nothing is working in this space and hasn’t for a very long time. The status quo is not working,” Professor Davis said.
“That’s the exciting thing about the 14th of October. Finally, we will get change.”