The Law Institute of Victoria today issued its public support for the proposal to enshrine an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice in the Constitution, to be put to the Australian people by way of a referendum later this year.
LIV President Tania Wolff said, “The proposed amendment to create a constitutionally enshrined Voice responds to the invitation to the Australian people contained in the Uluru Statement from the Heart, which states:
We seek constitutional reforms to empower our people and take a rightful place in our own country. When we have power over our destiny our children will flourish. They will walk in two worlds and their culture will be a gift to their country. We call for the establishment of a First Nations Voice enshrined in the Constitution.
Tania Wolff added, “We believe that establishing a constitutionally enshrined Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice is a long-overdue constitutional recognition of Australia’s First Nations peoples. It will be both a substantive and practical measure to better inform policy and legal decisions that impact the lives of Indigenous Australians. The consequences of the constitutional change have been interrogated by constitutional experts and have been found to be sound.
“Ultimately, each Australian will need to arrive at their own decision on this issue. In reaching this decision, the LIV is cognisant of the diversity of views across our community and the LIV membership.”
The Law Council of Australia, of which the LIV is a member, issued its unequivocal support for an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to be enshrined in the Australian Constitution in March 2023.
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