The Voice Referendum: The Devil in the Details By James Reed
The PM has been treating the Australian voting public like the proverbial mushrooms, being kept in the dark, and fed on compost regarding the Aboriginal voice referendum. The Coalition has begun attacking the government for its failure to release details of the referendum proposal, failing to release material in a pamphlet, as is the usual practice with referendums. Peter Dutton warned that this secrecy would lead to the referendum failing. We can only hope that this is so, but following on from the gay marriage vote, and the Covid mandates and compliance, there is a clear and present danger that the details of what will be done will simply not be given, which is standard practice for totalitarian states, as Australia is becoming, or may well now be philosophically. Instead, it will be full-on “white racism if you do not vote “Yes”.” And, that in itself is an excellent reason to vote “No”! This really is a time for no-one opposed to the “breakup of Australia” to be silent. Convince family and friends of the dangers of the elites having an open day in changing the constitution. We should not trust the elites as a matter of principle.
https://quadrant.org.au/product/hidden-agenda-aboriginal-sovereignty/
“Australian voters are not being told the truth about the proposal for constitutional recognition of indigenous people. The goal of Aboriginal political activists today is to gain ‘sovereignty’ and create a black state, equivalent to the existing states. Its territory, comprising all land defined as native title, will soon amount to more than 60 per cent of the whole Australian continent. Constitutional recognition, if passed, would be its ‘launching pad’. Recognition will not make our nation complete; it will divide us permanently.”
“The Coalition has accused the Albanese government of “ducking questions” over the mechanics of the referendum on an Indigenous voice to parliament, with frontbencher Jane Hume declaring “the lack of detail will set the referendum up to fail”.
In a fresh attack on Labor’s proposed voice, the opposition finance spokeswoman and shadow special minister of state said government officials appearing before a parliamentary committee could not say why the government had decided not to provide official information on the referendum in a pamphlet.
Senator Hume also said there were no answers to why Labor had chosen not to create an official Yes and No campaign, which “would allow for effective regulation of donations and foreign influence”.
“Labor continues to duck the questions on the referendum process, continuing to raise concerns by the Coalition that the lack of detail will set the referendum up to fail,” Senator Hume said.
“Labor has presented legislation that will change the way we conduct referenda in Australia. How we change our Constitution is as important as it gets and Australians deserve to know why these changes to past practice are necessary.
“In an age of misinformation, Labor must explain why they would want to get rid of official information being provided to Australians. Labor must explain why it is better not to have an official ‘Yes’ and ‘No’ campaign, which would make the referendum easier to regulate against illegal donations and foreign interference.
“These aren’t small changes to process – they will set precedence for how we change our national document in the future, including if Australians vote on other questions.”
Senator Hume’s comments come a day after Peter Dutton warned Labor was “condemning (the voice) to failure” by not providing “accessible, clear and complete information” about its proposed model.
The Albanese government introduced the Referendum (Machinery Provisions) Amendment Bill to the House of Representatives last month, which aims to modernise how the voice referendum can be conducted.
The last referendum in Australia was held 22 years ago.
The bill requires individuals or organisations that spend more than $15,200 to report the amount they spend on campaigning to the Australian Electoral Commission.
Donations valued above the disclosure threshold and the total value of all donations received would also be published. Foreign donations of $100 or more for referendum campaigning would be banned and foreign campaigners could only spend up to $1000 on campaigning in a financial year.
Indigenous Australians Minister Linda Burney is on leave. Her office pointed The Australian to previous comments where she said taxpayers no longer needed to pay for a referendum pamphlet to be sent to every household because modern technology allowed MPs to express their views to voters through many other sources.
The government has left it to the Yes and No campaigns to raise their own funds without public money.
Special Minister of State Don Farrell’s spokesman said the government had approached the modernisation of the referendum in a bipartisan and consultative manner, including offering briefings to the Coalition.
Government sources said the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters had been tasked with investigating and considering the “very issues that the opposition are complaining about”.
“Instead of playing politics, the opposition could participate in the committee process and help shape the legislation,” they said.”
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