A divided party that needs this come-back kid like it needs to be put down
The former PM says the correct Liberal stance is to oppose the Voice to Parliament. But many of his party colleagues disagree, and they are making themselves heard.
Nostalgic for a No campaign he could get behind – again – former prime minister Tony Abbott re-presented himself at Parliament House last week. He was being gagged, he said, by the refusal of the Parliamentary Committee Inquiry into the Voice referendum to allow him to give testimony in person.
Abbott had already given a written submission to the inquiry; he has also written extensively about his thoughts on the matter in The Australian newspaper.
What will a No victory do to the cause of reconciliation? How will we have a hope of closing the gap? How can Australia fashion its contemporary national identity if we can’t face the violence of our origin story? How will any of us ever be able to sit through a Welcome to Country again? How will we respond to the “almost endless protest” Pearson has warned of? How much more despair can we heap on the heads of Aboriginal Australians?
In short: what will happen next if we say no?
Source: Voice to Parliament: Tony Abbott is back for another No campaign
Aboriginal,and Torres Strait Islander people are not mentioned in the constitution. But neither is anyone else.
Governments are voted in and out of power, an unelected Voice will be permanently entrenched. There’s no knowing what they will or won’t have the power to do. Our cunning PM says we should all vote yes and leave the details to be worked out later. A permanent change in the constitution is serious. For that reason it hasn’t been done before. For that reason we deserve to know the specifics of what we are voting for. Beforehand.
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