Uluru statement

Abstract

From every State and Territory of Australia, including the islands of the Torres Strait over 200 delegates gathered at the 2017 First Nations National Constitutional Convention in Uluru, which has stood on Anangu Pitjantjatjara country in the Northern Territory since time immemorial, to discuss the issue of constitutional recognition. Delegates agreed that tokenistic recognition would not be enough, and that recognition bearing legal substance must stand, with the possibility to make multiple treaties between Aboriginal peoples and Torres Strait Islanders and the Commonwealth Government of Australia. In this paper, we look at the roadmap beyond such a potential change. We make the case for a redistributive approach to capital, and propose key outcomes for social reconstruction, should a voice to parliament, a Makarrata[1] Commission and multiple treaties be enabled through a successful referendum. We conclude that an alteration of the Commonwealth Constitution (Cth) is the preliminary overture of a suite of changes: the constitutional change itself is not the end of the road, but simply the beginning of years of legal change, which seeks provide a socio-economic future for Australia’s First Peoples, and the oldest continuing cultures in the world. Constitutional change seeks to transform the discourse about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander relations with the Australian state from one centred on distributive justice to one that is primarily informed by retributive justice. This paper concerns the future generations of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, and their right to labour in a market that honours their cultural contributions to humanity at large.
 
 [1] Yolŋu ceremony for coming together after a struggle.

Understanding the Nexus Between Alcohol Consumption, Social and Emotional Well-Being, and Higher Education Outcomes among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Males in Australia

“…This is exemplified through the Uluru Statement from the Heart (The Statement). 28 The Statement is a signed document formed and ratified by the delegates of the First Nations National Constitutional Convention. 28 The Statement calls for constitutional and legislative change, through a Voice to Parliament for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, the provision for making multiple treaties with governments, and a truth and justice commission, in order to ensure a process of healing and respectful intercultural dialogue through successive generations.…”

“…28 The Statement is a signed document formed and ratified by the delegates of the First Nations National Constitutional Convention. 28 The Statement calls for constitutional and legislative change, through a Voice to Parliament for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, the provision for making multiple treaties with governments, and a truth and justice commission, in order to ensure a process of healing and respectful intercultural dialogue through successive generations. The Statement is becoming increasingly important in an educational perspective, as it is a new movement and requires intergenerational understanding, and enhancement of its terms, in order for the momentum to grow.…”

Demanding dialogue in an unsettled settler state: implications for education and justice

“…Participants were advised that they were entitled to agree or disagree that Constitutional reform was necessary and on the final day “delegates were presented with a draft Record of Meeting which synthesised the discussion and debate from the plenary sessions and provided the opportunity to make changes” [3]. The Convention then issued the Uluru Statement from the Heart , calling for voice, treaty and truth (Appleby and Davis, 2018; Fleay and Judd, 2019). Dialogue through this process was, therefore, considered and planned, it had room for disagreement and debate as well as space for checking information and perspectives.…”