If the forthcoming referendum succeeds and an Indigenous Voice to Parliament is established, it will add a new cog to the wheel of the nation's democracy.
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But here in Canberra, the concept of a body to speak to government on matters concerning Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples is already well entrenched.
For almost 15 years, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elected Body has served as the "voice" of the local Indigenous communities, advising and holding to account the ACT's political leaders.
The representative body offers a useful insight into the potential for a national Voice to improve the lives of First Nations peoples.
It also presents some lessons and warnings.
The ACT's elected body has it critics, including some prominent Indigenous leaders and advocates who say it must be overhauled.
Critics warn that a national Voice won't be the panacea for Indigenous disadvantage, including the staggeringly high rates of incarceration.
The experience in Canberra - where First Nations peoples are locked up at 21 times the rate of non-Indigenous people - is proof of that, they say.
"I look at the faces of Aboriginal people and I know how far we have to travel," former ACT Chief Minister and Minister for Indigenous Affairs Jon Stanhope said.
"For us to say 'isn't that beaut' we have a Voice to Parliament, we can all relax. Well, no."
'A Voice for the Aboriginal community'
The elected body was established under Stanhope's Labor government in 2008 as a response to the abolition of the scandal-plagued Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission three years earlier.
If there was political resistance at the time, as there is in pockets to a federal Voice, Mr Stanhope can't recall it.
"What I was seeking to do, through a democratic process, was to give a voice to the Aboriginal community of Canberra," he said.
Canberra's Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people population has grown to almost 9000 according to the latest census.
The elected body is made up of seven part-time members, elected every three years in a poll open to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults living in the ACT.
Whereas the proposed federal Voice would advise both the government and the parliament, the elected body deals only with the ACT government.
Among its functions, it is responsible for providing advice and raising concerns to the Minister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs and assessing the performance of government programs.
It also runs annual estimates-style hearings, allowing it to directly question the heads of each government directorate.
Closing the gap will take time but must be approached with a sense of urgency and genuine willingness to work together.
- Rachel Stephen-Smith
In one example, during hearings in 2020, members grilled then Corrections boss Jon Peach about racism at Canberra prison after the emergence of a drawing allegedly depicting an inmate hanging from a noose.
For Rod Little, who served on the elected body from its inception until 2015, the hearings are an essential feature of the ACT model which should be replicated in the federal Voice.
"I think it was one of the most critical things," he said.
"The people themselves that are asking the questions are a lot closer to what happens in their actual communities.
"The [hearings] are not threatening ... it is a process that people are used to. But it's about accountability."
ACT Minister for Indigenous Affairs Rachel Stephen-Smith said the hearings had proven to be an "extremely valuable" transparency and accountability measure, as she flagged that ministers, not just public servants, could appear before them in the future.
Arguably the most significant achievement of the elected body has been an agreement struck with the ACT government, which sets targets under 10 areas including health, justice, education, and economic participation.
Elected body chair Tanya Keed listed among its major achievements, its work with the government to upgrade Boomunulla Oval, expand options for culturally appropriate housing, and its ongoing support and advice on reducing the number of Indigenous children in the child protection system.
"The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Elected Body are pivotal in providing a voice for the rights and interests of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Canberrans," Ms Keed said.
'It needs to have teeth'
All of the community leaders and advocates who spoke to The Canberra Times for this article supported the intent of the elected body.
But some believe its structure means it is incapable of being the strong and truly independent advocate it needs to be.
Some of the harshest criticism has come from Julie Tongs, the outspoken chief executive of Winnunga Nimmityjah Aboriginal health clinic.
Ms Tongs used a column in Winnunga's monthly newsletter in September to call for the abolition of the elected body, arguing it had become a source of division and no longer commanded the respect or support of the communities it is meant to represent.
Of most concern is an apparent lack of independence.
The elected body does not have an independent secretariat, meaning it has to rely on the government - the same people it is trying to hold to account - for help.
Members of the elected body have often been ACT public servants, which Ms Tongs said meant they were "seriously conflicted".
Ms Tongs argued that the low turnout in the most recent elections - just 276 votes were cast - suggested her views were widely shared.
In an interview this week with The Canberra Times, Ms Tongs toned down her calls for the abolition of the elected body.
But she was adamant that it needs to be overhauled.
"It needs to have teeth," she said.
"It needs to be autonomous. It needs to be outside of government.
"I don't think that government employees should be allowed to be elected to a so-called elected body. It defeats the purpose. How do you stand up and advocate against your own department? It's a bit hard."
The elected body did take a stand in 2021 after footage emerged of police tasering Aboriginal man Luke Marsh after unlawfully entering his home.
"The system has failed again. It's let this person down and our collective trust is diminished," the then chair Katrina Fanning said at the time.
Ms Stephen-Smith said the ACT government remained committed to the elected body, which she said provided a "pivotal voice" in the recognition of the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to self-determination.
She said options for reform would be canvassed this year, including exploring the elected body's relationship with the ACT Legislative Assembly.
But banning public servants from sitting on the elected body appears off the table.
Ms Stephen-Smith said the issue was considered in 2017 and the government decided against changing the rules, in part because of the large number of Canberra's relatively small Indigenous population who work in either the Commonwealth or ACT public service.
Ms Keed did not respond directly when asked if members felt they were able to properly advocate for their community, free of influence from government.
She said the elected body did not answer to the government, but rather worked with it. Members had to adhere to a strict code of conduct, she said, and conflicts of interest had to be reported and resolved in line with legislation.
'A national disgrace'
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is confident an Indigenous Voice to Parliament will result in real, practical improvements to the lives of First Nations peoples.
"The Voice is about recognising if we're going to make a practical difference going forward, we know that where Indigenous Australians feel a sense of ownership over decisions, where they're consulted about programs that have a direct impact on them, then you get better outcomes," he said in a podcast with Michelle Grattan.
Mr Stanhope, who works part-time at Winnunga and remains deeply passionate about Indigenous affairs, said a Voice to Parliament would be an "undeniable and inarguable" step forward for the nation.
But he is quick to warn that a Voice in and of itself won't close the gap.
Almost 15 years after the ACT elected body was established, the rates of disadvantage for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Canberra are among the worst in the nation.
Almost 30 per cent of inmates at the Alexander Maconochie Centre are Indigenous, despite Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander peoples making up just 2 per cent of Canberra's population.
First Nations Canberrans are 21 times more likely to be imprisoned than non-Indigenous people, according to the prison inspectors latest review.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are almost 10 times more likely to be in foster care or the subject of care and protection orders, well above the rates from a decade ago, according to Productivity Commission data.
"Indigenous outcomes in the ACT are a disgrace," Mr Stanhope said.
"They are a national disgrace. For us as the most progressive community, with the most progressive government in Australia, to be producing the outcomes that Aboriginal people in this town endure is a disgrace."
Mr Stanhope, a regular and vocal critic of the Barr government, said the government should be held responsible.
It's a view shared by Ms Tongs and Mr Little.
"The buck stops with government at the end of the day," Mr Little said.
"What they do over time, or what they don't do, will always have the impact."
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The first and most recent report on progress against the targets in the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander agreement, published last April, showed improvement in some areas and decline in others.
The ACT government last year committed $11.5 million as it attempts to deliver on its commitment to reduce Indigenous incarceration to match the rate of non-Indigenous people by 2030.
Given the current statistics, the goal seems a long way off.
Ms Stephen-Smith said addressing the systemic disadvantage experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples was "complex".
"Closing the gap will take time but must be approached with a sense of urgency and genuine willingness to work together," she said.
"The ACT government recognises that First Nations people have the answers to many of the challenges their communities face and is committed to supporting self-determination."
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Dan Jervis-Bardy
Dan covers federal politics from Parliament House, with a special focus on climate policy and the NDIS. He has previously reported on ACT politics and urban affairs since joining the Canberra Times in 2018.
Dan covers federal politics from Parliament House, with a special focus on climate policy and the NDIS. He has previously reported on ACT politics and urban affairs since joining the Canberra Times in 2018.
