Wednesday, 4 October 2023

 Paul EDBROOKE (Frankston) (10:07): I rise to put everyone in this chamber on notice today. We know more than any other Parliament in this country the power of an Indigenous Voice to Parliament. This state proudly has the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria, built from the ground up by our First Peoples for our First Peoples. In fact the Assembly gained so much goodwill that at the 2022 election Victoria had bipartisan support for voice, truth and treaty. This is Victoria at its best. Now I ask each and every one of you, regardless of whether you are red, green, blue, whatever: what are you doing to support the federal government decision-making and long-overdue constitutional recognition of our First Peoples? Have you doorknocked? Have you phone banked? Have you had those difficult conversations with family members – that odd uncle? Have the conversation. What is evidently clear is that we cannot keep doing the same thing and expecting better results. It does not work that way. The gap is not closing; in fact some things are getting worse. We in this place know better than the lies, the mistruths and the downright hogwash that have been spewing out of the no campaign. Why? Because we have had a voice for four years, and the sun rises every single day as we work towards better self-determined outcomes in Victoria. Choose to be on the right side of history. Do not leave any stone unturned. Fight for this referendum and get it over the line. It is the least we can do for the oldest continuous living culture on earth, one which I am immensely proud to share home with.