The referendum to constitutionally recognize Australia’s indigenous population has been rejected. This was initially proposed in 2017 by indigenous community leaders, but only until this year was it possible to realize it. This October 14, with 70% of the counts, nearly 60% of the votes were for “No”.

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“It’s a bitter irony. “For people who have been on this continent for only 235 years, to refuse to recognize those who have called this land home for 60,000 years or more is beyond reason,” indigenous community leaders said.

The amendment aimed to add a new chapter to the 1901 Constitution, in which a special body would be created for the political representation of communities in the legislative and executive powers. It would function as an advisor to Parliament on issues concerning First Peoples and would be composed of 24 members for a four-year term.

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Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has made the referendum one of the pillars of his government. In his campaign, he advocated for “reconciliation with First Nations peoples.” On the occasion of the publication of the results, he said he was “disappointed”, during a “difficult night” for Australians, but stressed that he would respect the popular will.

“Even though the result tonight is not what I expected, I absolutely respect the decision of the Australian people and the democratic process that made it,” he told a conference of press.

Albanese pledged he would continue to work for the welfare of Australia’s indigenous and Aboriginal communities, who face lower wages, poor living conditions and reduced life expectancy on a daily basis.

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Indigenous communities disappointed

“It is very clear that reconciliation is dead. I think it will take at least two generations before Australians are able to put their colonial hatreds behind them and recognize that we exist,” Marcia Langton, one of the referendum project collaborators, told NITV.

Australia’s indigenous population represents 3.8% of the total and has been calling for this referendum to be held for six years. Attempts at reconciliation with the country’s indigenous communities are reaching a critical point, in which First Nations do not see a desire for reconciliation on the part of other sectors of citizens.

During the referendum campaign, community leaders faced “horrible acts of racism and misinformation”, which may have contributed to the outcome of the vote.

With this decision, Australia remains one of the rare ex-colonial countries not to formally recognize First Nations. Canada and New Zealand, with similar histories, have established constitutional recognition of indigenous communities. The last decision taken in a referendum for the inclusion of First Nations dates back to 1967, when the population was included in the population census.

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Referendums in Australia

This is the first referendum held in Australia in almost 25 years. To be approved, these must meet a national majority and in at least four states. In this case, all six states rejected the proposal.

Previously, polls of voting intentions indicated that the result would be a victory for “No”. It is very rare for a referendum to be successful in Australia, since of the 44 that have taken place in its history, only eight have been able to move forward.

The number of people eligible to vote was 17.6 million, out of Australia’s 26 million population. It is still not clear how many abstentions there were during the vote. The final results will be known at the end of this month.

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