THE AUSTRALIAN CONSTITUTION
The First British Settlement in Australia
The First Fleet landed at Port Jackson on 26 January 1788, and the following month Australia's first European colony was established on 7 February 1788. Captain Arthur Phillip was appointed by the British government as the first Governor of this new prison colony.
Australian Federation
During the 19th century, a movement to federate the Australian colonies developed around the country, in order to tackle various domestic and international political and economic circumstances effectively. In 1898, New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia passed a referendum to federate under an Australian Constitution. The Australian Constitution is the fundamental law that explains how our country is governed. Changing this new map of political power requires a referendum. Eventually, in 1899, Queensland supported the federation, and the following year, Western Australia followed suit. The nation of Australia was born on 1 January 1901, with a Federal Parliament to govern the country.
The spirit of 'terra nullius’
The Australian Constitution is a founding legal document for our nation. So, it must recognise Australia’s long history and distinct place of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People and their cultures, languages, and heritage. However, it was drafted against a backdrop of racism that led to the White Australia policy and a range of other discriminatory practices. The racist elements of the Constitution and the lack of recognition of the status and rights of the First People in the Constitution have had negative consequences for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People. The Australian Constitution was also drafted in the spirit of ‘Terra Nullius’ which means land that is legally deemed to be unoccupied or uninhabited. Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander people were subjugated, incarcerated, or eradicated, in order to keep the myth of ‘Terra Nullius’ alive. They were ignored from its drafting and excluded from the discussions concerning the creation of a new nation to be situated on their ancestral lands and territories.
The discriminatory Sections of the Constitution and the 1967 referendum
Section 25 of the Constitution gives provision for exclusion of voters based on race. Section 51(xxvi) enables the Australian Parliament to regulate the affairs of the people of coloured or inferior races. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were expressly discriminated against while drafting the Constitution, noticeably with the provisions that prevented them from being counted as among the numbers of the new nation. Consequently, the new Australian Government ignored them and had not made any provision to protect their inherent rights as the First People of this country. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples campaigned for many years to achieve full voting rights in state and federal elections. Finally, under the Commonwealth Electoral Act (1962), Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders were given the right to enroll and vote. These rights were granted federally in 1962, Queensland was the last state to allow Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to vote in State elections in 1965. Followed by the 1967 referendum paved the way for a critical change that allowed Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to be counted in the census. Regrettably, the referendum did not go further enough to remove the discriminatory Sections 25 and 51(xxvi) of the Australian Constitution.
In the 21st century only Australia allows its Parliament to validly enact laws that are racially discriminatory. Throughout the history of exclusion, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have consistently fought to have their rights acknowledged by the people of Australia. However, history has been forgotten, facts have been ignored, historical truth lost its stance, and social justice has turned a blind eye, but the contemporary identity has been created based on the myth of ‘Terra Nullius.’ The people who lived in Australia for more than sisxty thousand years through calamitous environments and protected their lands have been denied their place in their motherland. This country has lost its fundamental test when it comes to social goals and human development. Truly, the land of the fair go does not work in Australia; if you belong to a minority race. Immigrants also have been affected by the structural and cultural forms of racism in Australia. The lack of recognition of the First People and Immigrants affects Australia negatively. It continues to affect our relationships with each other and our sense of identity as Australians. Therefore, I believe that constitutional change is the key to changing the historical mindset, in order to put the nation on the right track, especially by removing the discriminatory Sections 25 and 51(xxvi) of the Australian Constitution.
THE ABORIGINAL LAND RIGHTS (NORTHERN TERRITORY) ACT 1976
The Aboriginal Land Rights (Northern Territory) Act 1976 was a fundamental piece of social reform since 1788. This act was the first attempt by an Australian government to legally recognise the Aboriginal people’s land ownership. The land rights act has provided land for Aboriginal people in the Northern Territory and enabled them to re-establish their cultural identity. When the Act was passed; inaccessible and unwanted lands became Aboriginal land. The only land able to be claimed is land that nobody wants. As a result of an amendment to the Aboriginal land rights act by the Hawke Government, no more land claims could be lodged after June 30 1997.