Bill Shorten indicates Indigenous treaty possibility on Q&A
During ABC’s Q&A program Monday night Bill Shorten signaled his support for a treaty with Indigenous Australians as well as constitutional recognition.
The leader of the Labor party backed a debate on a “post-constitutional recognition settlement with Indigenous people” on the popular program that was broadcast from Penrith Monday night, in the marginal seat of Lindsay.
Mr Shorten was responding to an Aboriginal questioner, Doug Delaney, who wanted to know if Shorten agreed that the British settlement in Australia was an "invasion".
Initially Shorten claimed that an Aboriginal person might consider it an "invasion", but he described the event as Aboriginal people being "dispossessed".
"If anyone says that Aboriginal people weren't dispossessed from their land by the British settlement they're telling lies," Shorten responded.
"Well my ancestors came out as convicts so I don't feel the convicts were part of the invading force if that's any good. They didn't have any choice coming here either,” Shorten continued.
However when Shorten was pushed on more specific details on the ‘treaty’ by host Tony Jones he refused to elaborate, instead accusing the moderator as posing a “gotcha” moment.
"What I'm not going to do, is give all the answers on one spot at one time," he added in answer to Jones’ question.
Shorten continued, "Do I think that we should have our First Australians mentioned in our national birth certificate, the constitution? Yes. Do I think we need to move beyond just constitutional recognition to talking about what a post-constitutional recognition settlement with Indigenous people looks like? Yes I do," Shorten said while on the panel.
"Could it look like a treaty?" host Tony Jones prompted.
"Yes," Shorten responded.
"Is that something you might move towards in government, a treaty?" Jones asked again.
"I just have a sense, Tony, maybe you think I'm being a little harsh on you, that there's a little bit of gotcha going on here," Shorten continued.
"No, no, it's not gotcha, it's a question based on what you just said when you said yes I assumed certain things," Jones responded.
"Yeah, but you can. I think you were just surprised to hear me say yes ... I do think that this country is not handling Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people well ... I do think there needs to be a discussion about should you have a treaty or shouldn't you have a treaty, but what I'm not going to do is give all the answers on one spot at one time."
Treaties have been introduced in the US, Canada and New Zealand, as a means of reaching a settlement between Indigenous peoples and those who have settled their lands.
News break – June 14
