After the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, unveiled the final wording of the conditional amendment, Australians will be asked to recognise the First Peoples of the nation in a referendum later this year.
The proposed amendment, to be included in a new chapter in the constitution, would establish a body known as the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice. The advisory body would be able to make representations to the parliament and executive government. After two days of negotiations in Canberra, Albanese and the government accepted the strong advice of its internal working group of indigenous leaders to retain the voice's power to advise executive government, including the cabinet and the public service, despite concerns raised by a small number of conservative critics.
Albanese said in a press conference in Canberra that there was no circumstance in which the government would back down on its plan to hold a referendum in the final three months of the year. Albanese became emotional and choking back tears after sitting alongside ministers Linda Burney and Mark Dreyfus, as well as other Indigenous Labor MPs, including Pat Dodson and Malarndirri McCarthy.
Several other members of the group, including the Indigenous leaders Marcia Langton, Megan Davis, Ken Wyatt and Pat Anderson, also appeared visibly emotional and wiped tears.
The legislation will be introduced to parliament next Thursday and sent to a parliamentary committee for an inquiry.
Albanese said that you win only when you run on the field and engage us all in.