Yes or No?
Be ready to vote on 14th October
Our Association is non-political, and dedicated to helping build an inclusive, vibrant and sustainable community. As part of this mission, we are providing the following information to assist our community.
On 14th October, all Australian citizens will vote in the Voice Referendum.
Independent fact checking has revealed that Australian voters need to be wary when reading the official pamphlet and making up their minds on the Voice.
This is the first referendum since 1999. On this day, we will be voting to consider recognising our First Nations people in our Constitution, and establishing an advisory body to ensure that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have a say in policies and outcomes that impact their communities.
Some people will be comfortable to vote ‘Yes’ based on the fact that the Voice is advisory, and that it has been requested by and is supported by a majority of First Nations people. Some will not be comfortable with changing the Constitution and will vote ‘No’.
But for those who need more information before you decide, we strongly urge you to consider whether the information you are reading or hearing is accurate and truthful. We are unfortunately in the age of ‘fake news’ where disinformation and misinformation are part of daily public discourse.
We cannot even rely on the published Yes and No cases for the Voice to Parliament, contained in the Referendum Booklet that is being mailed out to Australian households. The Australian Electoral Commission has stated “The AEC does not have legislative authority to edit, amend or fact check the Yes or No cases.”
(Read the disclaimer on every page of the Yes and No cases in the Referendum Booklet.)
The Australian Electoral Commission has provided advice on how to be a critical thinker when consuming information and think about whether the information is accurate and truthful.
And the independent body The Conversation Australia and New Zealand (which is dedicated to accurate journalism) has recently fact-checked the Yes and No cases – see what they have found: Fact-check of the Yes and No cases.