Commentary With alcohol bans being reinstated in the Northern Territory, we can expect more discussion about whether they are effective or not. Former West Australian of the Year and Nyamal woman Tracy Westerman has previously stated that authorities are not addressing the root cause of alcohol abuse when speaking of her home state. I agree…

Commentary Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, together with all the state and territory premiers have officially backed an Indigenous “voice” to parliament, to advise parliament and the federal government on policy matters. He says it is a priority for his government to secure this successful constitutional referendum in the second half of this year. In…

The Australian federal government is being called on to enforce intervention-era alcohol restrictions in the Northern Territory with Country Liberal Senator Jacinta Price calling the current ban a “half-baked policy.” Price, an Indigenous senator, sought bipartisan support for her Northern Territory Safe Measures Bill 2023, which will establish a federal and territory government partnership to…

South Australia (SA) will forge ahead with its own Indigenous Voice to Parliament, legislated through the SA Parliament, in a move that will likely add a major layer of red tape to government decision-making. The announcement by the SA Labor Premier Peter Malinauskas comes as his federal counterparts look set to push forward a national…

Commentary Now that most of the musket smoke has been blown away after the Australia Day (or “Invasion Day”) celebrations, it’s time to take stock and survey the battlefield. People will tell you that the gazetting of Australia Day as a national public holiday is only a relatively recent innovation, and that is partly true—1988…

Commentary “When men choose not to believe in God, they do not thereafter believe in nothing; they then become capable of believing in anything.” (Anon, but ascribed to G. K. Chesterton). “… it is not possible to pierce the mystery of the religious mind, the religious conscience of another, with the sword of logic.” (Eugenio…

Commentary There is no denying the reality that a constitutional convention held in 2017 near Uluru galvanised a movement to amend the Australian Constitution. The “Uluru Statement from the Heart” (pdf) invites people to walk with Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders “in a movement of the Australian people for a better future.” To that purpose,…

The National party has announced it will not support the federal Labor government’s move to create a constitutionally enshrined Indigenous Voice to Parliament. In Australia, the National Party typically represents regional and rural Australians, including many of the outback Indigenous communities. Speaking at a press conference, National Party leader David Littleproud said that his party…

Commentary Plenty has been said about the proposed Indigenous Voice to Parliament; some of it has been thought provoking, and much of it unfortunately, has just been the regurgitation of past offerings by those wanting to score political points. We currently have one side saying it’s racist if the Voice doesn’t get up and the…

Commentary In November, I was a conference panellist on the topic of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to Parliament. Chris Kenny, a host on Sky News Australia, was moderating a panel of Anthony Dillon, Hannah Hollis, Dean Parkin, and myself. The whole conference was a great event, and we also had a great…