Indigenous man Marcus Stewart and Voice campaigner refused Invasion Day march

Thousands of Australians gathered for Invasion Day demonstrations across the country on Thursday, but a prominent indigenous activist refused to take part.

Marcus Stewart is among a growing number of Australians who see January 26 and the arrival of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove in 1788 as the beginning of an invasion and British colonial rule.

But the proud man Nira illim bulluk, from the Taungurung Nation, is also a passionate supporter of the Indigenous Voice to Parliament for Yes campaign and told The Project that this year’s demonstrations were hijacked by the No side.

“A couple of weeks ago the demonstration went in a different direction where signs were put up saying it was a pre-Voice treaty,” said Mr Stewart.

“And it seemed to become a soft launch of a No campaign and it went completely against my values.”

The controversial referendum announced by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese shortly after winning office last year will give Australians the chance to vote on indigenous recognition in the constitution and the establishment of an indigenous body to consult parliament on issues affecting indigenous peoples. First Nations people.

With many in the indigenous community now divided on Voice, The Project host Waleed Aly suggested the historic referendum is already in trouble.

“It’s fair to say that it hasn’t been a great week for the Voz Sí campaign,” he said, raising serious doubts about the upcoming vote.

“We have seen criticism from the opposition, the messages from the rallies, do you think it can be successful?”

A firm Mr. Stewart replied ‘Yes, I do’.

‘I believe in the Australian people… I believe that people want to improve the lives of Aboriginal people across the country.’

Albanese has tried to address widespread fears that the Voice “isn’t looking for something that is ‘above parliament’, amid criticism that the referendum plan lacks meaningful details.”

‘It is something that is subordinated to parliament. It will just be an advisory group. Parliament remains sovereign,’ he said.

But this has not stopped criticism from politicians such as Liberal opposition leader Peter Dutton, who has repeatedly said the government is not giving people enough information about exactly what the Voice would mean.

There has also been prominent opposition to the Voice from indigenous leaders on all sides of the political spectrum, including Green Senator Lidia Thorpe, Liberal Country Senator Jacinta Price, and former Liberal candidate Warren Mundine.

Ms Thorpe previously dismissed Voice as a ‘waste of money’ that would be better spent on indigenous communities.

On Thursday, he said First Nations peoples “would deserve better than an advisory body” and told protesters to call for a treaty with indigenous peoples instead of a Voice.

‘They want to put the colonial constitution on top of the oldest constitution on the planet… we are sovereign and this is our land. And we deserve better than an advisory body,’ he said.

In October, Mundine lashed out at The Voice in an interview with Daily Mail Australia.

There’s “a large cohort of Aboriginal people who don’t agree with the Voice, because it’s not an Aboriginal culture,” he said.

But Stewart remains a strong supporter of a Yes vote and disagrees with “the pre-Voice treaty messaging.”

“I think what is forgotten in the debate is that for us to advance the treaty in this country we need Voice,” he said.

‘(Indigenous people) are not a homogeneous group…we don’t always agree.’

He said that indigenous peoples who oppose the Voice “are ruining the greatest opportunity for self-determination that our people have certainly seen in my lifetime.”

“It’s disappointing that we’ve seen a significant amount of immaturity from our politicians, but it’s pretty much what we’ve come to expect in recent years.”

The referendum on the Voice is expected to take place in the second half of 2023.

Any referendum held in Australia must be approved by a majority of voters in four of the six states to become law.