Indigenous leaders have revealed they may still push for a voice after 8.6 million Australians voted no to the inclusion of an Aboriginal advisory body in the constitution.
A group of unnamed Aboriginal leaders ended their ‘week of silence’ on Sunday evening with an open letter accusing the 61 per cent of Australians who voted no of committing a ‘shameful act’.
The statement – shared by activist Allira Davis and former Labor senator Nova Peris – said: “Australia is our country… It is the legitimacy of the non-Indigenous occupation in this country that demands recognition, not the other way around.”
The open letter claims to be ‘the collective insights and views of a group of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leaders, community members and organizations who supported Yes’.
While the statement had some obvious differences from a leaked version revealed hours earlier, it still blamed the Coalition – which includes prominent No campaigners Jacinta Nampijinpa Price and Warren Nyunggai Mundine – for the loss.
The published letter said: ‘The truth is that the majority of Australians, knowingly or not, have committed a shameful act, and nothing positive can be interpreted from it. We needed the truth to be told to the Australian people.”
The unsigned letter was posted online late Sunday evening by Aboriginal activist Allira Davis
This ‘truth’ phrase is a clear indication that the indigenous leaders of the Yes campaign will now turn their attention to another part of the Uluru Statement from the heart – that of ‘telling the truth’ about the leaders of the country.
Despite the enormous loss, Indigenous leaders also said they “want to talk to our people and our supporters about establishing – independently of the constitution or legislation – an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander voice to advance the cause of justice for our people to take.
“Rejecting constitutional recognition will not stop us from speaking out against governments, parliaments and the Australian people.”
The anonymous letter writers also claim they have “an agenda for justice in pursuing our First Nations rights, who desperately need a voice – we will continue to follow our law and our ways, as our elders and ancestors have done.”
The letter also called for schoolchildren to learn more about the struggles of Indigenous Australians, saying a lack of knowledge and racism contributed to the referendum’s defeat.
“That so many Australian people believe there is no race or division over race in the current Australian Constitution speaks to the need for better education about Australian history and better citizenship education,” the report said.
The letter blamed the Coalition, including prominent Aboriginal senators Jacinta Nampijinpa Price (left in photo) and Warren Nyunggai Mundine (right), for the loss.
The statement (pictured) said indigenous leaders will continue to lobby for a vote despite the comprehensive defeat in the referendum
In a direct challenge to non-Indigenous Australians, the letter read: “Australia is our country. We accept that the majority of Australians have rejected recognition in the Australian Constitution.
‘We will not accept for a moment that this country is not ours. Always been. Always will be.
“It is the legitimacy of the non-indigenous occupation in this country that requires recognition, not the other way around. Our sovereignty has never been ceded.”
READ MORE: No campaign reveals its next target
The published statement did not include a line in the leaked draft that said: “Only the shameless can say there is no shame in this outcome.”
Daily Mail Australia has contacted No campaign manager Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price and pro-referendum campaign Uluru Dialogues for comment.
The current referendum count shows that 5.6 million Australians voted yes, 8.65 million voted no and 143,910 were informal votes. The counting continues.