Indigenous Australians Minister Linda Burney has declared the government's intention to go cautiously on the Voice to Parliament, as momentum builds towards a referendum on the issue.
Following the prime minister's speech at Garma Festival over the weekend, in which he proposed a possible wording for the referendum's question, Ms Burney said the issue's significance necessitated the building of widespread consensus.
"We will not be rushed, and it is very important that this belongs to the Australian people, not to politicians," she told ABC radio on Monday.
"There will be a process, we will not be rushed."
The minister has also sought to allay concerns surrounding confusion in the community about the body's structure and function, saying much detail, the result of years of work, had already been published.
"There is a lot of detail out there in the community," she said.
"If people are going to vote on something, what they need is to have an understanding of why this is important."
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese delivered a speech to Indigenous leaders, cat the Garma Festival ahead of a referendum on an Indigenous Voice. Source: SBS
Possible question presented
Speaking to the attendees at Garma, the annual celebration of Yolŋu culture, the prime minister presented for the first time a possible wording of the question that will be put to the nation: "Do you support an alteration to the constitution that establishes an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice?"
If passed, a successful referendum would add three lines to the constitution, stipulating: the existence of an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to parliament; that such a body would make recommendations on First Nations issues to parliament and government; and that the exact function of the Voice would be worked out later by parliament.
Mr Albanese defended the simplicity of the question being proposed, telling the ABC he did not want the conversation to get lost in the "cul-de-sac" of endless discussions around technical matters.
While a timeline for the referendum had not been finalised, Labor reportedly prefers holding the vote next year.
Greens First Nation spokeswoman Lidia Thorpe said she welcomed the referendum and wanted all elements of the Uluru Statement from the Heart to be enacted.
However, she called on the government to implement a treaty with Indigenous people and to follow through on all recommendations from the royal commission into deaths in custody.
"I have always said that I'll work with the government to get it right," she told ABC radio.
"Our priority should be black justice in this country, our priority should be about saving lives today, not waiting for a referendum."
