Statement of the Board of STARTTS on the Voice to Parliament

Statement of the Board of STARTTS regarding the Referendum to establish an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to Federal Parliament in the Constitution.

As a service dedicated to healing the impact of trauma and to hearing the voices of those that have been subject to abuse of their human rights, we acknowledge the trauma inflicted on the First Peoples of Australia through the loss of land, custom and language and the forced removal and separation of family members.

There is much to do to bring about justice and fairness in the wake of the dispossession of the First Peoples of Australia.

The Uluru Statement from the Heart is an invitation from the First Peoples of this land for all Australians to walk together on the way to a better future brought about by agreement making and truth-telling.

The Board of STARTTS expresses its support to set off on this path by enshrining recognition of the First Peoples in the Constitution through the establishment of a Voice to Parliament.

Dr Roger Gurr
on behalf of the Board of Directors of STARTTS