Step towards reconciliation hailed as ‘a historic moment’ with premier Jacinta Allan saying it gives Aboriginal Australians the power to shape policies that affect their lives
The Australian state of Victoria has taken a historic step towards reconciliation, passing the nation’s first formal treaty with Indigenous traditional owners.
After two days of debate, the upper house of Victoria’s parliament passed the statewide treaty bill without amendment by 21 votes to 16, just before 9pm on Thursday.
As the vote was confirmed, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags were unfurled from the public gallery, where the First Peoples’ Assembly co-chairs, Ngarra Murray and Rueben Berg, sat alongside fellow members and Aboriginal elders. The Labor, Greens, Legalise Cannabis and Animal Justice party MPs who backed the bill turned to applaud the gallery.
“This is a historic moment for our people,” Ngarra said after the vote. “We will tell our children about today, and they will tell their children, passing down to future generations the story of how decades of Aboriginal resilience and activism led to Australia’s first treaty.
