What is your full name?
Thomas Francis Howie
What is your postal code?
3150
Do you support recognising Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples by changing the Constitution or making some other kind of legal change?
No
Should we have a statement that acknowledges the First Peoples of Australia?
Yes. This should be in the Constitution.
Where is the best place to put it?
As prominenetly as it can be without it being a trigger for court action.
What should the statement say?
Recognise that Australia was populated by the aboriginal nations at the time of British settlement. That the Aboriginal Nations have a connection with the land that is different from European culture and should be recognised and respected.
Should the word 'race' be taken out of the Constitution?
Yes
Should the Australian Parliament keep the power to make special laws for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples?
Yes
Do you have any other comments on powers to make laws for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples?
There needs to be Aboriginal input to the process of designing laws that apply to them. The advisory council makes sense. No disadvantage concepts are difficult in that it is unlikely that any contentious issue will have a 100% consensus ( no matter which
Do you think that a guarantee against racial discrimination should go into the Constitution?
No
Do you have any other comments on changing the Constitution to stop racial discrimination?
My difficulty is understanding what racial discrimination in Australian law looks like. When we talk about "Principles" of not making decisions that would have a negative impact on a race of people simply because they are identified as belonging to that r
Do you think Indigenous people should have a say when Parliament and government make laws and policies about Indigenous affairs?
Yes
Should a new Indigenous group be set up under the Constitution to give advice and make sure Indigenous people have a voice in political decisions that affect them?
Yes
Is it worth creating the new group if it can only give advice and does not have the power to block new laws?
Yes
Do you have any ideas about what the new group would look like?
An advisory council - elected ny the aboriginal nations. Good luck with that. But that is what is needed- ownership of the councils deliberations. The deliberations and recommendations must be fully documentedand made public.
Do you have any other comments on this Indigenous group?
It seems that politics will dominate any process of putting such a council together but hopefully political leaders will emerge who are capable of putting together a process that can garner as much of the aboriginal nations support as possible.
Should we delete section 25?
Yes
What would we achieve by getting rid of section 25?
I think it is a no brainer and is a way of getting the public involved- realisng that any bans on voting must be based on transparent eligibilty rules, eg. citizenship, criminal status etc.
Do you have any other comments?
The public discussion on this issue is totally inadequate so far. There is ZERO public awareness - forget about the passionate few, they are committed and informed. The bulk of the population is not engaged in any way at all and proceeding down this path
Are you making a submission on behalf of a person (such as yourself) or organisation?
Individual