Anthony Albanese responds to criticism of Voice to Parliament’s invasion day rally

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Anthony Albanese is confident the voice in Parliament is not dead in the water despite widespread criticism from Indigenous activists at invasion day rallies.

The prime minister hit back on Friday, telling reporters he was not surprised that the “radicals” opposed the Voice, given that it was a “mainstream proposal”.

“It’s about reconciliation; it is not a radical proposal, so I am not surprised that some radicals are against it, because it is a common proposal, ”he said in Tasmania.

“This is a humble and gracious request for reconciliation from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.”

Tens of thousands of people took part in Invasion Day rallies, with many keynote speakers using the platform to campaign against the voice.

Mr Albanese said it was unrealistic to think Australians would have ‘homogeneous opinions’ on a First Nations voice.

“Now I believe very strongly that the Heart of Uluru Declaration was very clear on the priority of indigenous peoples. After hundreds of consultations, they came together and said they wanted a voice first,” said he declared.

“Now if we don’t recognize the Aboriginal and Torres Island peoples in our constitution this year, when Australians have the opportunity to do so, when will we? When are we going?

Research by the Referendum Task Force suggested that 80% of Aboriginal people polled supported reform.

Pat Anderson, one of the architects of Uluru Statement from the Heart, said they weren’t “throwing in the towel” due to criticism at rallies.

“It’s good, it’s a democracy. I hope they will be convinced before long,” she told ABC Radio.

“A lot of Indigenous people, the people we’ve spoken to in the dialogues and continue to speak to, are actually voiceless; they don’t have the huge megaphone that was used yesterday.

“Our call is to save our families and our communities from continued disadvantage.”

The prime minister has sought to sharpen his rhetoric in recent days amid mounting political pressure for the government to release more details of the reform.

After months of criticism over the lack of detail, Liberal Leader Peter Dutton has accepted Mr Albanese’s invitation to attend the next meeting of the Voice task force.

The Nationals previously announced they would oppose the referendum. The country’s liberal senator and Warlpiri-Celtic woman Jacinta Nampijinpa Price is set to be one of the faces of the “vote no” campaign.

Meanwhile, the Greens are facing a split in their ranks after Indigenous spokesperson Lidia Thorpe signaled she could not support the voice unless she was “satisfied that it ensures that the sovereignty of the First Nations is not surrendered”.

A vote on the referendum is expected in the second half of the year.

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