The end game in the Government's plan to hold a referendum to recognise Indigenous Australians in the Constitution and to remove racially discriminatory provisions has now begun with the submission last Thursday of the unanimous report by the 22-member expert panel.
It has recommended five specific changes (removing two sections and adding three) to the body of the Constitution. The Parliament must now decide on the precise questions to go to a referendum.
The reception of the report has shown what a tough game it will be, not just because of the historic difficulty in making constitutional change in Australia by the referendum process, but because of the broader context of race and racism in which the campaign is already being conducted.
The moment encapsulates the long-held aspirations of both the Indigenous Rights and Reconciliation movements. The Prime Minister has said this is a one in 50-year opportunity.
It is 45 years since the successful 1967 Indigenous referendum to which this one inevitably is being linked. It is 47 years since the 1965 NSW Freedom Ride campaigns. It is 40 years since the establishment of the Aboriginal Tent Embassy in Canberra. The main public face of the report, the co-chair Patrick Dodson, was made chair of the Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation way back in 1991.
These efforts illustrate the various streams in Indigenous campaigning, of which constitutional reform has been just one. While not a final step, this referendum might be a significant further step in this long journey. It follows the 2008 parliamentary apology to the Stolen Generations and provides an opportunity for this Labor era to be remembered whenever the Indigenous story is told.
Ominously though, it has also been 35 years since the last successful referendum in 1977. Only eight out of 44 attempts have been successful. Passing a referendum is exceptionally difficult and there is no fool-proof recipe for success. No one should doubt this.
The advocates of this referendum have done a lot right in the usual ways. They have attempted to build a broad coalition behind the proposal right from the start. The large size of the committee illustrates the attempt to bring everyone together inside the tent, including different opinion leaders within the Indigenous community