Indigenous woman Nikki Foy says a Voice to Parliament will improve lives of Aboriginal people

Gunditjmara woman Nikki Foy - who lives on Wadawurrung country in Ballarat - said a Voice to Parliament would provide Indigenous people a much-needed opportunity to consult on issues affecting them.

Ms Foy said most government policy writers weren't Indigenous, and an Aboriginal Voice would improve decision making on health, education and employment.

"We currently live in a nation where we don't have a voice, we don't have a real Voice to Parliament, and a voice will be better than what we've got now," she said.

She joins a chorus of Indigenous people in the Ballarat area supporting the Voice to Parliament, after representatives from BADAC and the Wadawurrung Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation also put their support behind the Yes campaign.

Ms Foy said she hoped the whole of Australia would also come together to acknowledge Indigenous Australians as the traditional owners of the land in the constitution.

"My mum passed away in December, and she and many other Aboriginal people who passed away well before their time, went to their graves without being recognised in the constitution as the first people of this country," she said.

While Ms Foy remains hopeful of a majority Yes vote, there are concerns misinformation in the community is turning people towards the No Campaign.

On October 2, 2023, federal member Catherine King told The Courier she believed misinformation was being spread about the Voice to Parliament, and urged people to seek authorised sources regarding the referendum.

Ms Foy agreed there were key parts of the referendum being misunderstood or misrepresented in the lead up to voting.

Most importantly, she said having an advisory body to consult on Indigenous matters would not mean Aboriginal were more powerful than others.

"I think that's the fear, and that's been some of the fear tactics from the No Campaign," she said.

"It is so simple, there's a lot of scaremongering, and there's a lot of fear out there, but quite simply it is a voice that offers advice to governments on issues that affect Aboriginal people."

"Non-Aboriginal people will not lose privately owned property, their backyard, or where they hold their barbecue on January 26."

Because of the spread of misinformation, Ms Foy urged voters to talk to people on both sides of the discussion, and to do their own research about what a Voice to Parliament will mean for Australia.

She said the result of the October 14 referendum wouldn't affect the lives of non-Indigenous people, just as previous movements - such as the 1992 Mabo Decision, the 2008 apology and 1967 referendum - hadn't.

"It's an opportunity for all Australians to be on the evolving side of history," she said.

"If we say we are young and free in the national anthem, this is to further that on, so we are young and free and we do have a voice.

"I just think we are paving the way for the next generation, and together as a nation, Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people, we can pave that way."

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Ms Foy said the thought of a positive result made her smile, but despite her strong feelings, she said she didn't want to tell people how to vote on October 14.

"It's in your hands," she said.

"Go and talk, ask questions and talk to other people, make that choice on polling day and say hand on heart that [you've] made the right decision."

Regardless of the result, Ms Foy said Indigenous people would continue to persevere for a better future for themselves.

"We as Aboriginal people are quite used to disappointment, but we are resilient, and we get up, we dust ourselves off and we continue on," she said.

Visit The Courier's Voice to Parliament site, with the facts you need to make an informed decision on October 14.