Victoria’s Coalition has reversed its opposition to state-based treaty negotiations with Indigenous peoples, saying it is prepared to work with traditional owners to “advance the treaty process”.
Before the 2018 state election, the opposition leader, Matthew Guy, argued treaty negotiations should occur at a national level and said a state-based approach was bound to fail.
On Wednesday, Marcus Stewart, co-chair of the body leading Victoria’s treaty process, said he was concerned that the opposition had not clarified its position on Australia’s first formal agreement framework with Indigenous communities, launched by the Andrews government.
In a statement on Wednesday night, the opposition’s Aboriginal affairs spokesperson, Peter Walsh, told Guardian Australia the Coalition would work with traditional owners to “advance the treaty process in a way that supports self-determination and reconciliation while strengthening community and connection to country”.
“Treaty is deeply personal, meaning that the road to achieving treaty will be different things to all people,” Walsh said.
“As treaty negotiations progress, it must be in a way that meets the ideals and expectations of all Aboriginal Victorians and contributes positively to Closing the Gap on a whole range of measures, in addition to those set out in the Agreement between the states and territories.”
Victoria is currently the only jurisdiction in Australia that is moving on both the treaty and truth-telling components of the 2017 Uluru Statement from the Heart.
Speaking ahead of an appearance before the Yoorrook truth-telling commission on Thursday, Stewart, who co-chairs the body leading Victoria’s treaty process, said he was keen for the opposition to “work with us”.
“We hope that we will see them stand with us like we’ve asked Victorians to do, and work with us like we’ve asked Victorians to do, and we hope to see that sooner rather than later,” he said.
“What we’re setting out to do here is put Aboriginal people in the driver’s seat on decisions that disproportionately impact them.
“I think most people in this country would agree that First Nations people should be making decisions on First Nations issues.”
The Yoorrook commission – Australia’s first formal truth-telling process – began hearing testimonies from Indigenous elders last week. The commission will help guide the state’s treaty process with Indigenous Victorians.
Yorrook, which has the powers of a royal commission, has a mandate to investigate and document past and present injustices against Victoria’s First Nations people, including by the state and non-government bodies.
Stewart said the truth-telling commission would feed into the treaty process and ensure it could create “meaningful structural reform to right the wrongs.”
“It will make sure that our people can once again make decisions about our communities, our culture, and our country,” he said.
“Yoorrook will gather the evidence, treaty will deliver the reforms. Change will come with the winds of treaty … that’s what’s critically important.”
The Victorian state budget, handed down on Tuesday, included $151m for the state’s treaty process, with $55.7m earmarked for the next financial year.
The Victorian Aboriginal Legal Services has accused the government of underfunding its service, saying the state could not fulfil the potential of its treaty process, the Yoorrook commission and its Closing the Gap justice targets when Indigenous people could not “access the legal services that they need”.
The Yoorrook commission will hand down an interim report next month. A final report is due in June 2024.
