Asia | Voice recognition

Australia’s leader wants to include Aboriginals in the constitution

The prime minister has vowed to hold a referendum on the topic within three years

EAST ARNHEM, AUSTRALIA - JULY 29: Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has his face painted during the Garma Festival at Gulkula on July 29, 2022 in East Arnhem, Australia. The annual Garma festival is held at Gulkula, a significant ceremonial site for the Yolngu people of northeast Arnhem Land about 40km from Nhulunbuy on the Gove peninsula in East Arnhem. The festival is a celebration of Yolngu culture aimed at sharing culture and knowledge which also brings politicians and Indigenous leaders together to discuss issues facing Australia's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. This year is the first time the festival has been held since 2019 following a two-year absence due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (Photo by Tamati Smith/Getty Images)
|ULURU, NORTHERN TERRITORY

“This rock is an awesome feature,” says James, a ranger of the Anangu people in central Australia. “It’s a story book.” The story may be about to get longer. James is standing at the base of Uluru, a humungous monolith embedded in the red desert near the middle of Australia. The country’s indigenous people have made it a civil-rights symbol: they want Australians to change the constitution to guarantee them a say in laws that affect their lives. The battle over the call for an Aboriginal “voice to Parliament” is looming as a big test for Anthony Albanese, the newish prime minister (pictured), and his centre-left Labor government.

This article appeared in the Asia section of the print edition under the headline “Voice recognition”

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