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Polls closed on Saturday evening in three of Australia’s eastern states following a historic referendum to recognize Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the country’s 122-year-old constitution.
The counting of the votes began in New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania and the Australian Capital Territory, while voting continued for three more hours in West Australia, Queensland, South Australia and the Northern Territory.
By the end of the referendum, almost 18 million people were expected to have cast their ballots as voting is compulsory in Australia.
The referendum asked them to vote “Yes” or “No” on whether to establish a new Indigenous advisory body — known as the Voice to Parliament — that would be consulted about laws affecting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
“There is nothing, no cost to Australians showing kindness, thinking with their heart, as well as their head when they enter the polling booth … and voting ‘yes’,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Friday.
Before the vote, polls put the “Yes” vote at 40% while the “No” camp is at 60%. Referendums are difficult to pass in Australia as they require a majority of voters, as well as a majority of states, to succeed.
Around 2 million postal votes will be counted for up to 13 days after the polls close on Saturday.
What is the Voice to Parliament?
Indigenous people account for 3.8% of Australia’s population.
Supporters of the Voice proposal believe enshrining an Indigenous advisory body in the constitution would help address some of the problems they face, including a lower life expectancy and a far higher incarceration rate.
The main campaign against the proposal has argued that the Voice would be divisive and that its powers have not been clearly defined.
Meanwhile, some Indigenous opponents argue that the proposal does not go far enough, and have demanded a treaty instead.
Aboriginal people have lived in Australia for at least 65,000 years and are considered one of the oldest living cultures in the world.
mm, zc/lo (AFP, Reuters, AP, dpa)
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