AAP FACTCHECK – Prime Minister Anthony Albanese claims he did not propose a truth and justice commission as part of Makarrata.
This is false. Mr Albanese previously said his government would create a Makarrata Commission “to oversee a national process for treaty and truth-telling”.
Makarrata is one of the three elements of the Uluru Statement from the Heart, along with the voice to parliament and treaty.
Mr Albanese made the claim in an interview with the ABC on August 4, 2024 at the Garma Festival in Arnhem Land, the largest Indigenous gathering in Australia.
Journalist David Speers spoke to Mr Albanese about the aftermath of the voice referendum defeat and questioned the prime minister on other aspects of the Uluru Statement.
In particular, he put to Mr Albanese that one of the architects of the Uluru Statement, Pat Anderson, had said he should now be embarking on creating a truth and justice commission.
“Are you saying it’s not that? That’s not what you’re going to do?” Mr Speers asked.
“Well, that’s not what we have proposed,” Mr Albanese responded. “What we’ve proposed is Makarrata just being the, the idea of coming together.”
He said this would involve engaging with different Indigenous groups.
When asked to provide evidence that Mr Albanese did not propose a truth and justice commission as part of Makarrata, his office provided AAP FactCheck with two media transcripts.
One for the aforementioned ABC interview and another for a media appearance in Cowra on August 4.
During the latter appearance, when questioned by another journalist if he was redefining his commitment to Makarrata, he answered “No”.
When asked again, he said: “We’ve said Makarrata is a process where we’re talking through what the nature of that process is, but it is – Makarrata is, as I’ve said, I can’t do more than repeat the same thing.”
However, in previous statements, Mr Albanese committed specifically to a “Makarrata Commission to oversee a national process for Treaty and Truth-telling”.
In the November 2021 press release, he said an Albanese government “will establish a Makarrata Commission as a priority”, and that the commission would be independent.
The release also had details about appointing commissioners and said it would report within the first term of a Labor government.
In an August 2021 speech in the House of Representatives about closing the gap, the then-leader of the opposition said a Labor government would “as a priority” establish a Makarrata Commission.
“The Uluru Statement contains another of the great keys with which we can unlock our potential going forward—a Makarrata Commission, which would oversee a national process of truth-telling, agreement-making and treaty-making,” Mr Albanese said.
In his May 2022 election night victory speech, he reaffirmed his commitment to implement the Uluru Statement from the Heart in full.
The Uluru Statement said a Makarrata Commission would supervise “a process of agreement-making between governments and First Nations and truth-telling about our history”.
The Labor government set aside $5.8 million over three years in the October 2022-23 budget to start work on establishing a Makarrata Commission.
Following the May 2024 budget, Treasurer Jim Chalmers said some of the funding for the commission had been reallocated.
The Verdict
False – The claim is inaccurate.
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