Sistergirls say postal vote is a “waste” in Indigenous communities
Image: The Tiwi Island sistergirls at the 2017 Mardi Gras. Image: Ann-Marie Calilhanna.
THE Tiwi Islands sistergirls say the upcoming postal plebiscite for marriage equality could be a waste of time in communities like theirs where people may not understand the process, ABC News has reported.
“I think it’s rubbish really, they’re just wasting their time,” said Shaun Kerinaiua.
“Most of our people don’t speak English, it’s our second language.”
“We speak eight, nine, 10 different languages and there are Indigenous people who don’t speak English,” said Crystal Johnson.
Kerinaiua said that having to enrol to vote on the Australian Electoral Commission website presents a barrier for some Indigenous people.
“It’s a bit frustrating that there’s a website that needs to be used to register,” she said.
“A lot of our people are not literate, we are not up to standard education-wise, I think it’s all just horrible.”
She said the process would be simpler for people to understand if it were held as a compulsory vote similar to election polling, which Tiwi Islanders are familiar with.
“[People in our community] have to go and vote if they want a new prime minister, so I think they should keep [the marriage equality vote] simple, especially for remote communities,” she said.
The sistergirls will be working with limited resources to campaign for a ‘yes’ vote on the Tiwi Islands.
“Crystal, myself and some of the other girls will have a rally, put some signs up, hold group discussions and some family gatherings to spread that news and the awareness,” said Kerinaiua.
Voters have until August 24 to enrol or update their details to ensure they can vote.
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