Monash Liberal MP Russell Broadbent By Catherine Watson
MONASH Liberal MP Russell Broadbent believes Australia’s First Peoples have shown “deep mercy and a pure heart” in the Uluru Statement from the Heart in inviting Australians to walk with them into a better future for all.
Mr Broadbent will not be actively campaigning in the lead-up to the referendum on a Voice to Parliament, but he has made his position clear over many years.
He contributed to Statements from the Soul, a book of essays published in February which featured Christian, Muslim, Sikh, Buddhist, Jewish and Hindu religious and cultural perspectives on the Uluru Statement from the Heart.
MONASH Liberal MP Russell Broadbent believes Australia’s First Peoples have shown “deep mercy and a pure heart” in the Uluru Statement from the Heart in inviting Australians to walk with them into a better future for all.
Mr Broadbent will not be actively campaigning in the lead-up to the referendum on a Voice to Parliament, but he has made his position clear over many years.
He contributed to Statements from the Soul, a book of essays published in February which featured Christian, Muslim, Sikh, Buddhist, Jewish and Hindu religious and cultural perspectives on the Uluru Statement from the Heart.
A committed Christian, Mr Broadbent wrote that the NSW governor broke the Ten Commandments when he proclaimed the doctrine of terra nullius in 1835. "You must not steal. You must not murder. You must not testify falsely against your neighbour. These commandments were broken by the British government when its fleet of ships arrived to take possession of this country.”
Mr Broadbent wrote of Australia’s First Peoples: “They are peacemakers in the face of appalling discrimination and oppression.”
"As their sovereignty has never been ceded, how humbling is it for the latecomers, the second peoples, that we are invited to walk together with the First Peoples into a better future for this country?"
"The invitation is one that must not be ignored but embraced in its fullness. It is a line in the sand for which we should be grateful, very grateful indeed."
Mr Broadbent wrote of Australia’s First Peoples: “They are peacemakers in the face of appalling discrimination and oppression.”
"As their sovereignty has never been ceded, how humbling is it for the latecomers, the second peoples, that we are invited to walk together with the First Peoples into a better future for this country?"
"The invitation is one that must not be ignored but embraced in its fullness. It is a line in the sand for which we should be grateful, very grateful indeed."
| Mr Broadbent has been a frequent renegade during his decades-long political career, sometimes annoying his own party as much as he does the Labor Party. He has crossed the floor several times in support of refugees, pushed for reform in indigenous affairs, spoken publicly about the need to increase welfare payments, voted no to marriage equality, and refused to get vaccinated against Covid. Despite his record, Mr Broadbent will not be joining his fellow Liberal MPs Julian Leeser and Tasmanian MP Bridget Archer in campaigning for a Yes vote. Since the Liberal Party decided last week to formally oppose the Voice, he has stayed under the radar. He declined an interview with the Post. |  Just As I See It – Uluru Statement from the Heart |
A prolific Facebook poster, Mr Broadbent has posted nothing recent on the Voice but scroll down and you can find a video on the Voice he recorded in 2021 in which he says Australia must fold The Statement from the Heart into the heart of the nation.
“There is deep listening to be done on the part of settler people and we must listen carefully because the voice of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples is quiet but rightly resolute. Once and for all we need to set matters to right honestly and if we do not, we remain a diminished nation and we cannot truly move forward. There is so much to gain and nothing to lose.”
“There is deep listening to be done on the part of settler people and we must listen carefully because the voice of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples is quiet but rightly resolute. Once and for all we need to set matters to right honestly and if we do not, we remain a diminished nation and we cannot truly move forward. There is so much to gain and nothing to lose.”