Independent senator Lidia Thorpe has shifted her position on campaigning against a proposed Indigenous Voice to Parliament after earlier distancing herself from the wider "no" movement.
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It is understood she will now take part in the progressive "no" campaign against the Voice.
Senator Thorpe spoke alongside more than a dozen members of the Blak Sovereign Movement, who convened at Parliament House in Canberra on Tuesday to announce their position on the passing of the constitutional alteration bill.
"We don't accept any colonial mechanism that continues to control us, which is what the Voice ultimately is a part of," she said.
"It's part of a colonial system that will continue to oppress us. It has no power, it will be controlled by the Parliament."
Senator Thorpe has been a long-standing critic of the Voice, earlier this year quitting the Greens over her position on the proposal.
But last month she sought to distance herself from the "no" campaign, which has been dominated by staunch conservative voices, including opposition spokesperson for Indigenous Australians Jacinta Nampijinpa Price and One Nation leader Pauline Hanson.
Thorpe told the ABC she was not going to support the "no" campaign and was considering abstaining from voting on the constitutional alteration bill in the Senate.
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However on Monday, Senator Thorpe took to the Senate floor to denounce the Voice before casting a vote against the bill.
When asked about the shift on Tuesday, she told journalists she was in negotiations with the government over the implementations of Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody and Bringing Them Home report recommendations that were within federal powers but "that didn't come good".
"They could have shown good faith, at least to save people's lives here and now and they haven't done that," she said.
Senator Thorpe said she was now "looking forward" to contributing to the "no" side of the referendum pamphlet. She said she will also continue to fight for Treaty.
With the Voice bill having cleared the last parliamentary hurdle on Monday, the Australian Electoral Commissioner has announced both "yes" and "no" camps will have 28 days to compile their arguments on the proposed constitutional change for the official Yes/No case pamphlet.
Speaking to journalists on Tuesday, Blak Sovereign Movement members said they did not support the Voice.
Sam Woripa Watson, a Wangerriburra and Birri Gubba man, said the proposal was "at best" a distraction from demands, including environmental justice and judicial reform.
"At worst it is absolute sabotage," he said. "We deserve better than an advisory body that can do materially nothing for our people."
The Voice referendum is expected be held between October and December.
Natalie Vikhrov
Natalie Vikhrov reports on federal politics and public service for The Canberra Times. Prior to this, she spent several years covering human rights in Eastern Europe, including Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Get in touch via natalie.vikhrov@austcommunitymedia.com.au.
Natalie Vikhrov reports on federal politics and public service for The Canberra Times. Prior to this, she spent several years covering human rights in Eastern Europe, including Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Get in touch via natalie.vikhrov@austcommunitymedia.com.au.
