Wiradjuri Elder Uncle Hewitt Whyman brings home global support for Voice to Parliament

So when he travelled from Wagga Wagga to the international human rights group Initiatives of Change's (IofC) Conference, he took the opportunity to ask representatives from around the world for their support.

The outcome of 10 days of conversations in Caux, Switzerland was a statement of support for the Voice to Parliament, cosigned by representatives of 72 countries.

Uncle Hewitt was overwhelmed by support after an information session on the Voice.

He said after a late night of discussions, he had a "lightbulb moment" that gave him the idea of putting together the statement of support.

"People who came to that session kept coming up to me and asking how can we help?," he said.

"The next day we started working on it ... we were looking at butchers paper, but the people there said 'we can do better than that', and gave us a roll up canvas.

"We spent until 2am in the morning drawing up the parchment, and putting together the statement."

In a one-on-one breakfast meeting with IofC president Gerald Pillay, Uncle Hewitt secured his support for the proposed changes to the Australian constitution.

He said he was surprised by how across the issue Dr Pillay and other members of IofC were, and how eager they were to offer their support.

"During the plenary session, I had this up on the stage on a table ... as soon as there was a 10-minute break, people just swamped it," he said.

"I stood back, just overwhelmed - even the president signed it.

"I spoke to him at breakfast, and asked if he'd send a message back to Australia. He didn't hesitate, and just did the whole thing off the top of his head."

Uncle Hewitt will unveil the signed statement to the public at an upcoming event in the Curious Rabbit in Wagga Wagga after which he intends to present it to Minister for Indigenous Affairs Linda Burney.

There are some final details to be managed before it's formal unveiling, but the message from the international community is clear.

As activist Faith Bandler said of the 1967 referendum, "The eyes of the world are on Australia".

Uncle Hewitt said he thought it would look good on Ms Burney's office wall, to serve as a reminder of what is at stake.

"It's still a bit raw, and we want to shiny it up a bit, but then we're going to take it to Linda," he said.

"People have been saying to me it should be hanging on her wall.

"But we wanted the people here who've been to the forums with Julian Leeser, heard from Linda to see it first."

Australians are tipped to go to the polls in October to vote on whether to add recognition for Aboriginal Australians to the constitution.

This proposal would acknowledge their presence on the continent prior to European settlement, and establish an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to Parliament.

The referendum question put to the public will be:

In recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Peoples of Australia

In effect, would establish an Aboriginal advisory body to parliament and executive government, with the composition and operations of the body to be determined by the government of the day.

Read more on the Voice to Parliament:

Uncle Hewitt said campaigning on this issue has awakened his activism, dormant since his days at the Tent Embassy.

"I remember getting arrested from there numerous times," he said.

"I was taken away in a wagon as an agitator, but I always had somebody who was my shadow to step up if I was taken.

"It's a life experience thing. I went away from it for a while, but this stuff now has stirred my passion and my activism."

IofC's 2023 conference was held in Caux, Switzerland from July 17 to 22, focusing this year on the theme of healing the wounds of the past.

Dates for the unveiling of the statement, and screening of Dr Pillay's statement to Australia, are yet to be set but are likely to be in the coming weeks.