'Kindness costs nothing', says Australian PM in final plea ahead of Indigenous referendum

Australians have to vote ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ to a question asking whether they agree to alter the 122-year-old constitution to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island people, and create an Indigenous body, called the Voice to Parliament, that can provide advice to the government on Indigenous issues.

About 5 million Australians have already voted at early polling centres, overseas and through postal votes. The latest opinion poll released on Thursday predicted the ‘No’ camp sweeping the polls with a lead of 56% over the ‘Yes’ vote that’s at 38%, with some 6% undecided.

“Kindness costs nothing,” Albanese said in a speech during a news conference from Adelaide on Friday

“This is a time where Australians have that opportunity to show the generosity of spirit that I see in the Australian character where at the worst of times we always see the best of the Australian character,” he said.

Australia’s Indigenous citizens, about 3.8% of the country’s 26 million population, have inhabited the land for about 60,000 years but are not mentioned in the constitution and track below national averages on most socio-economic measures.