PROFESSOR TOM CALMA NAMED SENIOR AUSTRALIAN OF THE YEAR

Professor Tom Calma. Credit: Australian of the Year Awards.

Last week, Kungarakan and Iwaidja man Professor Tom Calma was named Senior Australian of the Year for his advocacy and reporting on Indigenous health issues.

Professor Calma is currently co-chair of the advisory body for the Voice to Parliament.

He used his acceptance speech to call for Australians to vote ‘yes’ in the referendum.

“The referendum is not a choice between improving people’s lives or amending the constitution,” Professor Calma said.

“We can do both, but it will require bipartisanship, all levels of government working together, and it must involve those most affected, namely Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.”

Listen to Ngaarda Media’s Conrad Maclean speak to Professor Calma about what the Voice to Parliament would mean and how it would work.