Pacific Islands Forum head says yes vote on Indigenous voice would ‘elevate Australia’ on world stage

Photograph: Lukas Coch/EPA. Retrieved from theguardian.com

Australia’s credibility will be boosted on the world stage if the yes vote wins the looming Indigenous voice referendum, a senior Pacific leader says.

Henry Puna, the head of the Pacific Islands Forum, said on Wednesday that while he respected the country’s right to make its own democratic decision, it would be “wonderful to see Australia vote yes”.

The Pacific Islands Forum, founded more than 50 years ago, is a key regional body that coordinates political and economic policy among its 18 members including Australia, New Zealand and Pacific island countries.

Puna was asked during a media conference in Fiji to describe the consequences for Australia’s relationships with the Pacific in the event of either a yes or a no victory in the referendum.

“That’s a very difficult question to be asked, the fact being that, you know, we have no right to interfere with your domestic policies and whatever happens domestically in your country,” the secretary general said.

“And yet … it would be wonderful to see Australia vote yes, because I think it’ll elevate Australia’s position, and maybe even credibility, on the international stage.”