16/10/2025
Victoria is rapidly becoming the testing ground for one of the most contentious political undertakings in Australian history.
The Allan Labor Government has introduced the Statewide Treaty Bill 2025, positioning Victoria to become the first state in the nation to legislate a formal treaty with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
On paper, the move is framed as a milestone in reconciliation and justice. In practice, it has divided public opinion and fuelled accusations that Labor is pursuing ideology over democracy.
The Bill proposes the creation of a new authority, Gellung Warl, comprising three arms â the First Peoplesâ Assembly, a truth-telling body known as Nyerna Yoorrook Telkuna, and an accountability arm, Nginma Ngainga Wara.
The government insists it is a long-overdue step toward recognition and self-determination, however, many Victorians are asking a simple question â who gave the mandate?
Just last year, Australians decisively voted No to the Voice to Parliament. In Victoria alone, 56 per cent of voters rejected the proposal. For a government to now push forward with a treaty that mirrors many of the same principles has been described by critics as âa slap in the face to democracyâ.
The discontent runs the deepest across regional Victoria, where frustration is mounting over what locals describe as Laborâs obsession with inner-city politics.
Many residents believe the treaty has little to do with helping disadvantaged Indigenous Australians and everything to do with appeasing the progressive voter base concentrated in Melbourne.
There is also growing anger among Indigenous Victorians themselves, particularly those from remote and regional areas, who feel this process serves bureaucrats, not communities.
Critics describe the treaty movement as serving the Aboriginal Idustrial Complex â a cycle of government funding, consultants, and political activists that has delivered little for those most in need.
âThe governmentâs helping its own â not the families living it tough in remote communities,â one regional resident said. âThis isnât closing the gap; itâs widening it.â
A smoking ceremony on the steps of Parliament was staged to mark the Billâs introduction. Supporters called it symbolic and historic. Opponents saw it as political theatre, designed to project moral virtue rather than democratic legitimacy.
Among the loudest backers was the Victorian Trades Hall Council, one of Laborâs most powerful allies, which publicly endorsed the Bill as a âturning point for truth and reconciliation.â
Yet many former Labor loyalists are questioning whether this process represents genuine reconciliation, or merely the pary's continued pandering to the inner suburbs.
Even supporters have struggled to explain how this treaty will improve lives in tangible ways. Critics say it risks creating division where unity is needed most and diverting funds from practical reforms in health, education, and community safety.
After nearly a decade and hundreds of millions already spent, the treaty remains long on symbolism and short on clarity. Meanwhile, Victoriaâs debt continues to climb past $200 billion, infrastructure projects are delayed, and regional towns are being left behind.
To many Victorians, this is not about reconciliation â it is about political optics, global trends, and ideological posturing. Laborâs opponents accuse the government of following international âdecolonisationâ agendas while ignoring the will of its own people.
The Premier insists the treaty will bring unity. Yet to growing numbers of Victorians, it represents the opposite â a government willing to stoke division, disregard the public vote, and push ahead with a deeply unpopular social experiment.
The Statewide Treaty Bill may pass Parliament, but in the court of public opinion, it has already failed the test of trust.
