Thread by @BrentHodgson

The timeline of appointments gives some clues here.

The Yes23 campaign is run by Australians for Indigenous Constitutional Recognition Ltd.

It was registered on 1 October 2019.

🧵

This coincided with the beginning of the Indigenous Voice Co-Design Process (October 2019).

The process was announced by Hon Ken Wyatt AM - Minister for Indigenous Australians, the Member for Hasluck, and (crucially) a member of Scott Morrison's Cabinet at the time.

The Co-Design terms of reference sought to involve key stakeholders including cross-party Parliamentarians.

Although little consideration was given to minor party involvement bilateral meetings, bipartisanship, and involvement of both major parties was a regular consideration.

This followed the 2018 Joint Select Committee on Constitutional Recognition Relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples.

This committee was co-chaired by Patrick Dodson and Julian Leeser (bipartisanship, reflecting the lack of Deputy Chair).

The members of that committee included:

Patrick Dodson (ALP)
Julian Leeser (LIB)
Linda Burney (ALP)
Jonathon Duniam (LIB)
Malarndirri McCarthy (ALP)
Cathy McGowan (IND)
John McVeigh (LNP)
Llew O'Brien (LNP)
Rachel Siewert (GRN)
Warren Snowdon (ALP)
Amanda Stoker (LNP)

The bipartisan 2018 Joint Select Committee followed the 2015-2017 Referendum Council - which was also run in a bipartisan spirit.

It was jointly appointed by the Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Leader of the Opposition Bill Shorten on 7 December 2015.

That Referendum Council led to the Uluru Statement (which I believe Senator Thorpe was one of 7 delegates who attended and walked out of ahead of the signing by over 250).

That Referendum Council followed the 2015 Kirribilli Statement that the PM Tony Abbott and Opposition Leader Bill Shorten received.

It surprised me, but around that time Noel Pearson claims Tony Abbott was looking at options for Indigenous representation

parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/searc…

And the Kirribilli Statement followed the Joint Select Committee on Constitutional Recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples (2013-15) - also chaired by Ken Wyatt, with Nova Peris as Deputy.

This *whole process* has involved bipartisanship.

Both Howard and Dutton have done what they can to derail reconciliation.

Turnbull stalled it because he didn't think a Voice to Parliament in the constitution would get up.

But it's been supported by so many others.

So back to Yes23 / Australians for Indigenous Constitutional Recognition Ltd.

The documents list how everything's been set up - beginning with Daniel Gilbert, partner of a large Sydney law firm that supported the movement as it was just getting started.

It looks like Noel Pearson knew Daniel Gilbert, and asked if he could help the fledgling movement out.

Gilbert is a co-chair of Pearson's Cape York Partnership, and an expert panelist on the Prime Minister & Cabinet Dept's Social Impact Investing Taskforce since 2019.

Alongside Daniel Gilbert, the original Directors included Pat Anderson, Megan Davis, Pat Turner, and Noel Pearson.

All were on the original documents in October 2019.

Wayne Bergman, Rachel Perkins, Thomas Mayo and Dean Parkin signed on as Directors between November 2019 and January 2020.

Then COVID hit, and things stalled.

According to filings, nothing happened between January 2020 (three months after the organisation was founded) and mid-2022.

What happened in mid-2022 to kick-start Australians for Indigenous Constitutional Recognition Ltd / Yes23 again?

Well, this speech:

In his victory speech, Anthony Albanese committed to implementing the Uluru Statement from the Heart "in full".

theguardian.com/australia-news…

It looks like there was a "we need to get our shit together" meeting held by Australians for Indigenous Constitutional Recognition Ltd around June 15th.

And the "Okay, who's got the time to do this?" question was asked.

Anderson, Turner, Bergman, Davis and Perkins stepped back.

Gilbert, Pearson, Mayo, and Parkin remained.

With the greatest amount of love, NONE of them had ever run a political campaign or fundraised at the scale necessary to win an election - let alone a constitutional referendum.

So they went out and looked for experts who could help them with connections for fundraising, connections for getting corporates on-board, and experts on political campaign strategy.

Over December and January, they appointed 9 additional Directors:

The first was Kevin Rudd's old Communications Director, Lachlan Harris - who now runs a content/media/marketing campaigns company based in Sydney.

Then former Queensland Treasurer, Griffith Uni Chancellor, Brisbane Broncos and Motorsport Australia Director Andrew Fraser.

At this point, combined with Unionist Thomas Mayo, the group was looking very Labor-heavy.

WA-based Wesfarmers CEO Michael Chaney was next.

He's the son of a Liberal minister, the brother of another, and the father of independent MP Kate Chaney.

He joined the same day as Liberal campaign strategist and pollster Mark Textor.

Then reconciliation Australia CEO Karen Mundine (coincidentally Warren Mundine's niece) was the next appointment.

And Rachel Perkins rejoined the team after stepping away.

Tony Nutt (former Liberal Victoria State Director and former Howard Chief of Staff and Baillieu advisor) joined in the second half of January.

BHP Director Catherine Tanna next.

And finally Chloe Wighton.

I hadn't heard of her before seeing her name in the Yes23 documents.

She seems like a hard working young person with a passion for connecting mainstream Australia to Indigenous Australia:

nasca.org.au/about/our-peop…

In Abbatangelo's article he asks:

"How can a 'grassroots' campaign that is purported to 'deliver justice' and other 'transformational change' not only be a beacon that attracts these people, but be spearheaded by them?"

Well, frankly it's not.

It's spearheaded by these guys:

And before that, these guys:

And before that, these guys:

The guys you complain about - Tony Nutt, Catherine Tanna and Mark Textor - are among the *last* people to join the campaign.

They are people of IMMENSE privilege.

They have wealth, power, connections and knowledge that is not easily accessible.

And they're being used by an Indigenous-led group to prise open the doors to the halls of privilege to let people like these be heard.

@wyvernsrose ^ but could you or I (alone) start a conversation with someone who would donate $17m?