Dutton’s comments show we are back to punching down on Indigenous Australians for attention – and votes | Lorena Allam

This is all so familiar: another election campaign where punching down on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people for attention and votes is the default setting. Speaking afterwards, Peter Dutton said welcomes to country were “an important part of official ceremonies and should be respected”. So, it is disingenuous for politicians on all sides to be shocked and outraged when people decide to turn those words into action, even in the predawn hush of Anzac Day. But Dutton’s comments show an ignorance of the significant Indigenous contribution to Australia’s defence forces. Long before this weekend, there has been an absence of Indigenous policy in this election campaign, an extension of the leadership vacuum we have felt since October 2023.