Voice to Parliament: Katanning cast their votes, but what did they say?

Saturday marked a historical day for the nation as Australians across the country voted either Yes or No for the Voice to Parliament referendum. Katanning residents headed to the Katanning Primary School to cast their votes with some avid No voters, and others staunch Yes. Here’s how the Katanning public voted: ‘Voice reminds me of Soviet Russia’: Katanning voter A Katanning man who grew up in Russia before relocating to WA 40 years ago has likened the referendum to the Soviet Union. The man, who asked to remain anonymous, drew on his Eastern European upbringing when making the decision to cast a No vote. “Voice to Parliament reminds me of Soviet Russia,” he said. Likening the Voice to Soviet Communism under dictator Joseph Stalin, the man said he did not believe it would just be about equality. “If it was a question of equality I would vote Yes,” he said. “But when it happened in my home country everybody was unhappy about it because there was uneven privilege. “I’m against privileges and giving privileges to anybody, for any reason. “So my only option here was to vote No.” Katanning farmer’s last-ditch effort to sway Yes voters Katanning beef farmer Melvin Hettner set up camp out the front of the Katanning Primary School urging voters to vote No as they entered the queue. Donning a shirt and hat promoting the No campaign while handing out flyers, Mr Hettner said he feared a winning Yes vote will segregate the nation. “I don’t want to see two classes of people in Australia,” he said. “We are all citizens of this country. Voting yes will separate us rather than unite us.” The beef farmer said the nation has shown tremendous growth in acknowledging Aboriginal people. “As Australians, we have improved our relationships with Indigenous people drastically,” he said. “We have come such a long way from 50 years ago and we will keep improving. “I don’t want us to be divided.” ‘No’ will unite Jess Fawcett-Picknell echoed Mr Hettner’s comments by saying the No vote would unite the nation. “I believe a Yes vote will divide this country,” Ms Fawcett-Picknell said. “I’ve read a lot of things online and listened to Aboriginal people explaining why they are against the Voice to Parliament. “And if a lot of them don’t like it then I think it will cause a divide.” ‘Yes’ to bridging the gap On the contrary, Proud Yes23 campaigners Anapa Katie and Susan Lee were excited about the country’s future should the Yes vote be successful. “I’m voting Yes because this is a step forward for Indigenous people and the nation,” Ms Lee said. “We have not yet closed the gap with understanding and helping Aboriginal people. “If we are successful this will be a key driving force to ensuring that will happen.”