An Indigenous man incorrectly identified by the voice referendum no campaign as “Vincent Lingiari’s grandson” says he is not related to the land rights leader and feels “humiliated” by the way his image has been used.
No voice leader Warren Mundine has stood by his campaign’s claims, claiming that Stewart Lingiari had described himself as Vincent’s grandson in a “cultural kinship” sense, rather than directly.
Indigenous Australians minister Linda Burney said the incident raised “real questions” about the credibility of her opponents.
Mundine and shadow Indigenous Australians minister Jacinta Price, the main spokespeople for the campaign against the Indigenous voice to parliament, claimed in social media posts last month that Vincent’s grandson was “voting no” in the referendum.
Vincent Lingiari led the Wave Hill walk-off of Indigenous stockmen in the Northern Territory, a key event in the Aboriginal land rights movement. In 1975 he was immortalised in an iconic photo, as prime minister Gough Whitlam poured sand into his hand to represent the handing back of land to the Gurindji people.
In a reply on 22 April to a tweet from Indigenous Australians minister Linda Burney quoting a supporter of the voice, Price wrote: “Vincent Lingiari’s grandson thinks otherwise”.
Price included a screenshot from the website for no campaign Fair Australia showing Stewart Lingiari beside a quote saying: “I don’t want you to look at me differently. That’s why I’m voting no”.
Mundine, leader of the Recognise A Better Way campaign, tweeted the same screenshot on his account 40 minutes later, writing: “Vincent Lingiari’s grandson is voting No!”
Speaking to Guardian Australia, Stewart confirmed he was not related to Vincent Lingiari, and had been given that surname when he was adopted as a child.
“I’m not from that family. If they had asked me directly, I would have told them I’m not his grandson but they never asked me,” he said.
He claimed he had not given permission for his image to be used in this way and felt “humiliated” by the episode.
“Now I hear my picture is all over social media. It’s very wrong what they did, I want it to stop, I want them to take it down.”
Stewart also said he did not claim to be a grandson of the land rights leader.
Members of the Lingiari family told Guardian Australia they were aware of the posts. One of Vincent Lingiari’s grandchildren said they knew of Stewart but that he wasn’t a relative.
Stewart Lingiari lives in Ngukurr, a small community south east of Katherine. The Lingiari family say they are from Kalkarindji, a community more than 770 km or 12 hours’ drive away.
The misidentification was revealed by RMIT FactLab, a fact-checking unit based at RMIT University, which published an article on Monday quoting Stewart Lingiari as saying he wasn’t related to Vincent. Stewart was quoted in the article saying he didn’t oppose the voice, and claimed the quote attributed to him was “what the cameraman told me to say”.
Stewart’s photo and quote appears on a list of eight people speaking against the voice on Fair Australia’s website. Price’s photo and quote is first, while Stewart’s is fifth. Fair Australia’s website does not claim he is Vincent Lingiari’s grandson.
The photo was taken during a trip to Canberra where he met Price and Mundine, as part of a traditional owners group from the Millwarparra Aboriginal Corporation to discuss his home town Ngukurr. The group met opposition leader Peter Dutton on the visit.
But Mundine insisted his description was accurate, claiming that Stewart Lingiari had described himself as Vincent’s grandson in a “cultural kinship” sense, not in a direct relative sense.
“Kinship structure doesn’t mean you have to be blood related in Aboriginal communities. We have many fathers, mothers, children, grandparents. I have grandchildren but they’re not my blood relations,” Mundine said.
“When [Stewart] spent two days with me, I understood that to be a kinship relationship [with Vincent]. Not a grandson like in white man country, but that’s how he was introduced to me. I understood that, I understand cultural kinship.”
Mundine was critical of the factcheck article, claiming: “it’s time some of these people learned about Aboriginal culture.”
Asked about Stewart’s claim he was given a script to read, Mundine responded: “I categorically say that isn’t true.”
“We asked everyone to put their point of view across. There was no paperwork there, they were asked to say what they believe,” he said.
Price’s office was contacted for comment. Fair Australia directed inquiries to Mundine’s comments.
Burney said the issue “raises real questions about the credibility of the no campaign.”
“It appears that some people have been misled into saying things on camera about constitutional recognition by the no campaign,” she told Guardian Australia.
Vincent Lingiari’s grandson thinks otherwise….#VoteNOAustralia pic.twitter.com/mk8yBIn13L
— Jacinta Nampijinpa (@JNampijinpa) April 22, 2023
Vincent Lingiari’s grandson is voting No! pic.twitter.com/4o89CSXC9H
— Nyunggai Warren Mundine AO (@nyunggai) April 22, 2023
“How low can the no campaign go?” she said. “The no campaign have serious questions to answer.”
Marcus Stewart, a campaigner for the yes vote, called it “appalling behaviour”.
“They shouldn’t be treating elders this way,” he said.
“I call on the no campaign to take down any misleading materials on their website or on social media, and promise never to do it again. Warren Mundine and Jacinta Price need to show some respect towards our elders.”
This article was amended on 17 May with the correct title of RMITFactLab.
