Due recognition of Indigenous Australians in the country's Constitution should be forthcoming and according to the federal government, the creation of an advisory expert panel is only the first step towards a much bigger goal.

Prime Minister took the cue from her predecessors and stepped a bit further in setting up the expert panel, which she said would serve as the light of the expected national debate on the issue, giving the initiative better chances of winning approval in pushing aboriginal recognition in the Constitution.

Ms Gillard acknowledged that the landmark change entails emotional and practical considerations as she stressed the fact that "the first peoples of our nation have a unique and special place in our nation," and her government's initiative only serves as the next step in advancing that journey.

A referendum on the proposed recognition was pledged by Ms Gillard in the August national election, mostly picking up from the unfulfilled promises of former prime ministers John Howard and Kevin Rudd.

The present initiative though appears to have a better chance of realisation, according to Ms Gillard, as she revealed that the change enjoys the cross-party support of the parliament, which she characterised as a once in half-century chance for Australia to press for the historic change.

The prime minister emphasised that the present time afford the appropriate opportunity to implement the constitutional change as cautioned that "if this referendum is not successful, there will not be another like it."

According to the federal government, composition of the expert panel would be cross-sector and would largely include lawmakers, constitutional experts, community leaders with indigenous and non-indigenous Australians assured of spots on the panel.

Minister for Indigenous Affairs Jenny Macklin said that a panel report would be submitted to the government by the end of 2011 as she hailed the government initiative as "a very significant step forward in that journey that we began with the apology."

A similar measure that would have integrated the recognition of the Indigenous Australians in the preamble to the Constitution was submitted for a referendum in 1999 but was turned down by 60 percent of voters, adding to strings of referendum losses since the Federation was inaugurated.

Attorney-General Robert McClelland admitted that the prospect of ensnaring a yes vote on the proposed change could prove difficult but he pointed to the encouraging precedent offered by the 1967 referendum that allowed suffrage rights for the Aborigines.

Experts said that in order to win a nod in the referendum, the proposed change needs to secure at least a majority of the national vote, with the concurrence of the majority votes of the Australian majority states.