From ridiculous to the sublime
Greg Barns marvels at how low, and how high, federal politics can go in one week
JUST when you think federal politics cannot possibly go there, a new nadir is reached.
Last week was it. Pauline Hanson’s puerile, but offensive Burqa stunt, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop’s shredding of what little credibility she had with a bizarre attack on New Zealand, and the citizenship farce claiming the Deputy Prime Minister.
But in these depressing and dark times, there is some light courtesy of two Tasmanian MPs. Greens Senator Nick McKim and Denison independent Andrew Wilkie have both launched legislative initiatives to strengthen democracy through a human rights law.
Australia is the only democracy in the world not to protect its citizens’ human rights. The consequences of the failure to properly protect human rights are obvious to all. It means that government departments in their dealings with citizens and non-citizens can bully, harass, and otherwise undermine human dignity. Centrelink can abuse data collection, the Immigration Department can practise torture and other forms of cruelty, and police and security agencies are able to tread on human rights with much less chance that a court will sanction them.
The culture of a society that does not protect human rights through legislation is characterised by routine abuses of power, violence, and trampling on the claims of the most vulnerable among us.
This is Australia today. George Williams and Daniel Reynolds, from the University of New South Wales Law Faculty, described recently just how bad the situation is. In an opinion articled of August 7 they noted that last year the “chief justice of the New South Wales Supreme Court, Tom Bathurst, found 52 examples of laws in that state alone that impinged on the presumption of innocence;” that in February this year “the Institute of Public Affairs think-tank identified 307 laws that infringed just four rights: the presumption of innocence, natural justice, the right to silence, and the privilege against self-incrimination;” and “Another 2016 study found 350 current laws that infringe democratic rights such as freedom of speech”.
Senator McKim, one of the rare cases of a politician making the transition from state to federal politics and blossoming in the latter arena, has this month launched, with Greens federal Leader Richard Di Natale, a charter of human rights campaign.
Senator McKim and Senator Di Natale put the case simply and with impeccable logic in their August 1 media release: “The metadata laws, the disastrous Northern Territory intervention, and the ongoing torture of refugees and asylum seekers on Manus Island and Nauru are three compelling examples of how easily human rights can be stripped away.”
Senator McKim is joined in the House of Representatives by Mr Wilkie, who last week introduced a Bill for a human rights law. Pre-empting the usual intellectually vacuous, dishonest scare campaign from conservatives who dress their abhorrence at the idea people should have rights by saying such laws give courts too much power, Mr Wilkie said: “This Bill will not transfer sovereignty to the courts, rather it will ensure human rights are considered effectively when laws are made.”
This is a politically opportune time for Mr Wilkie and Senator McKim to push for what must be considered an essential tool to strengthen flagging democracy.
If Mr Turnbull loses an MP and has to rely on cross benchers, Mr Wilkie, and the other independent supporting him, Victorian based MP Cathy McGowan, should demand that the charter or bill of human rights is supported by the Government. And in the Senate the Greens cross bench role gives it ideal leverage to push Labor and the Coalition.
It is hard to think of any more important legislation before the Australian Parliament than the human rights bills of Mr Wilkie and the Greens. Democracy is on the slide in this country.
Governments are trying to sidestep the courts so they can make decisions impacting on people’s lives without that person having any recourse to an independent umpire.
Innocent individuals can be swept off the streets by police, groups that oppose the government find their funding cut, indigenous Australians and those non-indigenous Australians living in poverty are constantly harassed and demeaned by welfare agencies.
Australians are fond of puffing out their chests and proclaiming themselves the lucky country. But in a truly lucky country citizens and other individuals are protected against abuses of power and government is forced to respect human rights when dealing with individuals.
Over a century ago it was Tasmanian, Andrew Inglis Clark, who played a key role in the birth of the nation.
Today it is two Tasmanian MPs who are driving the case for this country to become a real democracy by doing what the rest of democracy does — protecting citizens against tyranny.
Greg Barns is barrister. An adviser to state and federal Liberal governments, he was disendorsed as the party’s candidate for Denison in 2002.