What it takes to protect democracy
The abhorrent overturn of Roe V Wade in the United States is a stark reminder of why we need true representation across all our democratic institutions.
That a reported 80% of Americans support abortion, yet their views can be annulled by a handful of Trump’s judicial cronies shows the level of dysfunction in the American system.
The court ruling casts a long shadow over the rights of women across the world and calls into question important progress made on Rainbow rights to live and love freely; and advances in socially inclusive practices which recognise ethnic and religious diversity.
Political capture such as Roe V Wade can catch us off guard, but in reality they are years in the making.
Trump’s ability to work within the Constitution and conservatively stack appointments at the highest judicial levels meant a change to the way women’s rights were interpreted was just a matter of time.
So what does this mean for modern liberal democracies?
As someone who lived and worked in Fiji for many years and indirectly experienced several political coups, I know only too well that democracy is actually very fragile.
In my view, those with strong institutions are best-placed to resist monopolisation. History shows that diverse and representative decision-making starts with participation, starting from the ground level.
We have made huge strides in participation in government in New Zealand since the 1970s when around only 10 percent of Members of Parliament were women.
This hasn’t been happenchance, rather a concerted effort within the Labour Party, in particular, to ensure women have had a voice and a vote at every level within the party.
Dame Dorothy Fraser was a key figure in the south, and is celebrated every year with an annual lecture that focuses on a guest woman speaker and issues which specifically impact on women.
This year’s 10th anniversary will be held at the Kings and Queens Auditorium in South Dunedin this Sunday evening July 3, featuring retiring Christchurch Mayor Lianne Dalziel.
Strengthening ethnic representation is another way of strengthening democracy. So I have worked closely with local churches to organise the first-ever annual general meeting of a Pacific-based branch of a political party.
The newly-formed Taieri Branch of the Labour Party will be held at the Caversham Baptist Church at midday on July 2, with Labour Pacific People’s spokesperson Hon Aupito Sio as guest speaker.
Once the branch is functioning well, we plan to hold hybrid Zoom meetings so that people across Otago and Southland can join in online.
The following week, members of Labour’s Ethnic Caucus will embark on a road trip through Dunedin, Milton, Balclutha, Invercargill, Lawrence and Queenstown meeting with communities from Pakistan, China, wider Asia, the Philippines and Brazil.
I want my colleagues to see first-hand how diverse some of our southern urban and rural communities are, and hear firsthand how our policies are impacting them.
We will also hold a multicultural sector fundraising dinner in Dunedin on Thursday July 7 which promises to be a night of great food and ethnic entertainment.