Greenwash Political Action Party and Urban Grassroots Movement for the Green Party

Friday, January 26, 2007

No Prime Minister, the issue is climate change.

At least twice yesterday I heard John Howard declare words to the effect that ‘water was the environmental issue of our time’ or the ‘greatest conservation challenge of the age’. He seems not to have been challenged on this pompous assertion that is plainly wrong.

On any measure climate change is THE environmental issue, not only of this generation but of all generations.

Howard is attempting to do just what we predicted on this blog last October. He is trying to shift the climate change debate into more of a discussion about helping farmers than actually reducing the emissions that are causing the climate change (and enhancing the water shortages) in the first place.

Here is what the piece, published by Crikey on 23 October 2006, said:

"Senator Bill Heffernan’s entry into the debate marked a dangerous turn. Heffernan argues that the climate change priority is to help farmers reeling from the impacts of drought to move North where there is likely to be an increase in rainfall.

With a massive budget surplus and the Government desperate to be seen to be doing something on climate change, Howard could announce a series of farmer-focused climate packages in the run to the 2007 election that pork barrels a key constituency and sidelines the Greens.

In a sense Howard would be moving beyond acting to prevent dangerous climate change to an ‘adaptation’ phase in which the government provides ‘solutions’ to the consequences of global warming. Dennis Shanahan gave the PM’s plans a push along on Saturday when he declared that Howard wasn’t going Green, instead Howard was ‘browning the Greens’.

The environment movement will need to confront this issue if it is to successfully prevent Howard hijacking the urgency of the issue with a farmer friendly pitch or his dangerous nuclear push.”

Where are the guaranteed environmental flows?
Anyway the big thing missing from yesterday was any guarantee that there would be increased environmental flows. Where was the commitment to put an extra 1500-3000 gigalitres (the amount scientists say is needed) in to save the Murray. You think $10 billion could have bought that. Instead, I think we will see a whole lot more money for the irrigators and precious little for environmental flows.

posted by Ben Oquist # 11:17 AM 3 comments

Friday, January 19, 2007

Silly election rumours

I hear there are silly rumours around about a Federal election in May. While technically possible, under the Australian Consitution the election would either have to be just a House of Reps election (with a separate Senate only poll a year later) or double dissolution election which would result in the Howard Government losing it's Senate control and guarantee the Greens 7 Senate seats (with 7% instead of 14% being enough to win a seat in any state).

For a full explanation of exactly what the possible dates are for the next federal election see this good parliamentary library paper. In summary the first possible date is 4th August 2007.

It seems in each election year these rumours start. Either it’s a case of ‘chinese whispers’ or a deliberate strategy from Howard to keep everyone on their toes, spook the Labor party and put politics at the high octane level he enjoys.

posted by Ben Oquist # 12:01 AM 0 comments

Thursday, January 18, 2007

New West Papua TV ads

Below is the media release outlining the new West Papua advertising campaign released yesterday. For more information visit the campaign website.

To view the ads (you need quicktime) that were launched at the press confernce (picture left) go here. Or to listen to the audio vist here and here

Media Release: Wednesday, 17 January 2007

TV advertising for human rights in West Papua

A massive new TV advertising campaign to promote human rights for West Papua was launched in Sydney today by:
- John Dowd, former NSW Liberal/National Government Attorney-General
- Sister Susan Connolly
- Lt-Col Lance Collins (rtd.) former military intelligence officer and author
- Dr Clinton Fernandes, University of NSW
- Clemens Runawery, an exiled West Papuan visiting from PNG
- Sonia Vitro, East Timorese whose father was killed by the Indonesian military
- Eko Waluyo, Coordinator Indonesian Solidarity
- Ian Melrose, human rights advocate
The TV advertisements begin screening in capital cities around the country today and will be followed in regional centres over the coming months. The TV advertisements will also screen in selected neighbouring countries.

The advertising campaign highlights the dangers of the new security treaty between Australia and Indonesia which was announced last November and is currently before the Australian parliament.

“The yet to be ratified security treaty with Indonesia presents huge dangers for democracy and human rights. The treaty effectively targets human rights advocates concerned about West Papua and will encourage the Indonesian military to continue its 40 year reign of terror in the troubled province. The Treaty will also justify Australia’s spy organisations’ surveillance of Australians concerned with human rights injustices,” John Dowd said.

The TV advertisements feature West Papuan refugee, now PNG citizen, Clemens Runawery. Clemens witnessed the Indonesian takeover over his country and in 1969 was arrested by Australian officials (at Indonesia’s request) when attempting to travel to United Nations to tell the world of his peoples’ plight and of the failure of the UN to conduct a fair election.

The advertising is being funded by Australian businessman Ian Melrose. Mr Melrose previously funded an advertising campaign in support of East Timor’s right to oil and gas revenue in the Timor Sea after the Howard Government withdrew East Timor’s right to have the dispute heard by an independent UN arbitrator. Mr Melrose was also involved in the successful campaign against the Howard Government’s asylum seeker legislation in 2006.

“The more that Australian people find out about West Papua, the more they will pressure their politicians to act. Presented with the facts, I am confident that Australians will want to help our neighbours in West Papua,” Mr Melrose said.

posted by Ben Oquist # 10:04 AM 0 comments