GROSS VIOLATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITMENTS (EDITORIAL) The following article was published in "The Guardian", newspaper of the Communist Party of Australia in its issue of Wednesday, 5th April 2000. Contact address: 65 Campbell Street, Surry Hills. Sydney, 2010 Australia. Phone: (612) 9212 6855 Fax: (612) 9281 5795. Email: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Webpage: http://www.cpa.org.au Subscription rates on request. ****************************** Editorial: Gross violation of human rights commitments The Government's response to the criticism of the UN Committee for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination over the question of mandatory sentencing and the ILO over industrial legislation is in line with the demand of Pauline Nation to withdraw Australia from UN bodies. In this and other areas, the Howard Government is taking over and implementing One Nation policies. A picture of deliberate disregard of various international conventions by the Coalition Government is emerging. Australian laws concerning mandatory sentencing and Reith's industrial legislation violate UN Human Rights accords and International Labour Organisation (ILO) conventions that have been ratified by Australian Governments. The complaint to the ILO was brought by the ACTU, the Maritime Union of Australia, the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions, and the International Transport Workers' Federation. All these organisations were involved in the MUA dispute against Patrick Stevedores in 1998 in which Patrick, with the full support of the Howard Government, sacked waterfront workers for the sole reason that they belonged to a trade union. The ILO has upheld the right of trade unions to bargain collectively on behalf of workers and the right of workers to belong to a trade union. The Howard Government's reaction to criticism displays the extreme conservatism and petty-mindedness of government leaders. Their threat to downgrade Australian representation or even to withdraw from UN bodies is an indication that further violations of internationally accepted standards can be expected. One of the international bodies that could be affected is that dealing with the Status of Women. Commitments made at the Kyoto environmental forum may also be up for review. The Government's outrageous attitude logically flows from the policies of de-regulation or self-regulation which allows the big corporations the opportunity to do whatever they please in the operation of their workplaces and in trade relations. Extending the same principle to governments would enable them to legislate any law in disregard of international bodies and commitments entered into by Australian Governments. This is the path to =E4international anarchy. =46oreign Affairs Minister Downer questioned the "efficiency and impartiality" of the UN committee which made the criticism of mandatory sentencing, claiming that the UN committee ignored the "significant progress" made in Australia on Indigenous issues. Jocelyn Newman, the Howard Government's Minister for Family and Community Services, asserts that threatened protests during the Olympic Games are "un-Australian". The Government, in effect, claim' tha=90 it' action' an=9F law' ar=89 "Australian=A2 and=A8 presumably= =A8 i=A6 "Australia'' interests". Both government Ministers ignore the real state of affairs - the mass unemployment among Indigenous people, the health and housing situation, lack of educational opportunities as well as the much greater percentage of Indigenous people thrown into jail. Government leaders and sections of the press are stepping up the rhetoric that the UN should keep its nose out of Australian affairs while the hairy-chested assert that no-one is going to tell Australia what to do. The threat to downgrade or withdraw from UN bodies is a serious step towards international isolation that will only intensify the criticism and the perception that Australia has other things to hide or that the Government intends to go even further in implementing more right-wing policies in various areas. The knee-jerk response of "keep your nose out of our garden" appeals to the most politically ignorant and isolationist sentiments among the Australia people without addressing the real issues. When the UN body was considering the issue of mandatory sentencing Australian government representatives lobbied the UN in an attempt to have it remove references to this violation of the convention which says that there should be no arbitrary jailing of children and that their jailing should be a measure of last resort. There is no doubt that mandatory sentencing law and its implementation is racist in character and intent. Once again the Prime Minister is protecting those State Governments responsible for the mandatory sentencing laws while claiming to be personally against them. The Federal Government should immediately exercise its powers to override mandatory sentencing. A failure to act can only be interpreted as connivance. 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