If you are a resident of Canberra and indeed elsewhere in Australia it has become very clear for a considerable period that Parliamentary broadcast standards have become increasingly academic because what needs to be said and resolved has been off line for too long.
Topics as considerable as the dismissal years, the settlment of great conflicts such as World War 2, and current debates including independence and role of this nation due to its relationships with Europe and the United States, the evolution of democracy in South Africa and the settlement of issues such as the Middle East, Pakistan and Afghanistan have been debated openly by senior politicians and others such as myself here in Canberra.
It is generally admitted that there needs to be a serious look at the many attempts especially by the Commonwealth Parliament to act as a parent and not make available the full story of so much, including the Hitler years, the resolution of the Vietnam conflict with the help of the United States and Russia here in Canberra, the settlement of the conflict between Palestine, Egypt and Israel (President Carter), the evolution of democracy successfully in South Africa as well as national events including the machinery of government negotiations in the case of the Hawke and Fraser governments.
My experience in raising these obvious concerns with senior figures in the Commonwealth Parliament (The Speaker of the House and the Pesident of the Senate) is that they are not interested. Comment even about basic expectations on Parliament’s role to permit and respond to opinion and hot topics simply is not available from the authorities responsible for what takes place.
Freedom of discussion is a fundamental of democracy and should be the expected outcome essential for change and approriate leadership. This has been expected even when the nation was a colony. Unnecessary sabotage to free discussion should not be accepted without explanation
