Article 1 of the UN Charter declares objectives to promote and encourage respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion. But the Morrison government ignores the abuses of its friends, does not care about the ‘without distinction’ principle, and thereby undermines claims to champion human rights.
Being selective in advocacy of human rights is a hypocrisy easily spotted. Foreign Minister Payne’s and Prime Minister Morrison’s trenchant criticism of China’s human rights record is coupled to their friendly attitudes towards India, silence about Israel plus failure to acknowledge abuses to Australian citizens and to vulnerable asylum seekers and refugees.
Before considering Australia’s friendship with Israel and India, the government’s domestic human rights record merits summary evaluation.
The Domestic Record
Years of cruelty towards asylum seekers and refugees suggests an assumption about national sovereignty which gives a carte blanche sense of entitlement to place the country above the rules of international law.
The chest-beating stance of John Howard about deciding who comes to this country and the circumstances in which they arrive persists in the mindsets of politicians responsible for observing the Refugee Convention. Removing asylum seekers to endure years on remote Pacific Islands, let alone the enormously expensive idea that authoritarian Cambodia would be an appropriate destination for a few classified refugees, illustrates Australia’s concern with cruelty as policy.
The imprisonment of Australian Indigenous citizens in disproportionate numbers, the morbidity and mortality rates of first nation peoples is another damning example of a poor human rights record. However significant Prime Minister Rudd’s apology to the stolen generations, Australia’s treatment of Indigenous people makes it difficult to be taken seriously when standing up for protesters for democracy in Hong Kong, Tibet, or elsewhere.
In efforts to not offend the US and UK, Australia has remained indifferent to the Australian citizen, journalist, and whistleblower Julian Assange who had revealed murder and mayhem by US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan.
A grand jury in Virginia spent years trying to concoct charges against Assange, and who on earth dreamt up the idea that punishment could involve 175 years jail? US politicians had already demanded that Assange be taken out by a drone, shot, or killed by other means.
UK politicians claimed that British justice was beyond question. The Australian government has said and done nothing. In the same breath, Australia and its allies condemn the sadistic punishments dished out in Saudi Arabia but remain indifferent to Assange being contained in a top security prison.
The Morrison government mouths platitudes about the rule of law taking its course and that Assange has been given access to appropriate consular support, but the government dare not criticize US aims to seek revenge against Julian Assange.
Friendship with India
In courting Indian leader Narendra Modi, Prime Minister Morrison declares that India and Australia are like-minded democracies, natural strategic partners and that the governments of the two countries are in full agreement that strong bilateral relationships are the key to a more open, prosperous, and inclusive Indo Pacific region.
A glance at the Modi regime would make even the casual observer question the notions ‘democratic’, ‘open’ or ‘inclusive’.
The people of Kashmir have been locked down for over twelve months, their freedom of expression stifled, their media censored, their political leaders detained.
To suppress dissent and to implement the ideology of Hindutva – the definition of Indian culture only in terms of Hindu values – the Modi government has total control of the judiciary, law enforcement, and mass media. Across India, new citizen laws give preferred treatment to Hindus, Christians, and other religious minorities but exclude Muslims. Anyone deemed a non-citizen is judged to be in India illegally and can be sent to a detention centre.
Australian Greens spokesperson on foreign policy, Senator Janet Rice identifies Modi’s erosion of civil liberties, police oppression, persecution of religious minorities and of Indigenous peoples. Opinion in the London Economist says Narendra Modi threatens to turn India into a one-party state. NSW Greens MP David Shoebridge forecasts that India is becoming a fascist state.
Making friends with India to counter hostility from China does not excuse Morrison and his Ministers from ignoring these anti-democratic developments, including violence towards women plus cruelties in the embedded caste system. Millions of untouchables, the Dalits, continue to do work that Hindu society considers filthy. They must live outside the boundaries of villages and are not allowed to come near sources of drinking water used by other castes. They are not allowed to eat sitting next to a caste Hindu or to use the same utensils. Author Sujatha Gidla reports that every day in an Indian newspaper you can read of an untouchable beaten or killed for wearing sandals or for riding a bicycle.
Support for Israel, Disdain for Palestinians
Commitment to human rights requires consistency but the only obvious consistency in Australia’s foreign policy is that it always does what the US and Israel want, irrespective of the rights and interests of Palestinians.
In June 2020 at the UN, Australia refused to condemn Israel’s proposal to annex over one-third of the Palestinian West Bank. Most European countries and the developing world voted for the UN motion condemning annexation but Australia along with the Marshall Islands voted against, even though Foreign Minister Payne had insisted that Australia preserves peace, promotes human rights, and the rule of law.
In the same June 2020 UN sessions, Australia and the Marshall Islands also opposed UN Human Rights Council resolutions for Palestinian self-determination, against Israeli settlements and settler violence, and on Israeli human rights abuses in the Palestinian territories.
Ben Saul, Professor of International Law at the University of Sydney judged annexation a reversion to the pre-1945 law of the jungle where violence not law prevailed, and people everywhere were fair game to predatory neighbours. He identified annexation as a crime of aggression under customary international law, hence the challenge for an Australian government to warn Israel that if annexation proceeded, it could impose sanctions on Israeli banks, travel bans on Israeli leaders, and an arms embargo.
When Russia seized Ukrainian Crimea, Australia imposed sanctions on Russia, but it seems unimaginable that the government would take the same stand against Israel.
Armed with a chutzpah smirk, Australia seems unembarrassed when appearing in international forums that consider human rights and the rules of international law.
Prime Minister Morrison’s silence about human rights abuses by friends, but his pride in posing as a champion of those rights in relation to enemies, is ‘without distinction’. His selective interest in human rights leaves Australia vulnerable to the accusation, ‘put your own house in order before making criticism of others.’
Comments
20 responses to “Morrison’s selective attitude to human rights”
Just admit it. You committed inexcusable war crimes in a extremely unhumane way in Afganistan.
It’s horrifying those soilders have done and are still doing!
Stop being hypocritic.
You are just a nobody-country, stop making yourself a laughing stock!
You are merely a slave country of your master USA!
Just look at US human rights, and you dare to criticize it? NO!
Well this Australian is certainly embarrassed by that conduct. Chutzpah smirk? You wouldn’t be talking about ScottyfromMarketing, would you?
the US has lots of blacks and coloureds in gaol and of course there are still “terrorists” in guantanamo
I guess our asylum seekers….. and treatment of indiginous, dying while in gaol, etc and controlled using LNP owned Indue cards
I guess what we and US do is ok…….. but China we claim is different ?
maybe we are just frightened, insecure
Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye. Matthew 7:5
Thank you Stuart. It is astounding that we are led by Christians who seem unaware of the Bible. I thought this verse meant get your own house in order first before you go criticising others.
1. NO asserted “UN Human Right” by a “refugee” can be allowed to override the wishes of their host-victim country NOT to have them on its shores. Stripped of all mellifluous flummery, this is a UN-sanctioned invasion policy of White Western countries to radically and hopefully forever change the demographic “mix” in these host-victim countries – as we are seeing with the UN-sanctioned invasion of Western Europe by Islamic pretend “refugees” from North Africa & the Middle East.
2. On the “palestinian” issue, the entire territory occupied by the “palestinians” is Jewish Territory by Divine Grant dating back to the time of Abraham. Nothing since has changed that Grant. Genesis 12:2&3, and Matt 25:31to46 applies. In essence, this Divine Grant both overrides and nullifies any UN pronouncement on the issue. And Israel has every Divine-Right to defend itself against palestinian-terrorism – to whatever degree and in whatever manner necessary.
funny the things that some people imagine about aliens that they call God….
eg. Pentacostals in the LNP government
plenty of Gods to share around apparently
Thanks, Stuart: The hypocrisy of that on-water-matters secrecy man – Morrison – is simply and truthfully – breathtaking. When I saw his confected outrage at China calling our nation to account re child-murders in Afghanistan – I struggled for breath! How dare he imagine he is speaking for me – let alone ALL other Australians. Protection and rescue for Julian – release and huge compensation as well – and to Bernard Collaery and Witness K (and Witnesses A-J) too! And a little time behind behind bars for Howard, Downer, Ruddock, Dutton et al might not be amiss and bring an end to the all the bellicosity and rorts being perpetrated on behalf of vested interests and “the mates”! Funny isn’t it how arm-twisting works – and in league with Modi, Bolsonaro, TrumpBiden and Netanyahu – Australia and the Marshall Islands. Oh my goodness – bastions of democracy – NOT!
Sir,
Australia seems inordinately concerned about the “cultural” dilemma of the Uyghurs and Tibetans and not much concerned about the plight of the Rohingas. If it were a genuine humanitarian concern, we could have taken more Rohingas in our immigration programme. The reasons for this selective empathy is reflected in an article in the Diplomat.
https://thediplomat.com/2019/09/australia-and-the-case-of-the-rohingya/
Sincerely,
Teow Loon Ti
You are spot on Teow Loon Ti. Australia is very good at hypocricy. It has been well crafted by learning from the UK and the US. We also have a well syncronized right wing media hate machine to disguise that hypocricy from the masses. Whenever there is a chance of it becoming apparrent they ramp up the ‘hate China, hate China, hate China’ mantra.
Our outrage very much fits our geopolitical stance!
Whether it is the conflict in Hong Kong Three countries in particular were using their agents to stir up trouble in the former British colony; the United States, Great Britain and Australia.
Thailand is another example of our outrage because it wishes to join the Belt and Road Initiative.
The South China Sea which suddenly became an outrage We are talking about historical borders between different colonial possessions – and that implied intractable problems from the start, subsequently inherited by post-colonial nations.
Both Russia and China are pursuing a larger geopolitical agenda. Trade between the two countries exceeded $110 billion in 2019. Their geopolitical cooperation may also be seen in their effective underwriting of Iran’s continued freedom from direct United States attack, and incorporation of Iran into a prominent role in the rapidly expanding Belt and Road Initiative.
How the west conduct business:
Negotiation is not a policy. It’s a technique. It’s something you use when it’s to your advantage, and something that you don’t use when it’s not to your advantage.
–John Bolton
Couldn’t agree more with this point of view. Which makes it incomprehensible why China descended into the gutter with its inappropriate “cartoon” regarding Australia’s exploits in Afghanistan. And after Australia’s justified protest about this outrage to say that it was for Australia to apologise. To China? I don’t think so.
I believe that China in its current confusion has made a gross error (uncharacteristic for a country like China, which tends to consider its responses carefully) and might well have lost much of the goodwill that was still around.
An own goal of the first order.
I am yet to see the ‘tweet’ that was asserted. I have been told by the ABC however that the picture and subsequent posting was by an artist. I wait patiently for evidence that an official of China did indeed post the picture.
Definitely an own goal. My theory is that the Communist Party is excellent at poverty alleviation, but clueless when it comes to winning the PR war. If only it had PRAISED Australia for launching the inquiry to investigate wrong doings, and to compare the inquiry to the never-admitted war crimes of the US and the UK. It would have earned itself kudos, and at the same time put Australia on the defensive. Alas, Communist Parties don’t do public relations well.
talking of China annoying us with Afghanistan… the French are using their “freedom” to poke the muslims … another country that causes its own problems
Please, let’s not forget closer to home, the continuing maltreatment and dismissive treatment of our own indigenous folk. And what of the illegal annexation of West Papua and its peoples and the continuing persecution and genocide perpetrated against them. I do in fact, hold my head in shame, literally. As I grew up, I always thought that Australians were generally a good people (government), but alas I think the “she’ll be right” attitude has gone way too far now. In the words of Paul Keating “God help us”.
We are facing our My Lai moment in our history. This should be a time of deep reflection in regard not just to 70 years of dirty foreign wars but our moral character as a nation. And our buffoon PM has just Trump like charged into a Twitter war. Which he has comprehensively lost against a blogger in China, the Foreign Affairs Ministry of the PRC and Microsoft for crying out loud. Heaven help us indeed.
Let us also not forget the asylum seekers who came by boat are are now rotting without recourse on Manus and Nauru. That’s on Morrison too.
except that most of the people that are corrupt and extreme in our country have claimed they own God(s) of some sort…. Pentacostal, etc
Well said Stuart.
Western nations, Australia included, are only interested in human rights when it furthers their geopolitical interests/agenda.
This is of course quite obvious to the rest of the world. No wonder China, and Russia, in recent days have poured some salt on the wound after the release of the Brereton Report.