TRUTH ABOUT ZIMBABWE SURFACING

While the welter of finger pointing at South Africa continues, something of the racism and suppression in black African countries emerges now and again. On the whole, the media is reluctant to concede that black Africa is an indescribable mess. But even the media could not "hush up" the grisly activities of Idi Amin. Those who have seen the newsletters of Father Lewis's Rhodesian Christian Group will have some idea of the widespread atrocities in Mugabe's Zimbabwe, affecting both black and white. But now a former African leader in Zimbabwe, Bishop Abel Muzorewa - himself betrayed and exploited by Lord Carrington at the Lusaka Conference, with the assistance of Malcolm Fraser - has described the Mugabe regime as "anti-Church, anti-God, and anti-peace". He claimed the Church in Zimbabwe was under persecution, while freedoms of speech, assembly and worship were being suppressed. (Weekend Australian, 16/7/83)

Meanwhile, six Airforce officers are on "trial" in Harare (formerly Salisbury) on charges of sabotaging a consignment of Hawker Hunters and Hawk jet fighter bombers, an aid-package from Britain. All six of the accused, including Air Vice-Marshall Hugh Slatter, insist they were forced to confess to the charge under torture. At least one has attempted to commit suicide in prison.

Last week the Zimbabwean Parliament was the scene of acrimonious fireworks as the "state of emergency", which allows detention without trial, was renewed for the seventh time since independence. Some African parliamentarians accused whites in the security forces and the civil service as being agents for South Africa. Counter charges were made that Mr. Mugabe was using the emergency powers to impose an ideology upon the people of Zimbabwe. All this is Fraser's boasted "successful resolution" of the Rhodesian conflict.

TASMANIAN DAM AFTERMATH

A recent letter from Tasmanian Senator Shirley Walters (Lib.) in The Australian, spelt out clearly the grave implications of the "World Heritage Properties Conservation Bill", which the Hawke Government enacted in order to initiate its case against Tasmania. Senator Walters made the point that Clause 6 of the Bill enables the Federal Government to designate any area of any State, which it feels fits the terms of the Bill, to be proclaimed a Heritage area, without reference to the State concerned.

She went on: "Thus, regardless of what the people may think, the decision is to be made in Canberra between the Government of the day and any other country and the States will have no say at all. No treaty will be signed. No convention ratified."
Senator Walters quoted the remarks of Prime Minister Hawke in his 1979 Boyer lectures, in which he said: "I believe that Australians would be better served by the elimination of the second tier of government - that is, the States - which no longer serve their original purpose and act as a positive impediment in achieving good government in our current community."

The great tragedy, weakening an otherwise excellent letter from one of the few sound Liberals, is that Senator Walters' own party paved the way and laid the palms for Labor's socialist onslaught.

WOMENS' EQUAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT BILL

Senator Susan Ryan, Minister for Education and Youth Affairs, is not impressed by the thousands of telegrams and signed petitions, which have flowed from all over Australia in opposition to the proposed sex discrimination legislation she aims to introduce under the United Nations Convention on the elimination of discrimination against women. So far over 70,000 names have been collected on petitions opposing the legislation.

The Age (July 15, '83) reported: "She attacked a campaign against the treaty which she said had been the most mischievous and dishonest in her political career. Conservative women's groups, including Women Who Want To Be Women, have urged women to send telegrams to the Government calling on it not to ratify the Convention". Senator Ryan said yesterday "the Government would invoke its powers under the soon to be ratified United Nations Convention On the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women. She said the Government intended to use all its powers in the pursuit of equality".

"The High Court decision on the Franklin Dam issue had a bearing on the Convention", she said. Senator Ryan went on to say that any State, which had not enacted sex discrimination within two years, would face Federal intervention. It is apparently a case of "You are going to have it whether you like it or not" as far as Senator Ryan is concerned.

THE FINANCIAL CONUNDRUM

With all the whistling in the dark about "Recovery" in the economy, an almost Gilbertian argument dogs the world's political and industrial leaders. A marginal reduction in inflation rates in most industrial countries - except Australia - has been achieved by the simple expedient of financial shackles on industrial muscle, resulting in the wrecking of huge sections of industry; twenty five thousand industries in the United States alone have gone to the wall in this so-called "recovery". Now the impossible task of re-stimulating recovery without removing the shackles haunts the wind section of the "economic orchestra".

A series of articles from New York by Maxwell Newton in The Australian could be classed as satire was the matter not so serious. The United States Money Supply is already "blowing out" before the recovery is under way, threatening another savage round of inflation. Any attempt to "rein in" the money supply will abort the recovery.

The 'experts' are looking at the problem from every angle - between their knees, in a mirror, and even standing on their heads - but it won't go away. A simple trap for monkeys in Africa consists of a gourd with some corn inside. A monkey can pass its open hand in through the opening, but as soon as it closes its fist on the corn, it cannot pull it out again. Monkeys often sit for many hours, in desperate fear, until they are captured. The simple act of opening their hand would allow escape - but this is the one avenue they won't even consider! Perhaps this argument suggests that economists and politicians, if not ordinary human beings, are descended from monkeys! Be that as it may, there is no solution to the world's paralysing financial crisis until a limited percentage of M3 (the increase in the money supply) is created without debt and interest and allocated to its rightful owners - the people.

President Mitterand, in a recent edition of a Left-wing Catholic weekly "Temoignage Chretien", has confessed that his expansionary financial policies when first elected were entirely wrong; the implications are that he would have done much better to emulate President Reagan and wreck 25,000 French industries under the label "Responsible Economic Management".

On the other hand, "back at the ranch" in the U.S. the following report in The Australian (July 15, '83) says: "after two days of meetings of the federal open market committee, the supreme policy making body of the Federal Reserve system, there is room for deep concern that nothing important is going to be done to stop the headlong expansion of money in the United States. Extreme political pressure is being imposed on the Federal Reserve to do next to nothing to restrict money growth ... the danger of money being allowed to 'rip' has thus materially increased following the White House intervention and the move by the Republican Congressmen. Thus, Mitterand is opting for Reagan (a previous policy, while Reagan is going to try a little Mitterand stimulation.) Neither has any chance of success. Overshadowing all this is the ominous figure of "The Deficit", which is out of control in every major economy.

All recovery must be sacrificed on the altar of the vengeful god Deficit. Any thought of wiping him - which could be done at the stroke of a pen, is seen as a heresy so deep as to be financially blasphemous! The same argument between inflationary expansion and deflationary paralysis rages within Hawke's Labor Party ranks. The expansionists believe Treasury Secretary John Stone is the voodoo priest of the "Great God Deficit", who has successfully hypnotised Paul Keating, a pre-election expansionist; all of which is cold comfort to ordinary Australians, who want neither inflation nor paralysis, but prosperous stability.

Three major steps would put Australians on the road to that stability:
1. The complete abolition of Sales Tax, with an immediate fall in prices and an increase in purchasing power.
2. Write the deficit as a credit instead of a debt, and use, say $3,000 million to finance a system of consumer price subsidies (the Sales Tax in reverse).
3. Allocate another $3,000 million to finance adequate retiring pensions for those wishing to leave the work force at 55, thus making it possible for employers to engage some of the young unemployed. (Steps 1 and 2 would eliminate inflation).

A Colac actionist has asked the former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. A.A. (Tony) Street, if elections are really worthwhile since no longer can the elector believe any election promises of political parties. Mr. Street replied - "In my view they are much preferable to revolutions as a means of determining government".
We have to inform Mr. Street that revolutions now ARE determining government: he probably doesn't realise it himself. The recent rulings by the High Court on Koowarta and the Franklin Dam have created a revolution in Australia's Federal system. The man in the street is blissfully asleep to the present dangers in our whole system of Federalism and law, as are most politicians; many of whom would think these new alignments and laws are "a Jolly good thing; moving us right into the 20th Century."

Those Liberals who decry the Socialist steamroller now on top of us should be told that it was their Party, under Malcolm Fraser, which prepared the ground for the new Federal and legal revolution, soon to unfold. The Liberals signed U.N. Conventions; the Liberals supported the World Heritage legislation, etc. The Socialists are merely carrying on to the next step.