PAULINE HANSON THE CATALYST

by Eric D. Butler
Unlike even some of my more respected fellow political commentators, I have consistently maintained that Queensland Independent M.P. Pauline Hanson is a genuine political phenomenon, not merely a creature of the mass media. It is clear that the mass media is determined to ensure that the much more politically experienced Graeme Campbell, leader of the Australia First movement, is given the minimum of public exposure for his views and activities, which means that those groups promoting internationalism strategy against Australian sovereignty regard Campbell as the greater long term threat to their strategy.
But in the short term they are faced with the dilemma of what to do about the emergence of Pauline Hanson as a type of lightning rod for a large number of concerned and frustrated Australians who are looking for some way to indicate their strong feelings.

There is probably no strictly logical explanation of the Pauline Hanson phenomenon. During the latter stage of the Labor Government in Victoria, an unknown small businessman from the Victorian Wimmera centre of Warracknabeal, Danny Johnson, wrote a passionate letter to the Mail Times, published in Horsham. Danny Johnson was deeply concerned about what was happening to the traditional Australia for which his father had fought for at Gallipoli. The editor of the Horsham paper featured the letter.

There was a massive response, and when Danny Johnson made what appeared to be a bizarre suggestion that those who thought as he did should march on the Victorian Parliament during the summer holiday, seasoned political observers predicted that there would be little response. But 50,000 people defied logic by jamming Bourke Street, Melbourne. But having acted as a catalyst for the creation of an army of deeply concerned Victorians, Danny Johnson could give them no clear-cut directions for constructive action. Little has been heard of Danny Johnson since.

It is a combination of events and circumstances, which sometimes produces a type of social explosion such as the Pauline Hanson phenomenon. The fact that she is an attractive and courageous woman has much to do with her widespread appeal. But to fully grasp the significance of the Pauline Hanson phenomenon it is necessary to look at the issues she has raised and the identity of those leading the nationwide anti-Hanson campaign.

The regenerated Socialist movement has bluntly said that Pauline Hanson must be denied the right to free speech. Matured students of history are not surprised to find that representatives of Big Business have openly joined the Marxists in urging that Hanson be destroyed. Under the headline, CRUSH HANSON, BIG PARTIES URGED, The Weekend Australian of August 2nd-3rd, carried a story by Nicholas Way in which former C.R.A. chief executive Sir Rod Carnegie is quoted as saying that the two major political parties must unite to ensure that Pauline Hanson is defeated at the next Federal elections.

The Weekend Australian of August 22nd-24th carried the headline, BUSINESS LEADERS LEAN ON HOWARD TO TOPPLE HANSON. Nicholas Way reports, "A groundswell of opinion in the business community is demanding that John Howard ensures Pauline Hanson is defeated at the next Federal elections". Mr. Mark Petersen, Chief Executive of the Australian Chamber of Commerce, is listed as one of the business leaders calling for the defeat of Hanson.

Way writes, "The intervention of such senior business figures will increase pressure on the Liberal Party to direct preferences against Ms. Hanson." It is now no secret that senior Liberals, including Victorian Premier Jeff Kennett and Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer, are urging that Pauline Hanson be listed below Labor on Liberal how-to-vote cards. Former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser has also been strongly advocating such a policy for some time. Responding to Malcolm Fraser's latest attack on her, Pauline Hanson has demonstrated that she has a sense of rather earthy humour with her suggestion that Malcolm Fraser should concentrate on keeping his pants on.

If an open alliance is formed between the major political parties to defeat Pauline Hanson, once again Pauline Hanson will be seen as a catalyst demonstrating what a growing number of Australians feel: that there are no basic differences between the present major parties. This will be a striking confirmation of what the League of Rights has been saying for many years.

And now comes Pauline Hanson's latest contribution to the clarification of what are Australia's roots. Pauline Hanson clearly believes that those roots are Christian. Her comments have produced a renewed torrent of abuse. Last weekend witnessed a violent condemnation of Pauline Hanson by former Victorian Labor Premier John Cain and a number of ethnic leaders, whose abuse of the Queensland M.P. highlighted the fragmenting effect of "multicultural" on what was previously a reasonably coherent Australian nation.
Claiming to represent a quarter of the world's population, who are Muslims, a Mr. Cheland warned that Nazism started in Germany with the type of rhetoric being used by Pauline Hanson. Mr. Cheland said that Pauline Hanson should "shut her mouth". Government Senate leader Robert Hill is quoted as saying that Pauline Hanson was becoming "more extreme", and that any reference to religion was "evil".

With that breathtaking arrogance for which he is noted, Zionist leader Mark Leibler launched a bitter attack on Pauline Hanson because of her reference to Christianity. Mr. Leibler did not point out that Zionist Israel practises the most discriminatory policies concerning immigration and religious teaching in Israel. Any suggested Christian missionary work in Israel is strongly opposed. According to the multiculturalists, any suggestion that Australians should discriminate in favour of their own traditional culture, and that migrants should be expected to learn some English and to be prepared to integrate into mainstream Australia, is a manifestation of "racism.

As I have said on numerous occasions, Pauline Hanson has not as yet advanced any coherent policies to overcome Australia's problems. But her party political critics have, over the past quarter of a century, not only failed to solve Australia's problems, but have added to them. Acting perhaps as an unconscious catalyst, Pauline Hanson has made a major contribution towards clarifying some of the basic questions, which Australians must face if they wish to survive as a sovereign nation.

While I have expressed my doubts about her decision to get involved in party politics, I have reached the conclusion that, at the risk of finishing with the proverbial egg on my face, if her opponents continue with their mounting campaign against Pauline Hanson, they may well ensure that she is re-elected at the next Federal elections. She has announced that she is going to re-contest the seat of Oxley in the House of Representatives.

Australians traditionally warm to a fighter prepared to stand up to the "Big Battalions". And I believe that if her main opponent electorally is former Queensland Premier Wayne Goss, this will prove an added advantage for Pauline Hanson.

If she has done nothing else, Pauline Hanson, the "uneducated" fish and chips woman from Ipswich, has played a major role in changing the nature of Australian politics and in clarifying the lines on which the basic battle for Australia must be fought. Let us be grateful for even minor miracles.

THE CONSPIRACY TO 'PRIVATISE' EUROPE

by David Thompson
Figures produced by a French economics institute INSEE indicates that around 12 percent of households in Europe live in poverty, with the highest poverty rates being in Portugal (18.9%), Greece (17.7%) and Italy (12.9%). The figures for Britain showed that up to 23% lived in poverty, but their accuracy was disputed.

There is no indication from the statistics whether European poverty was increasing or decreasing, but neither is there any evidence available to suggest that the European Union has helped to reduce poverty in any single member nation. In fact, the truth about how Europe has been organised over the last decade and more is only now slowly beginning to emerge. Most of the "unification" of Europe has been done by subterfuge and betrayal of the interests of the peoples involved. A recent report by Colin Hines in The Guardian (London) that was reproduced by The Sydney Morning Herald (23/8/97) makes a number of fascinating revelations.

Hines reveals that for more than a decade national parliaments and politicians have had almost no control over how Europe was run. Most of us already knew this, assuming that the Brussels bureaucracy was in charge. But not so, according to Hines. Those responsible are "a little-known group of trans-national corporations called the European Round Table of Industrialists (E.R.T.)". Hines is quoting from a report, Europe Inc., published by the Dutch-based Corporate Europe Conservatory, who have investigated E.R.T. documents, and conducted interviews at the highest levels among transnational corporations.

Hines writes: "The evidence shows that the E.R.T was the driving force behind the E.E.C'S. internal market in the 1980s, the 1991 Maastricht Treaty and the social welfare-cutting single currency.
Founded in 1983, the E.R.T. is made up of 45 business leaders from large European transnational corporations whose combined annual turn over approaches $880 billion. They include Shell, B.P., Daimler-Benz, Fiat and Siemens.
The E.R.T. was set up with the intention of reviving European integration and shaping it to the preferences of European transnationals. The key to its success is the financial power of its members, and hence its ready access to decision makers at national and European level. . ." (Our emphasis)

GLOBAL CONSPIRACY

Colin Hines' report does not mention the word "conspiracy" at any point, but it is made entirely clear that the re-organisation of Europe has been achieved by a group of executives of huge multinational corporations for one reason only: to enhance their own power and influence. It is most significant that the E.R.T. regards a European "competition policy" as essential to their own interests. It was under the A.L.P. that Australia's National Competition Policy was adopted. The Coalition has never challenged this Market-driven policy.

Hines writes: "The E.RT's. greatest and most environmentally threatening achievement has been to get national governments and the E.U. to institutionalise international competitiveness as their primary policy objective. This narrow emphasis was clear at last month's meeting in Amsterdam, where the follow-up to the Maastricht Treaty was agreed... Having secured the required political framework, the corporations shifted their emphasis to the creation of a European transport infrastructure to speed the progress of the single market. Again, working closely with the (European) commission, the E.R.T successfully argued for the channel tunnel and the trans-European networks, the largest transport infrastructure in history, involving 12,000 kilometres of new motorways, a series of high-speed train lines and numerous airport extensions..."

While it is the financial clout of the multinationals that gives them power, there is no mention of any banking groups. But it is certain that it is the banks that are at the very centre of the E.R.T. operation. Many of the interlocking directories of the big multinationals are also a "who's who" of the global banking multinationals - especially in Europe. It is also evident that the unification of Europe is not being achieved for the benefit of individuals in the countries involved in Europe. The single market, single currency and single parliament is obviously for the benefit of the multinationals, arranged by the multinationals through their European Round Table.

As talk of Australia being integrated into Asia escalates, there is no discussion of how it will benefit the individual in Australia. But there is plenty of talk about how it will benefit big business. In fact, careful attention should be paid to the key figures who condemn Pauline Hanson for her "Asian racism"; the "big business" figures are the key to it. Sir Rod Carnegie, Bill Gurry (Warburg Bank), Don Mercer (A.N.Z. Bank), Mark Patterson (Chamber of Commerce) are the types who insist that Hanson must be "destroyed".

The globalisation of the world is not being achieved for the individual's benefit, but for the trans-global power groups who have organised it. If the word "conspiracy" is appropriate, then we should use it.

Recommended reading: "Europe's Full Circle ", by Rodney Atkinson, $27.00, or $30.00 posted;
"Treason at Maastricht" by Atkinson & McWhirter, $27.00. or $30.00 posted: from League Book Services.

'TAX REFORM' AND THE G.S.T.

All discussions concerning the proposed "reforming" of the Australian taxation system should centre on one main issue: will we pay more tax or less tax, and what will it be used for? The British heritage of representative government is centred on the implicit agreement that no taxes should be levied at all without the informed consent of those who must pay them. No taxation without representation! In our view the proposal for the G.S.T. is designed to raise more tax revenues, no matter the protestations to the contrary. As the proportion of the workforce on welfare increases, it is harder for those still in employment to continue to provide for them.

The "beauty" of the G.S.T. to people like Treasurer Costello is that no one escapes the tax burden, whether they can afford to pay or not. But there is a group who effectively escape the tax burden: foreign-owned corporations, who are permitted to "repatriate" their profits to their country of origin, and pay tax there if applicable. We assume that with access to the smartest accountants, many of these multinational corporations are "based" in tax havens, meaning that little or no tax is actually paid anywhere. Australian taxpayers are therefore subsidising the multinationals.

We suggest that debate on the tax system should begin with the question of how many foreign corporations are evading paying tax here, and how much tax is not being collected. We have difficulty pinning down the correct figures. Does the Treasury have the statistics? Will they release these figures so that the "tax debate" is an informed debate, instead of a "con job" to "sell" the G.S.T. to a reluctant public? Will the Treasurer or the Prime Minister, direct the Treasury to release such figures? Will your M.P. ask for the correct figures? Will you ask your M.P.?

OPPOSITION TO COUNCIL AMALGAMATION

The programme of forced amalgamation of local government in South Australia continues to meet local resistance. The Local Government Boundary Reform Board is meeting repeated and vigorous opposition to the regionalisation of South Australia. Groups of councils have taken out advertising space in Adelaide newspapers to object to forced amalgamations, claiming that the State Government assured them that only voluntary amalgamations would proceed. The following advertisement was published in The Advertiser (23/7/97):
Combined Councils Statement of Support for No Forced Amalgamations
"We the undersigned Councils hold the view that all Council amalgamations must be of a voluntary nature and not be imposed against the wishes of the community.
The Government originally stated (Hansard 26.10.94 page 798) that there would be no forced amalgamations and in August 1995 the then Minister for Local Government Relations, Hon. John Oswald MP, stated that Government's legislation will seek to ensure that council amalgamations produce real benefits to ratepayers in lower rates and improved services. In the absence of one or either of the benefits stated above, the rationale for amalgamation does not exist, amalgamation just for the sake of a reduction in the number of Councils without a demonstrated benefit to the residents and ratepayers, and which is opposed by the electors of that Council area must not proceed.
The Local Government Act gives Councils the right to hold a poll on any issue within the ambit of Councils responsibility. A majority result from the community must be considered paramount on these issues, democracy must prevail. We will oppose any forced amalgamations, which are considered contrary to the wishes of the people.
Councils Town of Walkerville, Mayor of Unley, City of Mitcham, District Council of Kapunda & Light, District Council of Lucindale, District Council of Yankalilla, District Council of Robe, District Council of Streaky Bay, Mayor of Port Lincoln. Local Government Association 'State Executive at its last meeting, endorsed Voluntary Amalgamation which I acknowledge as a democratic basis for Structural Reform.' Signed John Ross, President, I.G.A."

The matter of a "demonstrated benefit" has frequently been ignored by the Board, until Councils who resist mergers force attention to it. For example, in urban Unley, Mayor Michael Keenan drew attention to a $1.6 million rate slug that Unley would suffer if the bitterly contested merger with Mitcham proceeds. While the Unley-Mitcham battle claims attention, it appears that three merger options for the southeast will fail. The proposed merger of Lacepede, Lucindale and Robe was rejected outright by the councils involved. Other options are being actively opposed, with Robe Council indicating that there was little local support for the Board's proposals for Robe to be absorbed into recently reformed councils of Wattle Range or Naracoorte.

It is clear that the amalgamation battle in South Australia is not yet over. Every successful effort to resist amalgamations in South Australia contributes to the resistance of a "regionalised" Australia, with the States eliminated as irrelevant.

IMPORTING TUBERCULOSIS

Two cases of T.B. have been identified at Northcote High School in suburban Melbourne. Both students are immigrants, with one having migrated to Australia within the last year. Tests on children who might have contracted the disease have shown 24 positive reactions to a skin test. Of the 24 who reacted, most were migrants, and all but three had been vaccinated, but doctors say that a positive test does not mean those testing positive have T.B.

The doctor advising the Department says that T.B. was being diagnosed in Victorian students at the rate of one case every few weeks. At present the Department of Immigration tests only adult immigrants for T.B., because the rate of childhood T.B. is routinely low. A Health Department spokesman said it is too expensive to test everyone (Herald-Sun, 19/8/97). No nationality of those affected with T.B. has been given. It is almost certain that those infected come from Asia, and are Chinese, but authorities deliberately conceal their nationality, perhaps to prevent "racism". Another benefit of the multicultural society?

FROM THE PRESS

Racist tag is unfair from Herald-Sun, 17/8/97
"Please explain! I don't understand why Asian countries are complaining that Australia is racially prejudiced. "If an Asian comes to Australia, they can buy property and open a business. But if an Australian or European goes to, say, Singapore, they can buy a house/flat in a designated area and these are very limited. As for opening a business, forget it. "I don't hear anyone complaining that Singapore is racist. What is the difference? "As for the government's claim that there are only a very small percentage of Asians living in Australia, I suggest it takes a good look around. "For example, the Bank of Hong Kong has recently opened in Glen Waverley. Also, the estate agents in that area employ Asian staff to sell solely to Asian buyers who, I am told, are 90 percent of the buyers."
Very Concerned, Mulgrave

Banana republic from Advertiser, 22/7/97
"There was an item on the ABC T.V. news on July 15 that yet another Australian icon, GloWeave Shirts, is to relocate its manufacturing base to Indonesia because labor costs are only a fraction of Australia's costs. "Does this now mean that eventually the retail price of GloWeave shirts will fall in line with the new manufacturing costs? I think not. I am sure that the price will remain the same and the profits of GloWeave will dramatically increase. "This is yet another shameful example of Australian jobs being exported overseas at the expense of local jobs. When will our politicians and business leaders wake up to the fact that this type of activity is slowly but surely mining this country?
"Is it any wonder that unemployment is so high and there is no prospect that it will ever improve? Paul Keating's 'banana republic' is slowly but surely coming to a venue near you."
MICHAEL KOHLER. Oaklands Park.