On Monday the government of Malcolm Turnbull got some good news in the form of the first Newspoll in months that not only didn't see the government's vote dropping but actually showed a three point bump.
While that was contradicted by the Essential poll the following day, it was still trumpeted as proof that Turnbull appeals to voters when he returns to his core strengths, as with the tech-and-green-energy announcement of the expansion of the Snowy Mountains Hydro scheme.Â
More National News Videos
Coalition pushes forward on 18c changes
Australia'€™s race hate laws are set to be dramatically overhauled with Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull claiming they have lost their credibility, but the opposition says the government will fuel a return to the dark days of the Cronulla riots.
So then on Tuesday our Prime Minister announced that he thought it very important to make it easier for people to be racist in public, and would legislate to that effect by removing the terms "offend, insult and humiliate" from the Racial Discrimination Act, to be replaced by "harass".Â
The new laws, he explained, would better determine "the type of conduct that should be prohibited, not mere slights or the taking of offence or hurt feelings", while neatly avoiding the fact the current laws already don't allow prosecution for mere slights, taking offence or hurt feelings.Â
Much has been made of the inappropriateness of Turnbull and George Brandis' announcement coinciding with the multicultural celebration of Harmony Day, which is unfair.
After all, Harmony Day was the Howard government's solution to having to acknowledge the United Nations' International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and instead foster "cohesion and inclusion" by encouraging ethnic minorities to blend in and shut up. So the proposed changes were, if anything, perfectly on message.
The problem with the legislative changes are not just that they seek to solve a problem that doesn't actually exist, but that they send a message that the Turnbull government is OK with those who seek to insult, offend and humiliate on the basis of race.Â
Turnbull might blithely claim that "all Australians are absolutely opposed to racism in any form" with all the confidence of a rich Caucasian male who has never experienced racial discrimination in his life, but he's simply wrong. The fact is a whole lot of Australians are evidently totally down with racism in any form.Â
!["Calm blue ocean, calm blue ocean, everything's fine, calm blue ocean…"](http://web.archive.org./web/20170713082128im_/https://www.fairfaxstatic.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/3/g/n/4/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gv3kmd.png/1491717751078.jpg)
The writer and broadcaster Benjamin Law made that point with elegant clarity by starting the top trending Twitter hashtag #FreedomOfSpeech, in which he outlined the many times he had been subject to racial abuse and violence over the course of his life. A sobering number of other Australians chimed in with their own stories – and, needless to say, plenty of racists thought they'd chime in too, because #freedom.
At the age of 10, I was at the local pool as a group of white boys held my head underwater, laughing at me for being Asian. #FreedomOfSpeech
— Benjamin Law (@mrbenjaminlaw) March 21, 2017
And let's be clear about this "free speech" debate that this government continually prosecutes: it's nonsense. It's a smokescreen.Â
They're not even slightly consistent on the matter either. Many of the same people arguing that "insult and offend" must be stricken from the legislation because the law shouldn't protect trembling snowflakes from having their sensitive feelings triggered have spent the last fortnight insisting the death of controversial cartoonist Bill Leak was due to his being "hounded to his grave" by politically correct types calling him a racist and a homophobe just because he drew racist and homophobic cartoons. If only Tyrone Unsworth had enjoyed such high-profile sympathy.Â
Immigration Minister Peter Dutton was also up for contradicting himself on just how free this speech stuff should be.Â
Last week he was lamenting that Coopers family had been "morally coerced into supporting campaigns [for marriage equality] in fear of being extorted by an online social media push to boycott their product" after their brewery was connected with a Bible Society video reframing the debate on marriage equality in conveniently government-friendly terms, because companies should have the freedom to express their views.Â
Hours later he was castigating the CEOs of companies like Telstra and Qantas for signing a joint statement calling for a free vote on marriage equality, because companies should not go using their freedom to express their views.Â
And most importantly, it's not even going to matter because the changes the government are proposing won't pass the senate meaning the whole thing's been a massive waste of time. You know, again.
So, to recap: this decision has damaged Turnbull's standing with his antsy backbench, forced him to placate furious community groups, failed to deliver the result his factional opponents demanded, and reminded the electorate that he's a puppet to the worst impulses of bigots within his own party.
No wonder Tony Abbott reportedly expressed enthusiasm and praise when Turnbull agreed to push for the changes in the party room. He's finally managed to convince his greatest rival to commit career suicide.
0 comments
New User? Sign up