PRIME MINISTER:
Well here I am in Malta, it's very nice. I haven't been here for 25 years, it's very nice to be back.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, how relevant is CHOGM in today's environment and what are you hoping to achieve from this meeting? Are you hoping to get the support of Commonwealth nations to put increased pressure on through the WTO process?
PRIME MINISTER:
I would certainly like to see a very strong statement come from the Commonwealth in favour of a reduction in agricultural protection. The reason for that is that there are a very large number of very poor Commonwealth countries that would benefit enormously from such a reduction. So from a point of view of helping the most needy a reduction in agricultural protection would be very beneficial. It's hard to see a strong united statement coming out on that because there are such a diversity of interests. There are some countries in the Commonwealth that are members of the European Union and of course the European Union has thus far proved to be the greatest stumbling block to getting a break through on agricultural protection. But I will certainly raise that issue but I have to say right now, because of the conflicting interests, one can't be too optimistic.
JOURNALIST:
Can CHOGM play a real role in combating terrorism?
PRIME MINISTER:
Look I think it's a mistake to look at the Commonwealth in the same way as you look at say the ASEAN groupings, if you look at APEC, if you look at the European Union. The Commonwealth is not defined by a coincidence of economic interests in a particular geographic area, which is really the thing that has brought those other groupings together. It is a body that has one strong thing in common and that is a former historical association with the United Kingdom and I think it still continues to be a body that speaks strongly and with credibility on issues of democracy and openness in political affairs and that's a valuable thing. But I think it's a mistake to apply the tests that are applied to APEC and ASEAN and even the European Union, to apply those tests to the Commonwealth. It's not that kind of grouping, it was never designed to be that kind of grouping.
JOURNALIST:
Is this a good forum to get some serious cooperation on avian flu going?
PRIME MINISTER:
I think APEC was better because of the focus in a particular area and a particular area that was of direct relevance to Australia. But I'm sure the issue will be discussed and that will be no bad thing.
JOURNALIST:
Well what's the importance of CHOGM?
PRIME MINISTER:
I think the greatest value it has is that it does bring together an extraordinary range of countries that despite their great differences on many issues do have a number of things in common. The commitment to parliamentary democracy, the commitment to democratic elections. It has taken a strong stand in relation to that, Nigeria was suspended for a period of time while it was under military rule, the same thing with Pakistan. I'm very pleased that Pakistan has returned to the Commonwealth. I think Pakistan is certainly a very different country from what it was a few years ago. The strictures applied to Fiji in relation to that, and of course very importantly the stance taken against the appalling regime in Zimbabwe.
JOURNALIST:
But nothing's changed in Zimbabwe.
PRIME MINISTER:
Well Zimbabwe is no longer of course participating in the Commonwealth and one of the principles that does apply to this body is that if you don't follow democratic principles you can't expect to participate in it.
JOURNALIST:
On Van Nguyen, will you be seeking to speak to the British and the Canadians to perhaps engage their assistance in pressing the case to the Singaporeans?
PRIME MINISTER:
I don't think would be the least bit appropriate. This is an issue between Australia and Singapore and I think it would be unhelpful, not likely in any way to change the mind of the Singaporean Government. I mean we have to give ourselves a reality check on this. If Australia starts running around trying to drum up support from other countries to change the mind of the Singaporean Government, the Singaporean Government's resolve will harden even more. I mean that is not going to work and people who are making those sorts of statements don't really understand what has already happened and are really maintaining false hopes, quite cruelly in my view. Sadly I do not believe the Singaporean Government will change its mind. And I think therefore it's not really in a way being very sensitive to the family to pretend. I mean other people have the luxury of pretending that things can be done, I don't. And I don't intend to. I've tried very hard, I've spoken on a number of occasions with the Prime Minister, I had a very lengthy discussion with him in Korea, I saw Mrs Nguyen - very, very sorry, deeply moved by my meeting with her. I wish devotedly I could have done something but it's not within my capacity other than to argue a case and I've done that.
JOURNALIST:
There's pressure from within your own party, Bruce Baird today has said that there should be some sort of trade sanctions and possibly even the Government should refuse allowing access to Singapore Airlines along particular routes.
PRIME MINISTER:
I think I'm answering that on AM just as we speak, having spoken to Matt Brown on that very same issue. But for the benefit of other networks let me give the same answer. I don't think that's a good idea at all and I do not support it, I think to match those two things is foolish and I don't support that.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, you mentioned when you began that it's the first visit here in 25 years, what was the occasion of your last visit to Malta?
PRIME MINISTER:
A meeting of the Commonwealth Finance Ministers when I was Treasurer in the Fraser Government. There you go. And I went onto a meeting of the IMF in Belgrade when Marshall Tito was still President of Yugoslavia, the then undivided Yugoslavia.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, skipping forward a couple of days you'll be involved in some talks with Mr Walker and others about the Commonwealth Games, or at least some presentations on that. How important is this week...
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I think very pleasingly there's going to be a sports breakfast and I'll be having something to say about Australia's ongoing support to sport in the less developed countries of the Commonwealth. The Commonwealth Games in Melbourne will be a cracker event and will attract I think the largest team that Australia has ever entered in the Commonwealth Games. And sport of course is something that does bind a lot of Commonwealth countries together, as I have been pleasingly and regularly and in great detail reminded in my two days that I've been in Pakistan. I think we canvassed matters relating to cricket as much as we canvassed other issues.
JOURNALIST:
Maybe football here? Soccer.
PRIME MINISTER:
In time, yes. But on the sub-continent it's cricket.
Thank you.
[ends]