Subjects: Millennium Trip; UN Committee system; Senator Ian Campbell; ,meeting with President Wahid; Carmen Lawrence; aboriginal affairs; bilateral meetings; Minister Moore.
E&OE……………………………………………………………………………………
PRIME MINISTER:
Well ladies and gentlemen there are just two or three things I want to say and then I would be happy to take any questions. Ladies and gentlemen I’ll only be absent from Australia until Friday morning, I will be attending the Millennium Summit meeting of the United Nations. Importantly also I’ll be having bi-lateral meetings with the President of Indonesia, the Prime Minister of Japan, the new king of Jordan, the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, the Prime Minister of Israel and the Secretary-General of the United Nations. There’ll also be an extensive meeting of the Commonwealth High Level Group, of which I am a member set up at the Commonwealth meeting in Durban last year to review the workings of the modern Commonwealth. This group is chaired by the President of South Africa, Mr Thabo Mbeke and includes myself, the British Prime Minister, the Prime Minister of Singapore, the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea and several other Commonwealth leaders. And that body will meet on Tuesday afternoon and again over dinner on Tuesday evening. I will also deliver, along with other heads of government, a brief address to the plenary session of the Millennium Summit. I’ll be returning to Australia on Friday morning.
The other matter that I would like to touch upon very briefly is to agree totally with the remarks made by the Premier of New South Wales yesterday about the importance of all Australians getting behind the Olympic Games. The Commonwealth Government has endeavoured at all stages of the games preparation, consistent with discharging its obligations at a Commonwealth to Australian taxpayers, we’ve endeavoured to co-operate closely with the New South Wales’ Government. I want the Olympic Games to be a total success and I share completely with the Premier of New South Wales a desire that the Olympic Games be a great showcasing of Australia, a time for any political pointscoring on matters related to the Games is over. It is important that all Australians work together to demonstrate to the world what a marvellously cohesive, open, friendly, welcoming country Australia really is. I have no doubt of the capacity of the Australian people and the people of Sydney, but generally the people of Australia to make the visitors to our country feel extremely welcome and I share very much the sentiments of the Premier of New South Wales to that effect.
JOURNALIST:
Did you instruct Kerry Chikarovski to hold back on that media conference?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I don’t instruct the State Leader of the Liberal Party anymore than the Leader of the Federal Labor Party instructs the Leader of the State Labor Party, I’m speaking as prime minister, I’m expressing my view and I speak on behalf of the Australian Government. Most Australians want the games to be an overwhelming success. Criticism up to now, where it’s been properly based has been entirely legitimate. I wouldn’t want it to be said that I think otherwise. But we’ve reached a point now where we are Australians together in welcoming the world and people should work towards that end.
JOURNALIST:
What about the aboriginal protests which was on the ABC this morning about Aboriginals lining the roads leading out of the airport?
PRIME MINISTER:
People in this country have a right of lawful demonstration. That’s always been the case. We are an open, free, robust democracy that respects people’s right to protest and providing protests are lawful and peaceful, then people have a right to be involved in them.
JOURNALIST:
Do you feel the airport is an appropriate forum for that though?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well look I don’t want to do other than generally state a view about the admissibility of peaceful protests. Obviously the fewer there are the better, but people have a right. And you’ve always got to balance in these situations the desire of most Australians for the games to be successful and positive and welcoming but recognising that people have a right in a democracy. I mean this is what we’re about, people have rights in this country. They’re time honoured and people have that right.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, while you are in New York, how will you deal with the inevitable criticism regarding our stand on certain UN committees [inaudible]?
PRIME MINISTER:
If the issue comes up and it probably will, I will state the basis of the Australian position and I won’t find that hard because the Australian position is quite justified. We’re not drawing back from the United Nations, and we admire very much the core peace promotion, humanitarian relief work of the United Nations, the core activities of United Nations have our very strong support. We are however, unhappy with the operation of aspects of the committee system and in my discussion with the Secretary-General I have no doubt the matter will come up. I don’t expect it to dominate the discussions, but I’ve no doubt it will come up and I will simply explain to him the basis of the Government’s position. And I won’t feel the least bit concerned about doing that. We are for having matters affecting Australia resolved in Australia by Australians through Australian institutions. We’re very keen to work with the UN, we’re a founding member. We’ve always contributed to UN peacekeeping operations, we were one of the earliest countries joining the UN effort in Korea way back in 1950 and that’s been the pattern under governments of both persuasions, and we’ll continue to do that. But where there’s a flaw in the committee procedure, we intend to point it out and we don’t intend to continue accepting without criticism, a committee process which is flawed and doesn’t give proper account to the legitimate views of democratically elected governments in Australia.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, this morning Senator Ian Campbell said in relation to Dame Beryl Beaurepaire’s criticism of the Government’s position of the UN and Senator Campbell’s said that people in the suburbs they would give the two fingers to the UN and to Dame Beryl Beaurepaire, what would you say?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I haven’t seen the context of that remark and I’ve stated my position. We continue to support the core activities of the UN. We share the values and the goals of the UN Charter but we have serious problems with the operation of the committee system.
JOURNALIST:
And is it an appropriate comment to…[inaudible]?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I haven’t seen the context of it, so I’m not going to say whether it’s appropriate or inappropriate.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, it looks like there will be a pardon for George Speight? What’s your reaction to that?
PRIME MINISTER:
I haven’t been fully briefed on that and I’m not in a position to make a comment on it.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, reports today that your Defence Minister is thinking about leaving the scenet at the end of the year . . .
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I never comment on those, that sort of speculation. It comes and goes about all sorts of people.
JOURNALIST:
Would Carmen Lawrence made a good shadow Aboriginal affairs spokesman?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well that’s a matter for the Leader of the Opposition and for the Labor Caucus. However, what’s happening right at the moment over that particular shadow responsibility in the Labor Party is quite unseemly. Barely a day goes by without the Labor Party giving us a moral lecture about our responsibilities to the indigenous people of Australia and you would therefore think that every member of the Labor Caucus would have his or her hand up to fill that responsibility. It now appears that nobody wants it. It’s been called a poisoned chalice and there was another unsourced, quite offensive remark made about it this morning, reported on the AM Programme -and you know the remark I’m referring to - and I think most Australians would regard that as quite offensive. Instead of the Labor Party doing as we’re endeavouring to do, deal in a practical way with helping aboriginal disadvantage, faction fighting and a desire of the Left not in its view to get dudded with certain responsibilities that they don’t want, is taking precedence over a concern for aboriginal affairs. I mean I find it quite amazing after all the lectures I’ve received from the Labor Party about aboriginal affairs, nobody wants the job. I think it’s just quite extraordinary.
JOURNALIST:
If Carmen Lawrence does want the job is there going to be a campaign of psychological intimidation as Cheryl Kernot has suggested this morning?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well the basis of the claim made by Cheryl Kernot for that allegation is quite wrong. The reference she, the reference to which she is alluding to of mine had nothing whatever to do with the circumstances surrounding the Easton Royal Commission.
JOURNALIST:
[inaudible]
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I haven’t said anything about that issue in relation to Carmen Lawrence for some time. I have said something about the fact that she was a very bad Health Minister in the Keating Government and I’ll continue . . .
JOURNALIST:
[inaudible] liability for the ALP?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well look they can choose her, that’s up to them. I don’t give advice to the Labor Party about who to choose.
JOURNALIST:
But will you target her if she gets in?
PRIME MINISTER:
We will deal with her in the appropriate fashion.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, what topics will you be raising with the Indonesian Prime Minister?
PRIME MINISTER:
I’ll be talking about the bi-lateral relationship. I will emphasise again the importance of both countries moving forward. The importance of, for the relationship to both the Australian Government and to me personally. I will talk about the security position in East Timor, about the activity of the militias. I know the efforts that he’s already taken and I’ll encourage him to do more. I expect it to be a very positive meeting. It is important that the Indonesian Government exert all the influence it can on the militias.
JOURNALIST:
Mr Howard what is the information that you have received, your office has received about Australia potentially being targeted through the Olympic Games and some sort of threat from overseas?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well you wouldn’t expect me to talk about security matters, would you?
JOURNALIST:
I’d like you to.
PRIME MINISTER:
You might like me to but you wouldn’t expect me to.
JOURNALIST:
Given that you will be meeting with the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, will you be discussing with him the West Papuan independence movement at all? And any concerns the Papua New Guineans have about that problem?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well we support the territorial integrity of Indonesia and to the extent that that would come up in the context of any of our discussions then it might get mentioned. But we agree with the Indonesian Government about the place of West Papua in the Indonesian Republic and what is now occurring of course has nothing whatever to do with any activity of any kind by Australia. And we totally support the position of the Indonesian Government.
JOURNALIST:
Australia’s not keen to support any moves for West Papua to become autonomous?
PRIME MINISTER:
Become what?
JOURNALIST:
Become autonomous?
PRIME MINISTER:
No.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, if John Moore was to depart would that be a blow for you personally?
PRIME MINISTER:
John Moore is a very good Defence Minister, very good Defence Minister and a valued colleague.
JOURNALIST:
Any plans to go to the tennis while in New York?
PRIME MINISTER:
I don’t have any plans, no I don’t have much time. I’m arriving there on Monday night and I’m leaving on Wednesday night and you’ve heard what I am going to do. It’s a real junket isn’t it?
[ends]