Subjects: events in Yugoslavia; Australian dollar; interest rates; Murray River; current account deficit; National Council of Women; Human Rights Commission
E&OE……………………………………………………………………………………
Ladies and gentlemen, I’d just like to make a few comments about the latest and very dramatic developments in Yugoslavia. They indicate very clearly that the situation has changed probably quite permanently against President Milosevic. They are the inevitable result of his refusal to accept the outcome of the recent poll. Time has come for him to go in the interests of the people of Yugoslavia and in the interests of avoiding bloodshed and the inevitable death and destruction that will follow a prolonged period of resistance against accepting the democratic expression of will by the people of his country.
I join other heads of government around the world in urging Milosevic to accept reality and to go. In addition I’ll be sending a message today to President Putin of the Russian Federation asking him to exercise the undoubted influence he has on President Milosevic to urge a peaceful surrender of power and authority by Milosevic. The situation remains very confused. Milosevic has not recently been sighted. There are even some reports that he may have fled the country. It does appear that most organs of the government including the security forces are either not interfering in developments or have indicated that there’s support for the Opposition.
As we have always done we’ll support the right of the people of Yugoslavia to choose their government and to choose their leaders. There has been a clear expression of the democratic will of the people of that country. In those circumstances the only conceivable outcome to avoid significant bloodshed is for Milosevic to surrender power and to accept the verdict of the Australian people. The Australian government remains very concerned at the prospect of violence. We have issued a general warning to Australians in Yugoslavia to exercise extreme care and we’ll continue to support international efforts to put pressure on Milosevic to accept reality and to go for the sake of his own people.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, Australian, Yugoslav people in Australia divided on this issue as well. Do you have a special message for them today?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, you’re talking of Australians of different Yugoslav descent. Well the message I would have for them is I have admired greatly the way in which they have, despite their natural feelings and sometimes divided historical loyalties, I have admired the way in which the tragedy of the former Yugoslavia has been kept out of domestic politics in Australia. In fact I think they have set an example to the rest of the country. We’ve had remarkably little domestic discord on this issue and it’s a real tribute to them. I personally know of people from different elements of the old Yugoslavia and their attitude and the attitude of most of their fellow Australians of Yugoslav heritage has been well – we’re concerned about what is happening in our former homeland, we’re interested in it, we have our different views but we’re Australians now and we’re not going to allow those differences to spill over and it’s a great tribute to them. I think it is remarkable given what’s happened over the last few years just how they have been able to keep those enmities out of Australia and I congratulate them for it. And it’s a great tribute to them and a great tribute to the democratising influence of living in this country.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, we’ve seen the dollar slip again this morning to below 53 US cents. Are you concerned?
PRIME MINISTER:
I’m sorry, look I’m not going to talk about the day to day level of the dollar. You know that.
JOURNALIST:
Are you concerned the markets don’t seem to be taking to heart your admonition that they should take the long view about the prospects for the economy?
PRIME MINISTER:
That’s inviting me to make a day to day comment on the level of the dollar and I decline to do that.
JOURNALIST:
Mr Howard, the New South Wales and Victorian governments are announcing a deal today to restore environmental flows for the Snowy. This is creating some concerns from South Australia that it will effect flows through the Murray. Are you prepared to give a guarantee that the Commonwealth will not support any deal between those two State governments if it’s effect is to reduce flows down the Murray?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I haven’t had any expressions of concern to me from the South Australian government about this issue. In fact I’ve had two telephone conversations this morning with the Premier of South Australia about another matter and he didn’t raise it with me. I’m not saying that the South Australian government mightn’t have a view to put but I haven’t had any views expressed to me about it. I understand that there have been discussions between the relevant ministers in New South Wales and Victoria, and relevant federal ministers regarding this agreement and to bring it to full fruition there will need to be a Commonwealth contribution. Now I received a letter this morning from Mr Carr about it. We’ll take a constructive attitude. We have encouraged people to talk and to try and reach agreement. You can’t solve these or other like problems without cooperation between the States and with a federal involvement where appropriate and we’re going to take a very constructive attitude towards it. There are different State interests. We always encourage the States to take a national view. They sometimes don’t. And there is a role for the Commonwealth and we’ll be very constructive. But as of now I’ve not had any expressions of concern to me from South Australia. They may come later in the day but they haven’t come so far.
JOURNALIST:
Mr Howard, will you ensure that no…..
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I’m not going to give sort of guarantees about something I haven’t been asked to talk about.
JOURNALIST:
Mr Howard, when will you release the Besley report and will it enable the government to give the okay for the sale of the rest of Telstra leaving aside the Senate problems, but from the government’s point of view?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well we will be releasing the Besley report quite soon. It may be released next week Michelle. I’m not quite sure exactly what day. We will then talk about the contents of it and talk about how we’re going to respond to the contents of it. That will be the right time to do it. I don’t want to pre empt what is contained in the report.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, are you relieved the Reserve Bank kept interest rates steady this week?
PRIME MINISTER:
Just as I don’t talk about the day-to-day level of the dollar I don’t talk about on a day-to-day basis movements in official interest rates or lack of movement in official interest rates.
JOURNALIST:
The Government seems to have had some trouble coming to grips with the whole Sydney Airport issue. Can you give a firm guarantee that you will actually make some decisions on this area by the end of the year?
PRIME MINISTER:
The intention is to take a decision by the end of the year, yes.
JOURNALIST:
And will it be a positive . . .
PRIME MINISTER:
Will it be a what?
JOURNALIST:
Will it be an active decision or will it be just . . .
PRIME MINISTER:
All decisions are active, by definition.
JOURNALIST:
A decision of omission?
PRIME MINISTER:
What do you mean by that?
JOURNALIST:
A shelving . . .
PRIME MINISTER:
It will be a balanced, rounded decision.
JOURNALIST:
In other words Badgery’s won’t go ahead?
PRIME MINISTER:
No, I am simply saying it will be a balanced, rounded decision.
JOURNALIST:
Mr Howard are you going to meet with the National Council of Women over the UN protocol issue?
PRIME MINISTER:
I haven’t had any requests that I am aware of. I had a diary meeting this morning and it wasn’t brought to my attention. So, there may be something in the office that I am not yet aware of but I am not as I speak aware of a request.
JOURNALIST:
Would you be willing to? To talk about their concerns?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I will have a look at it against all the other requests for meetings I have. I haven’t actually seen the text of any request.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister attempts to resolve tree clearing in Queensland seem to have collapsed with the farmers rejecting the latest Federal Government position. Is there any more that the Federal Government can do on tree clearing in Queensland?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I don’t believe the issue has as you put it collapsed, I think that is too negative a viewpoint. It’s something that needs to, that we need to continue to talk about and the discussions in which I’ve been involved have been quite constructive and I would seek to continue those. It’s got to be conducted on an intelligent basis that there are responsibilities for state governments, land management is a state responsibility in this country and there was a naked attempt by the Queensland Government to get us to pay for the discharge of the state responsibility and we weren’t going to go along with that. Equally however, if there are significant greenhouse gains to be had from different arrangements and providing proper arrangements are made for compensation to land owners then the Federal Government is in a position to make a financial contribution and we see a role for the Federal Government in that context. But there’s got to be a contribution to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and there’s got to be a recognition by the Queensland Government that like other state governments it must discharge. It can’t declare and hand the bill onto us as it has sought to do on a number of occasions with this issue, we shouldn’t play those silly games.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister, it appears that foreign exchange markets are particularly concerned by rising foreign debt and the current account deficit, are you concerned as well? Or are they just making mountains out of molehills?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I am not going to talk about the dollar level.
JOURNALIST:
But what about the current account deficit?
PRIME MINISTER:
I am not going to talk about the dollar level and you have asked that question in that context, I am not going to talk about it.
JOURNALIST:
Mr Howard, the Human Rights’ Commission is redrafting the guidelines for charitable organisations particularly in relation to Job Network. Do you have any advice to them on new guidelines?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well if I had any I wouldn’t convey it through this news conference. I saw that report this morning. I welcome that, I welcome that and if there is being a constructive approach being taken here than that is to be welcomed. Our policy is that people should not be the subject of discrimination. We do live in a secular society, but we also live in a society which values very highly, and we have a government that values very highly, the contribution of religious based organisations in things like the Job Network. And I think you have to have a commonsense approach here. It is plainly absurd for an organisation not to have people working for it who at least are comfortable with the goals and values of that organisation. Equally I am certainly not in favour of overt discrimination on the basis of religious belief or no religious belief, that’s not the way this country operates. And I think if you strike a commonsense balance between those two understandings I don’t think we’ll get into any trouble.
JOURNALIST:
Did you see the original guidelines as any threat to your social coalition?
PRIME MINISTER:
Oh, I don’t think I saw them as a threat to the social coalition, but I can understand why there was some unease. But look, the Human Rights’ Commission has said it’s going to have another look, that’s good. I have a lot of respect for the chairman of the Human Rights’ Commission, Professor Tay. And I call for commonsense. You just need a commonsense, balanced approach. We don’t want to get hung up on whether people are asked to put down their Christian name, or you’re described as a Christian name or a given name, I mean heavens above. We’ve just got to exercise a bit of commonsense rather than get carried away with a tide of political correctness on things like this.
JOURNALIST:
Mr Howard can I just clarify with the Besley Report, you’re not putting out a Government response, even in-principle response to it?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I didn’t say what the nature of the response was going to be. I said that when we put it out we would say how we were going to respond to what was in it. That doesn’t preclude responding to some extent to what is in it when we put it out. But it also doesn’t commit us to doing that when we put it out. Okay, does that sort of cover it all?
JOURNALIST:
It will be an active decision?
PRIME MINISTER:
Yes.
JOURNALIST:
A well-rounded response.
PRIME MINISTER:
A well-rounded decision, yes.
Anything else. Everybody happy. That’s good. Thank you.
[Ends]