/.> FRESS OFFICE TRANSCRIPT THURSDAY 8 OCTOBER. 19? 1
AS DELIVERED SPEECH TO COMMONWEALTH JOURNALISTS' ASSOCIATION
Prime Minister:
Patrick Keatley and Claude Forell, thank you very much for that.
The first thing I want to do is to disturb you all and-ask you
to join me in a tcast to the Commonwealth Journalists' Association.
I am told one or two of you are thirsty, anyway.
Will you rise and drink to the health of the Commonwealth
Journalists' Association,. and its inaugural meeting in Australia.
I was listening very closely to what Patrick Keatley was saying.
I started to get worried when he said itwasn't an imperial
organisation, it was a labour of love. I can just believe and
imagine that those great pro-consuls, whether it was in southern
Africa or India, used precisely the same words about 150 years ago,
but Patrick, we will take you at your word. May be we can be
imperial in reverse, and from Melbourne, take you over.
I am delighted to be present at this inaugural function of the
Commonwealth Journalists' Assocation in Australia, and I do want
to congratulate the founders, Patrick Keatley and Derek Ingram.
They have already mentioned the stimulus that Tony Eggleton
has been in earlier days, because the objectives of the Association",
are certainly very worthwhile, and I would like to applaud what
you are doing.
Associations like this are very much the life blood of the
Cor. on; e. lt:. There is a great diversity of experience withinthe
Commonwealth which, in many ways, enriches the lives of all
of us, and the Com. onwealth isn't just meetings of government
leaders or minis-ers of bureaucrats, it is very much the kind
of interchange that takes place at many different levels through
profressional bcdies, through arts and through culture, and
this is certainly a very useful addition.
Non-government meetings of this kind are very useful indeed,
and I suppose the inter-government meetings provides a useful
focal point for your meeting. I don't suppose you will mind if
I say that the Cormonwealth Press Union has been conferring
while you have been working, and I am glad of the opportunity
to make a cor,. ent or two perhaps in summing up this particular
conference.
But before I do, I again would like to thank the people and
citizens of Melbourne for their co-operation over the last
week or ten days. There has been disruption, there has been
inconvenience, but they seem to have borne it all with pretty
fair, good humour. The thing that I am most delighted about
apart from what happened in the conference itself is that
I don't think I have met anyone yet, and I hope you are not
all going to stand up, who by being here for a week or ten
days, whether it is in your profession or whether it is
government leaders or delegates, or other visitors from the / 2 V. M'i-® i
Commonwealth Secretariat, I don't think I have met anyone
who hasn't been turned into some kind of ambassador for
Australia. That has not come about because of what has
happened inside the conference room. That has come about
because the arrangements have worked and because basically
people have felt, as I understand it, reasonably at home in
this city and in Canberra over the weekend. That is not
something that could have been done by governments, by the
task force, it is something that coqld only happen if all the
people of this city were participating in it. So, I want to thank
Melbourne'very much for that.
As at Lusaka, the Commonwealth and I think on many earlier
occasions, the Commonwealth has in many ways confounded
its critics. The often the Commonwealth has said what is
its relevance, it will get broken apart, this issue is coming
forward, it is going to be disrupted. Thinking back over
headlines of the previous and if I may say it gently, I don't
think it is always just towards the third world that you should
press your efforts. There are always some older countries who
should always try and increase their efforts and standards, no
matter how gcod their standards are, it is possible to aspire
to even higher standards.
But we weren't broken apart by arguments over the Springbok
tour, and I canimember people saying, Fraser says that third
world issues, Namibia, economic issues are the important things,
but that is not going to be so because people are going to play
rugby, and then there was the suggestion that something would
happen wit-n. 2ieneagles, there would be demands on one side or
the other, and that w; ould divert our attention. Then there were
going to be : cnflicts ".: ith the United States over Namibia
as if it m. a=_ ers very much if Australia has an independent
view from -he United States. I don't think our view is different
in fact, bu-it was almost going to " be a terrible thing if we.
did have a different view. Well, as'a'smewriat chauvinist
Australian, I don't mind if I sometimes have a different view
from the United States. I think it is probably healthy. tut in any
case I think it is also important that in many areas we have
the sa-me view as the United States, but only when we believe they
are right, and not for any other reason. Then there were going
to issues about the Brisbane Games or other domestic matters,
and because I have learnt over these last six years to know
something of the Commonwealth, and to know something of many of the
people who were going to be here on this occasion, I never for
one moment, not even for half a second, believe the heads of
government and heads of delegations would be diverted from the
causes which % ad brought them to Melbourne or were going to
bring them to melbourne.
That in the event, proved to be right. There is an occasional
good headline out of predictions, but those headlines do in
fact misunderstand the nature ' of the* Commonwealth and the
determination of Commonwealth leaders. Patrick Keatley and
Derek Ingram and many others know quite well and I think
I suppose I should I had better say, every one here, that
this in fact is the only organisation where heads of government
give up, with travelling, more than a week of their time,
to talk together, to work together to get to know each other
and to get to trust each other. And that is something which they ./ 3
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as important, not only in that way. But where other heads of
government get together it is generaly on a block arrangement
the Group of 77, or African states, or non-aligned states,.
and this is an association, the Cr-rimonwealth, which cuts right
across those rigid rocks that are present in the world rich
and poor, old and new, north and south and from nearly every
continent, from nearly every race. For leaders of a quarter
of the world's population from 40 or more countries to get
together is something of value. I wonder if people really sit
back to think if it had not been for Lusaka and Kenneth Kaunda's
chairmanship, if it had not been for the fact that Margaret
Thatcher was sitting down with Julius Nyerere, with Kenneth
Kaunda and with other people, getting to know, getting to
trust, getting to like. How could that sort of arrangement
ever have been encompassed at the United Nations where its
ambassadors who are speaking or meeting or people in committees
have to cable back for instructions. Those instructions that
come back from governments or from departments where they were
not getting the flavour of the discussions and of the personal
relationships and the friendship and the trust that is induced
as a result. The Lusaka arrangement could never possibly
have happened without the Commonwealth. It just would not
have occurred, because people would not have known each other
and they would not have trusted each other enough to take that
kind of step.
So the organisation i4s something of value and I think it is
worthwhile for a no-ent just to take a look at this heads
of government reeting and over and above the question of
greater u-iderstanding within the Commonwealth. The Melbourne
Declaration I believe -was an important document, but that
and the : ormunique have to be taken hand in hand. Both had
a particular point in relation to a meeting being held in
Mexico in a ve--f-ew days time, and especially for other Comonwealth
heads of zovernment who are attending that meeting because I
think they must be encrmously encouraged in what they will want
to say k now a-t there arm * 0 countries, already cortmitted
to objeccives they want to pursue with great vigour and with
great energy.
Both the Declaration and the communique give a significant
impetus te the recognition of the problem of world poverty
and to the generation of resolve the determination to do
something about what is in many countries, the sad and hopeless
state of the way in which people live out their lives. I said
this at the press conference yesterday some people suggested
that the Declaration was just word3. Well, in a sense it is,
but when you are trying to generate just feelings, just comuLitrient,
just resolve in the minds and hearts, not only of government
leaders, but~ of people. Then what tools do you have to do itwith?
You are not going to generate that kind of feeling by
writing out a check. You are certainly not going to generate
that kind of feeling with a gun, and words have often been
used to express ideas. The most powerful thing in the'world
is an idea, and idea which. does caoture the minds and the hearts
of people. The idea of freedom how powerful is the idea that
journalism, the press, must be free. But that is only words.
It is nothing else. It is not protected by concrete and mortar
and whatever protected by laws, certainly, but only because it
is an idea that is powerful, that has captured the minds and
hearts of governments and of people around the world in countries
old and new. / 4
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So, when people depreciate the strength of an idea, the
strength of words that say something that is true but
something at the same time which needs greater recognition
greater acceptance and greater action then I think they
want to be careful in what they are, in fact, depreciating,
because a good idea, accepted by many people, are governments
and countries and as a result, acted upon. That is the kind
of thing which can help to build a.-better world.
The Melbourne Declaration was an important statement of
principle a persuasive encouragement to resolve the determination.
Julius Chan in the closing session asked that it be sent to
every country in the world with a message from myself asking
all leaders to support it. It is worth noting in this particular
communique that perhaps for the first time, there was a reference
to the fact that the Sovie Union ought to do more in aid for the
third world. In past years, I think that question has been bypassed.
They are often very good at supplying guns and provoking difficult
situations, but not always'so good at providing aid inthe fabric
by which people can build a better life for themselves. This
declaration from aligned and non-aligned countries not the
Declaration, the commmu-nique drew attention to the importance
of all cou_-tries doing more in this area. The message of that
declaraticn as I believe and heads of government believe is
imoortant for the hind of world that we will leave our children.
It does ccntain f:; nda antal truths which must not be overlookad
truths which need stating, again and again until we do not
only accept them, but until we also act upon them.
I don't erlieve there can be Anything platitudinous about
a stateme--hih idintifies one of the most important
problems fazing all countries of the world.
The ccmm~ iue is a statement of. specifics, an expression
of the C-n neapth's practical-approach of our determination
not just to rest upon an idea or" on words, but our determination
to put that idea, to put those ords into practice. When
Sonny Rar. phal first released the declaration, that is precisely
what he said would happen. We already knew enoughof the discussions
that had tak en place to know that when he released the declaration
on Sunday, when the communique came forth, it would be a
practical document giving a lead to Cancun.
I would like to underline the key themes. There is a significant
attention to far reaching world issues, and support for global
negotiations. I am not sure that we understand the importance
of that in Australia, but there are many countries that have
a feeling o'f being acted upon rat-her than being participants
in what happens in the world and what affects the lives of their
people. That is why global negotiations are so important. Of course,
the call for that from the Commonwealth in which India with her
several hundred million and the smallest states of the Pacific
are treated as equals can understand that, perhaps much better
than others. ; e have also decided to establish a special
study group to examine the negotiating process itself and
the importance of that particular decision I think may also
have been, to an extent, overlooked, because the negotiating
processes that have been developed over the years have their
own inbuilt rigidities which make it harder to get to agreement
in many cases. No one group, not one particular blocks' fault,
but whether you have come from the advanced nations, the
B group of countries or from the Group of 77, and you are
in a negotiation and then you have to change positionItc.
get to a meeting of minds, you have got to refer back
to your principles, ambassadors have to get instructions.
Because the Group of 77 is so large is often quite difficult
to get positions changed and modified, and the B Group can
be just as stubborn in altering their views on certain
matters. There have been occasiods when Australia has tried
to break through this process and while technically we belong
to the B Group, the so-called advanced industrial countries,
we have decided on our own account that we will adopt different
positions because we believe that negotiating positions
were too rigid and that was especially so in relation to the
Common Fund.
But a special examinationf of the negotiating process itself
and whether that can be modified in ways that can make it
easier to get to agreement between nations, is I think a
valuable decision. We have reaffirmed our opposition to
protection. I indicated and other people did that this can be
uncomfortable in part to many countries. It can in part be
uncomfortable to Australia. I agree with those who say that
protection must be continually reduced, gradually and as we can,
without causing undue disruption. I do not agree with those
who try to sugcest thatAustralia is one of the highly protected
countries of the wrld, because so many new devices have been
introduced in recent times, that we do not practice. In some
countries, they have got no protective barriers, but if you
try to get a retailer to sell isom. ething, you just won't be
able to get a retailer or an agent to handle whatever you.
happen to be prcducing and that is a non-tariff barrier,
an absolute bar, but it doesn't appear on the journals or
the records as any form of protection, but it happens to be
a very practical f-t. -Whaa'--t-a are cokinqgatth* e-. oaat ofprotection,.
we need to judge that kind qopfr otective device
just as much as the formal barriers of tariffs or of quotas.
Anyway, we are establishing a study group to look at the impact
of protection on developing countries, and I believe that will
be an interesting study.
An Australian paper pointed out that in a relatively limited
range of agricultural'exports from developing countries
if there were no protection at all, the aaditional financial
flows to developing countries would be over $ 30 billion a year.
We only have to imagine the extent to which that would reduce
the need for official development assistance or alternatively
enable them to advance the cause of their own people
much more rapidly. That study, I think, will have some
interesting results.
We have supported practical measures on energy. We support the
proposed energy affiliate of the World Bank, designed especially
to assist the developing and the least developed countries.
An initiative that was taken within the Commonwealth Heads of
Government Regional Meeting and run by our own Commonwealth
Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, and the programme
is called the Commonwealth Regional Renewable Energy Resources
Information System at the request of members of the Comr. onw-ealth / 6
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is being made available to all states of the Commonwealth and
not just to the local regional ones within our own area.
We took many decisions that will improve food supply and
production within the Commonwealth and beyond, and we are
increasing the Commonwealth Secretariat's capacity to assist
the food needs of developing Commonwealth members. We paid
significant attention to a number of world trouble spots.
There was a strong statement on Namibia and strong support
forthe unified approach of a contact group. At the moment
there is some degree of optimism but in dealing with that
particular question, people have been optimistic before.
They thought they had jumped the last hurdle only to find
South Africa rolling new road blocks in the way as people
thought they were going down to the straight. So, while
there is some degree of optimism, as a result of what we
have been told, I think we have to wait until there is a
final agreement and final settlement before we know whether
or not that optimism is justified.
There was agreement amongst all of us that the Polish
people should not be subject to foreign interference, that
they should be allowed to determine their own destiny.
There is statementL on the need for the withdrawal of
foreign troops from Afghanistan and Kampuchea. There is
significant attention to some important regional issues
and issues with wider-than-regicnal consequences. There is
recognition for the need for non-interference by outsiders
in he affairs of African states. There is a call to end
nuclear testing in the Pacifip and support for the call
that has been by the Pacific Forum and the small island
states the Pacific hitherto supported by New Zealand
and Austrc-_' a.
Support f: r -he South Pacific F* rum's mission that will
be led by -he Prime Ninister of itji to ' France about the
problems of New Caledonia. were unused to the idea that the
last of the decolonisation proces's in the Pacific might be
a difficult one and not quite so peaceful as the processes
up to this point. That mission is regarded as very, very important
by Pacific states because they do not want to see the peaceful
decolonisation processes that have so far been a hallmark
to decolonisation in the Pacific interrupted or disturbed
as the Pacific moves towards the end of the road.
We called for urgent action on the Law of the Sea. We have had
some discussion about read-mission of a member to the Commonwealth
but that has not been concluded, and leaders will be keeping in
touch with the matter.
These things just show some of the breadth as well as the
practicality of the Commonwealth's concerns., and I think. it is
important to realise that it'is not an inward looking organisation
on the world scene, it is not out of date as the old Commonwealth
of Britain and four white dominions would have been. It is an
active organisation. It is a cofttemporary Commonwealth
addressing itself to some of the most important and urgent
issues of our time. I believe the Melbourne meeting has demonstrated
that the Commonwealth does have a significant contribution
to make in discussions of importance to the way in which
many millions of people will live out their lives on this earth.
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I would like to take this public opportunity -not all our
guests have yet left, there are a number here, a number of
heads of govern-ment are leaving today, but they certainly
made my task as chairman much, much easier than it might
otherwise have been. They all made their own decisions that
they were not going tobe diverted, that they were going to
concentrate on issues of importance, that they were going to
make this a constructive meeting of which they, and we, can
take some pride in having been part of.