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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2001 Week 10 Hansard (30 August) . . Page.. 3755 ..

MRS BURKE (continuing):

While the predictability of the opposition makes being on the government benches of the Assembly much simpler, it has drawn me to think much more deeply about the example we are setting both for our community and for other communities around the world. Any government is only as good as their opposition.

Earlier this year it was reported that the ACT Legislative Assembly was being considered as a possible model for the system of governance in East Timor. While the model may be a good one and while it may even be a model for abolishing state governments across Australia, the sort of combative, sniping behaviour that is being modelled in our Assembly is certainly not worth being held up as a model for a fledgling democracy. We have a responsibility to be a model of much higher standard than we currently are in terms of behaviour and debate, and I think we owe it to ourselves and to our community to work seriously to lift that standard.

When we hear stories of the incredible and, most times, unimaginable struggles that many people in the world have fought for the right to enjoy democracy such as ours, it is disappointing that we do not take it more seriously. Researchers have suggested, for example, that the average Australian thinks seriously about politics for about 15 minutes every two years, while the average American thinks about these issues for about 10 minutes over the same period.

Does this suggest that our community is not interested in politics, or does it suggest that the current style and standards of politics have turned people off even thinking about those who represent them and the nature of debates they engage in? It would appear to be a bit of both. But this does not mean that we should let standards slip or behaviour degenerate into mud-slinging and purely oppositional, negative politics, as Mr Moore so eloquently pointed out. We as a community must instead cherish our political system, and as politicians we must respect the faith that the community has placed in us to represent their best interests and those of their families and friends.

Too often we forget about the importance of our system of governance. Too often we forget the benefits the system delivers to us and the things we would not enjoy if it were taken from us. But how do we engender greater respect in this democratic system of ours? How do we re-engage with the community to build a better society and a better system? I believe it must begin with politicians leading by example.

Firstly, we can, by recent example, consider the situation in other countries where there is not a stable democratic system of governance. We should think about the current dilemmas facing new Indonesian President, Megawati Sukharnoputri, as both a woman and a leader of an emerging democracy. Many issues critical to the development of her nation will face her over her term as president, not the least of which is civil unrest such as that which currently besets her country. We should take nothing for granted about democracy.

One of the great benefits of a democracy is that it creates a safe space for the large majority of people in our communities to express their views and have their voices heard by those who represent them in the decision-making process. Without this agreed approach to governance, we may have developed an approach to solving planning disputes which relied more on sword fights than appeals and consultation. And we may

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