Michael Costello: First strike on democracy

July 09, 2004

RICHARD Armitage, you are out of order. You are totally out of order. In publicly stating to Australian reporters "you know as well as I do the Labor Party is split on this issue" - that is, the withdrawal of Australian troops from Iraq - and that he understood from private discussions with Labor figures that the ALP is rent down the middle, Armitage has broken every rule in the diplomatic book.

He has interfered in Australia's domestic politics. He has handed a political baseball bat to John Howard to beat Labor, and in the run-up to a federal election he has caused serious embarrassment to the alternative Australian government and its leader. Why?

But what Armitage has now said goes way beyond that. It is about politics, Australian domestic politics. What are the possible explanations?

One is that Armitage has got carried away by his well-deserved reputation for direct talking and blunt speaking. That's fine in private. But Armitage is not a commentator. He is the No. 2-ranking diplomat for the US and as such his words are bullets. This is not refreshing candour from an observer but a deeply damaging domestic political attack from a participant.

It is possible that the Bush administration has decided to take the gloves off and to overtly do all in its power to damage Labor and to help Howard get re-elected. If that is so - and I find it hard to believe - then the long-term US-Australia relationship is in serious trouble. The Liberal Party has, in the most irresponsible and self-interested fashion, over the decades used the alliance as a political weapon against Labor. Howard cares far more about his re-election than he does about Australia's national interest in the long-term strength of a non-partisan Australian commitment to the alliance.

But if the US has decided to take the same attitude of using the alliance as a weapon to keep the Liberals in office, the alliance itself is in serious trouble.

The thing is, Armitage's comments are so dumb, except from the short-term angle of helping the Liberals get re-elected. He has made absolutely sure that Labor can't reverse its policy of removing Australian troops from their present role. Indeed, it will make it harder for Labor to look for other productive roles for Australia and Australians to participate in Iraq. He has caused major problems for the many friends of the US in the Labor Party and given sustenance to its anti-American elements. And he has made it very difficult for any of his friends ever to speak honestly to him again for fear that whatever they say will be used to bash Labor.

If the explanation is that this is just another diplomatic bungle, then it is such a pity.

The cause of liberty, democracy and the rule of law deserve better than this. And Labor, which founded the US relationship and has been a committed and loyal supporter of it for decades, deserves better than what the US is dishing up to it at the moment.

Wise up, Rich. Your friends deserve better.