Jim McIlroy, Brisbane
A snap Queensland election is underway. On January 13, Labor Premier Peter Beattie called the election for February 7, in a summer-holiday bid to take the heat out of the government's damaging problems over the abuse of foster children in state care.
Beattie is claiming to have called the election in order to provide certainty for the troubled child-protection sector. He said it was important to have a new government ready to implement child-protection reforms in line with recommendations released the previous week in a Crime and Misconduct Commission review.
Almost immediately, the ALP campaign was set back by the forced resignation of tourism minister Merri Rose on January 14, who had an allegation of bullying against a former staff member upheld by the Workers' compensation regulation authority, Q-Comp. The minister's resignation has temporarily taken the momentum out of Beattie's drive for a third term in office.
This impression is backed by the most recent opinion poll released in the January 17 Brisbane Courier-Mail, which shows Labor's primary vote at 38%, down 5% on a poll taken at the same time in the 2001 election campaign. Nevertheless, the poll still shows the ALP with a strong 55% to 45% lead on the Coalition in two-party preferred terms.
The February 7 poll is just 10 days short of three years since the last election, when Labor won a massive 66 of the 89 seats in state parliament. The opposition Nationals currently have 12 seats, the Liberals three and One Nation two. Independents hold the other six seats.
Labor would have to lose 22 seats to be pushed out of government. Beattie said he was concerned that a protest vote could cost him 15 to 20 seats. "A lot of people will believe that they can send a protest vote to the government and that protest vote could see us out the door", he said.
"There are a lot of good reasons for such a protest vote", Socialist Alliance candidate for the inner-suburban seat of South Brisbane Lynda Hansen said on January 17. "The Beattie Labor government has been sitting on an unprecedented majority of 43 seats during the last three years, and has done virtually nothing significant with it in terms of progressive reforms.
"For example, why hasn't the government taken the basic step of finally repealing the anti-abortion laws — a fundamental affirmation of a woman's right to choose — which Queensland women have been demanding for decades?
"Public housing is in crisis, in a general situation of soaring home prices and rental costs. Why hasn't a major program of public housing been implemented, to tackle the desperate housing needs of low-income people and workers?
"Why not declare Queensland a 'peace state', which totally bans nuclear ships and military bases within its borders, and refuses any co-operation with the US and Australian war machines in their oppressive occupation of Iraq?
"The Labor government's disgraceful refusal to provide a fair offer for the 'stolen wages' of Aboriginal workers in this state is a key issue. As is the decision to allow the nuclear-irradiation plant at Narangba to go ahead.
"And there should be a complete ban on any cooperation with the federal government's harsh anti-refugee policies, including blocking any new detention camp for asylum seekers at Pinkenba or elsewhere in the state, and prevention of the use of Queensland airports for the deportation of those refused official refugee status.
"Obviously, the Coalition provides an even worse option for working people. So many voters will turn to other alternative parties and independents. The major beneficiaries of this protest vote will undoubtedly be the Greens on a state-wide basis, representing generally progressive policies on many issues.
"The Socialist Alliance will be raising the flag of socialism in some Brisbane seats, in a bid to convince people that a comprehensive alternative to the big-business parties is essential. We will be announcing our policies and actively campaigning in the suburbs to the best of our ability in the short time allowed till election day.
"We are calling for a first preference vote for the Socialist Alliance in the seats we are running in to put the socialist alternative back on the political map. There is no 'third way' between capitalism and socialism", Hansen said.
The Socialist Alliance is currently finalising plans to run in up to three seats: South Brisbane, Brisbane Central and Inala.
Anyone interested in assisting with the Socialist Alliance campaign, including help to staff polling booths on election day, please phone (03) 3831 2644, email < brisbane@socialist-A HREF="mailto:alliance.org"><alliance.org> or visit <http://www.socialist-alliance.org>.
From Green Left Weekly, January 21, 2004.
Visit the Green Left Weekly home page.