Grammar Gazette- Issue 1, 1995

features What NOT to be when you_grow up

Stand up for your rights

a crash diet or buy a new fashion. Few take these skills outside the class room. The media controls federal poli tics as well as gender politics. Ac cording 10 the media we are nearly all pro-abortion republicans who sup port the legalisation of marijuana. And we are all apathetic about poli tics. By making politicians the focus of derision, columnists, journalists, writers and those with a vested inter est in keeping the public apathetic, succeed. No one who really cares about our future, our health, educa tion and incomes would consider a political career. That's for megalo maniacs who fly to Melbourne to practise how to stack the numbers and get interviewed by Channel Seven, isn't it'? For those who love conspiracy theories, this is the btggest since JFK. The mass media and characters from Yes, PrimeMinister ensure the status quo by making sure we don't care about politics . A recent survey re vealed that many young people think that former Opposition leader John Hewson is a Minister in Prime Min ister Keating's cabinet. What mat ters about this lack of understanding is not that students don 'I know the political personalities -but that we are not interested. If we don't care, who does? The government plan, a civic education program, aims to teach school stu dents how the system of Australian democracy works. Of course, this is important for future voting citizens but the more important question is - how do you stimulate interest'? TheYoungLeaders•Conference, sponsored by the 2020 Vision Club, the Constitutional Centenary Foun dation and the National Union of Students, introduced a few newcom ers to the political arena. Creating a vision of Australia is not a spectator sport. But it is both fun and reward ing, as I discovered. No debate was without con troversy or conflict of ideas. If we thought these were the topics of general agreement, we had a healthy challenge issued. How broad and radical should be con stitutional change? Should the en vironment be protected in the Con stitution? How should economic development become ecological1y sustainable and hO\V many jobs will it cost'? These were all vigor ously debated by idealists and pragmatists until the MeJbournian sunset at about 4.30 pm. For those who believe lhat poli tics does not achieve results - we of view, obtaining a pocket does re quire determination, self-discipline and. most importantly, commitment. And shouldn't it he? One argument often arises : music students do not receive full recognition for the constant early morning practices, extra rehearsals, several well-performed concerts, not to mention the effort and commit ment required of them. If you are a member of a music group and not an auditioned one, and you have been in the group for several years, should you receive special recognition'? Of course you should, but unfortunately some beli eve the School overlooks the efforts of those who may not be the most talented in their chosen field but who give their best and are com mitted to their activity.

produced four resolutions and wrote a new Preamble to the Constitution. The delegates were too divided to conclude which, if any, rights shouldbe enshrined in a Bill ofRigbts, or whetherwe should abolish lhe States. In the end 1 it was based on real concerns, relevant to all of us, about how Australians' rights and responsi bilities should beexercised. It was more than a publicity stun! for the political parties' youth councils, or networking for future political careers - it was a contribution, an expression of interest in our future. There were other ways to observe the political stage. Monarchists, repub licans and inevitablists gathered on 28 July lo hear Malcolm Tumball address a breakfast at the Lyrebird Restaurant. In the audience Grammar past students, Nicole Glover (1994), Alice Ling ( 1991 ), Johanna Sing (1993) and Gram mar mothers ,Sylvia BeemandChristine Dauber were entertained by a masterful speaker, regardless ofany disagreement about a republic. The CommonwealthAttorney-Gen eral, Michael Lavarch, addressed the republican issue at the University of Queensland on 4 October attended by about SO people, including past stu dents KatherineHenzell (1993), Johanna Sing (1993) and Sasha Spanswick (1992). The Quee.nsland Schools Con stitutional Convention provides another source of political inspiration. As the end ofthe school year draws closer, the students in years 10. II, and 12 will consider career options. The media message is clearly that you can do anything -but don't go into politics. Young liberated Grammar women take note : where are the fu ture female members of parliament'? Condemning inequality in the gov ernment (Carmen Lawrence is the only female cabinet minister) doesn't change anything. All polilical parties have re doubled efforls to encourage female candidates; the ALP's quotas are the most controversial approach. There cent Women, PowerandPoliticscon ference in Adelaide demonstrated the resolve amongst the current lead ing women to remedy the situation. But what of the future'? The future of Australia is NOT our right. but our responsibility. Those 70 who gathered in Mel bourne are not extraordinary. Their hobbies. subjects and be liefs are shared by hundreds like us . Ours is the task of building a nation; ours is the reward for putting our aims into action. By the way, there's room for another 75 in the House of Representa tives. Then there are those who argue that the pocket system, supplemented by report and certificate recognition for a student's portfolio, is effective and very fair. Their argument is that the award of a pocket is a bonus. You be long to a group, play a sport or commit to an activity because you like it. You enjoy what you do, the people with whom you share it, and that should be what matters. Envy of someone else's awards is a negative emotion. Pockets are design·ed to recognise special and outstanding achievement. If they were to lose this status, would they lose their appeal? The pocket system has been de signed to be fair but it is difficult to foresee evezysitualionsosomeoneatsometimemay feel disadvantaged and thewholediscussion will stan all over again.

Year 12, 1993 While young people around Aus tralia spent the frrst weekend in Septem ber studying, partying and planning the holidays, a group of students from each state converged on Melbourne Univer sity. Why? They look like any group of people between the ages of 18 and 25. At School they watched the same television pro grams, listened to the same FMradio and crammed the same subjects as lhe rest of our generation. so why spend a weekend talking POLffiCS? The Young Leadeni' Conference at tracted 70 young people from political parties , unions, universities, conserva tion and rural groups, ethnic and Abo riginal backgrounds. Despite a few free tickets to Melbourne, a little sightseeing, a cocktail party and theatre tickets - the real message was that there are young people interested in political careers - but why are there so few? Ofcourse we all know why: because politics is the despised profession, it's "boring," it" has no relevance" or impact on our lives AND it is run by a group of megalomaniacs in ParliamentHouse.The message from the media is that politi cians lie and cheat their way into parlia ment only to siphon off our taxes into their travel expenses account It natu rally follows that anyone who wants to be a politician must be cunningly plan ning such a career of deceit. So the media repon should read: "A group of aspiring dictators attend a train ing session at Melbourne University, to practise factional deal-making, leader ship battles and publicity stunts ." Are these the people you want to govern the nation when you (a) own a business, (b) work in one, (c) raise children, (d) all of the above'? If not, why not? Douglas Addams' The HitchHiker's Guide to the Galaxy series sums up our attitude to power: those who want it shouldhe automatically disqualified from getting it. Unfonunately,this would leave a group of people with no interest at all in the job spending the entire budget on a new entertainment centre at Parliament House. On a serious issue, however, such as how much it costs to go to university, what Austudy pays or how many of us will be able to get jobs, young people can be deeply concerned. Usually, this does not translate into political interest, de spite the fact that it is politicians who make these decisions. llffiY CAN BE ELECTED, or more popularly, NOT ELECI'ED every lhree years. Who tells us that politicians are the Nobel Prizewinners for dishonesly'? The media. We all recognise a stereotypical advertisement. Grammar girls are quick to spot an ad which makes us want to take Allison Radcliffe Brisbane Girls' Grammar School prides itself on the achievements of irs students, academically, and in the fields of sport, music and art. But does the School acknowledge these achieve ments satisfactorily'? Formany years, questioning of the pocket system, for example, has brought heated debate into classrooms of every age group. The "rules and regulations" ofpockets are available in the library to any student wishing to understand more about it. The question is: rue the eligibility requirements for pockets impossible to reach? The an swer is NO! However, this may be a biased opinion from a personwith several pock ets to her name. From an objective point

and to non-discrimination were be ing violated by Tasmanian laws. which counted sex between men as a crime. The United Nations Human Rights Commission found that his rights were being violated, but also lhat the Australian Constitution ID:. lowed them to be. On a level closer-to-home. a studen t of this School recently dis tributed a petition on tree-logging for us to sign. It wouldn't have mat tered if she'd had the whole school to sign it, thewhole population of Bris bane, the whole of Australia for that matter. The Government has no obligation whatsoever to even look at it; they can throw it in the rubbish bin the minute it is re ceived. In the U.S.A., however, under Ihe Bill of Righls, citizens, if they have over a set number of signatures on their petition, de serve the right to have that issue debated in Congress. A true de mocracy occurs when people genuinely parlicipate in the gov erning of their country. Although we believe we have the right to do many things -like the right to speak freely or the right to freedom of associa tion - we have no formal protec tion of these rights in our Consti tution, and so, in effect, lhese rights do not exist! Australia must commit it

Marina-Portia Anthony

Within Australia, human righls are inadequately protected and certainly not guaranteed. A Bill ofRights is lhe only way of provid ing this protection. Walk into a classroom of the United States ofAmerican, and begin, "We hold these truths to be self-evident ... " and, undoubtedly, they will continue; they cherish their bill of rights . Similarly, Canada, New Zealand and lhe Uniled Na tions each have a Bill of Rights, a written guarantee ofprotection from attacks on their freedom. The Australian version for the protection of our rights is our Constitution -a constitution which should, therefore, guarantee free dom and liberty. Ours merely presents a framework of govem menl from which judges are ex pected to infer rights. We, there fore, need a Bill of Rights so that our fundamental freedom of belief, from fear and from want, are guar anteed to us, as citizens, regardless of our age, sex, nationality, reli gion. status , sexuality or race. As a democracy, weshouldseeourrights and freedom clearly laid out - openly, publicly, and unashamedly - for our governments, as well as our fellow citizens, to observe and respect. An example of this need occurred three years ago when a representative of the Tasmanian Gay andLesbian Rights Groupcom plained !hat his rights to privacy health failing rapidly, the world, and many of Grammar's Modem History students, fret over China's future. Whatever happens after Deng, lhe reliredstatesman's, passing will most certainly direct China's path, and con sequently. that of the world. Deng has been credited with resurrecting China from the "chaos of the Cultural Revolution ... to set its feet irrevocably on the path toward reform." However, he can no longer write, is almost blind, cannot walk, and has become so hard of hearing and slurred of speech that he can only be understood by two of his daugh ters. The past few months have seen a "death watch" instituted for a figure so influential that rumours of his condition regularly send Asian stockmarkets into disarray. "Because Deng's stature in life has been so monumental, his absence in death can not help reverberating after he is gone". His dealh will precede the greatest period of uncertainty since the death of Mao z.aong in 1976. Further, since he remains as the 'last of the Old Guard', the fale of the Chinese Communist Party will hang in the baJance. Historically, China has been a fragmented state. From time imme morial, it has been ruled by the

self to developing its own Bill of Rights, under which all Austral ians, may have confidence in the protection of their rights. and in the assurance of their freedom. Going to meet Marx Justine Cameron With Deng Xiaoping's 'stronger' . The break-up of commu nism in the USSR and Europe, com bined with the surge in capitalist prac tices. brings about the possibility that China will return to its fragmented condition. Since 1989, rulers have laid

the groundwork for a stable transition to a new generation of rulers, grouped around President Jiang Zemin. While his ascendancy may seem assured. Ihe length of his reign is not. His base of s upport is narrow. and he does not possess the charisma of his predeces sors that could promote and ensure Chinas stability. Thus. fighting for position in the upper ranks began long ago, but no individual commands the ·•mora l and political pre-eminence" necessary to retain power. especially in the wake of the many problems Deng will leave behind. China's economic boom has brought about the· inevitable income gaps, bankrupt state-ownedenterprises , and explosions in crime and comJp tion. As a Beijing businessman ex plains. "Dengkeepseveryonetogether. Without him, everyone would go their own way". Ir seems possible that this is what may occur, especially in the boom ing regions of the sou th. Stability and prosperity will prove elusive to any leader who cannol offer the •centralised' au thority necessary to hold China ·s expanding 'entity• after Deng leaves to meet Marx.

Do you deserve it?

.. ·Page11. GRAMMAR GAZETIE, Term 2 1995