This election, put your vote to work for someone who needs change in their lives

Thursday, August 19, 2010

By Tim Costello
CEO World Vision Australia

 

Most of us are sick of hearing about Julia Gillard’s hair, or Tony Abbott’s Speedos. But trivia aside, one of these people will lead the country. Will you vote for the old Julia? The ‘real’ Julia? Tony Abbott? The Greens? Or will you take Mark Latham’s advice, and not vote for anyone?

Is it any wonder Australians are confused about who to vote for this election?

Obviously there are important issues that have been raised in this campaign, such as managing the economy, a broadband network and the sustainability of Australia's population.

But in the absence of any tax cut bidding war, some people may find they can't see too much to gain personally from voting for either of the major parties.

If you’re bored with the election, if you think ‘all the parties are the same’, resist the last-minute overtures from the various parties this week, and vote in someone else’s interest – make your vote count for someone in your community who really needs it.

If you’re not fussed about faster internet, instead think about what each party is doing about homelessness. In 2007 Kevin Rudd dispatched his ministers to visit temporary housing for homeless people, with a view to tackling the problem. Little has been heard of this initiative since. Tony Abbott says many people make ‘a choice’ to be homeless.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Violence, alcohol, gambling, drugs and mental health overlap in complex ways, often resulting in homelessness. But this doesn’t have to be the case – what are the major parties doing to address these contributing factors, which leave more than 100,000 people homeless in Australia every night?

If you were left unimpressed by the constant bickering about another leader’s debate, instead ask the candidates in your area about what their party is doing about the plight of asylum seekers. In the past, around 90 percent of asylum seekers arriving by boat have been found to be refugees and are granted protection visas. They have fled from some of the world’s worst humanitarian situations. But children are still held in detention-like conditions on Christmas Island.

The election discussion on Australia’s hospitals is an important one. But the World Bank estimates that Australia spends US $3,986 per person on health. That is a pretty healthy figure compared to our neighbours in East Timor, where it is just $58. In Papua New Guinea, it is a paltry $31 per person – less than 1% of the Australian figure.

Having progressed our health system here in Australia, isn’t there is a role for us to play in improving health outcomes globally, especially for pregnant women and children under five?

Overseas aid can help address these inequalities. Both major parties support spending 0.5 percent – 50 cents in every $100 – of Australia’s Gross National Income on overseas aid. But we should be spending 0.7 percent. Such a change could directly prevent the deaths of 130,000 children.

Each party has a website outlining its policies on a wide range of issues. Go and explore what they are planning to do if elected. Reward those parties that are committed to giving the vulnerable a fair go. Look around your community, and beyond, and put your vote to work for someone who really needs change in their lives.

Opinion Pieces, Poverty, Asia and the Pacific, Australian Government, Climate Change, Election, Foreign Aid, Humanitarian, Julia Gillard, Tim Costello, Tony Abbott

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