 | NORML News: Electoral Finance Bill an assault on democracy |
 NORML NEWS SUMMER 2008. BY CHRIS FOWLIE
NORML told Parliament’s Justice and
Electoral Reform Committee the Electoral
Finance Bill is “anti-democratic, draconian
and corrupt” and strongly recommended the
Bill be withdrawn.
“While not everyone agrees with what
NORML stands for, it is the mark of a liberal
democracy that we have the right to hold
opinions and to freely express ourselves. Yet
the Bill’s definition of electoral advertising
is so broad that it will encompass almost
everything we do,” said the submission.
Electoral advertising will include
encouraging votes for or against a type of
party or candidate, or “taking a position on a
proposition with which 1 or more parties or 1
or more candidates is associated”. Any such
campaigning is restricted to a paltry $60,000
covering every third year - about what we
already spend printing Norml News.
While NORML does not oppose there being
some limits on third party campaigning, this
Bill goes too far. In order to promote sensible
drug laws, it is crucial for us to support
parties and candidates who share our goal, or
campaign against those who do not. We can
only see this as wanting to shut down criticism
of the Government in an election year. While
the Government will be free to promote it’s
policies and achievements throughout election
year - at the taxpayer’s expense - criticism of
this by opposition parties and groups such as
NORML, Amnesty and Greenpeace will be
greatly constrained. What’s more, those who
do want to interfere in elections will just call
in the lawyers to form dozens of organisations
that can each spend up to the limit.
The bill also treats anonymous donations to
political parties preferentially to third party
donations. While political parties enjoy a
$10,000 limit, third parties can have just $500.
But because of the very law we are trying to
change, many people have good reason to
remain anonymous.
Anyone who cares about freedom and
democracy has good reason to be very
concerned about this bill.
See NORML's submission on the Electoral Finance Bill
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