Putting the mob in its place

The brutal suppression of a peaceful protest in Melbourne City Square on October 21 by riot police using attack dogs and chemical weapons signifies a changing relationship between government and governed.

A State government clinging to power by a single vote would not normally set attack dogs upon voters. But these do not seem to be normal times.

This month Australian business heavyweight Don Argus declared war on Australian shareholders unhappy with the average five million dollar paycheck for Australian corporate executives running top 100 companies.

The corporate gravy train is threatened by laws which give Australian shareholders the right to protest against excessive corporate pay packets. Shareholders can move to reject company directors salaries at annual general meetings. But according to Mr. Argus they should not.

Shareholders unhappy with executive remuneration could, he said, sell their shares. And Australians are selling their shares, driving equity markets to historical lows, while executive pay packets soar to new heights.

The town or city square is historically a place for ordinary people to meet and to sometimes protest. Melbourne's city square is an uninviting place surrounded by businesses paying exorbitant rent to trade in a people's place. It is difficult to think of any public space in Melbourne which has not been encroached upon by commercial interests, but our city square represents, after years of mismanagement by Melbourne City Council, the biggest example of an overly commercialized public space in Melbourne.

Don Argus and Melbourne Lord Mayor Robert Doyle have turned upon the Australian public who own what they, temporarily and at great expense, control, and there is very little ordinary Australians can do about it. Except vote them out at the next opportunity.

The strange rules of Australian corporate governance guarantee that a single vote against exorbitant executive remuneration is not enough. Shareholders have to vote against corporate remuneration policies at two annual general meetings in a row, to force a change. Company directors only need to vote once to increase their pay. Strange times.

Another strangeness about these times is that freedom has become divisible, with Melbourne's Lord Mayor suddenly acquiring the right to declare a time limit on free speech. This limit exists only in the Lord Mayors mind, and that of the Federal and State political class who endorsed his actions.

The United Nations Commission on Human Rights says:

All human rights are indivisible, whether they are civil and political rights, such as the right to life, equality before the law and freedom of expression; economic, social and cultural rights, such as the rights to work, social security and education , or collective rights, such as the rights to development and self-determination, are indivisible, interrelated and interdependent. The improvement of one right facilitates advancement of the others. Likewise, the deprivation of one right adversely affects the others.

The rights of corporations to profit seem to outweigh the rights of citizens to ask questions, to discuss, to assemble, and to protest, at least two to one. It is by any reasonable standard a situation which is probably not fair. It is certainly an indication that individuals have less social gravity in modern affairs than corporations. And that will be welcomed by the political classes, always on the lookout for ways to profit, and cling to power, and to demonize and brutalize what they have called "sheep" and a "mob" opposing them.

Red Flag Minister's Red Rag

On an acre of ground at the corner of Victoria and Lygon Streets the Melbourne Trades Hall and Literary Institute was established, to public acclaim, in temporary premises that opened with a street party on May 24 1859.

Building trades workers had won an historic eight-hour day workplace agreement three years earlier, and the Eureka rebellion of 1854 reverberated still. The first Trades Hall was a four-roomed timber building with an iron roof which made way for a grander building commenced in 1874 and completed over the next fifty years.

In the 1850s Trades Hall delivered on a long held dream of having a central location for promoting social, cultural and political activities amongst Melbourne's working people.

It still delivers on the aspirations of Melbourne's working people in the Twenty-First Century, but according to the Victorian Liberal Government the people's palace has no place in celebrations of the State's cultural diversity.

At issue is a street sculpture by Melbourne artist Tom Nicholson, who is renowned for iconography celebrating the achievements of Victorian working people.

The sculpture, entitled Monument for Future Acts, was commissioned by the former Victorian Government through the Cultural Precincts Enhancement Fund, administered by the Victorian Multicultural Commission.

The Commission says "The Cultural Precincts Enhancement was established in 2007 by the Victorian Government and is administered by the VMC which works closely with the City of Melbourne, community representatives and traders to deliver projects under the fund".

Last week the new Minister for Multicultural Affairs and Citizenship, Nicholas Kotsiras, said in a Media Release

"...many of the costs of the projects that were approved by the previous Labor Government appear excessive and do not represent value for money."

“One project that stands out as an example of Labor’s disregard for public money is a $120,000 sculpture to be positioned at the southern end of Lygon Street.

“The sculpture was named Monument for Future Acts but has been referred to as Stairway to Nowhere. According to the proposal when people reach the top they can ‘watch the very beautiful (and cinematic) motion of the red flag flying from the rooftops of Trades Hall behind them’.

“This project is an example of Labor waste, and funding will be distributed to other worthwhile projects."

“The Coalition Government will ensure that any future funding supports projects that enhance Victoria’s cultural diversity and represent true value for money for the Victorian taxpayer,” the Minister for Multicultural Affairs and Citizenship said.

In a few days Victoria's Cultural Diversity Week begins. The Victorian Multicultural Commission says

The program for Cultural Diversity Week 2011 promises to be nothing less than spectacular. Throughout the Week a host of vibrant public events will showcase Victoria’s rich diversity through film, cuisine, sports, forums, cultural performances, arts and crafts, and many other cultural delights. The Week will come to a climax with a multicultural extravaganza at Federation Square on 27 March when over 50 ethnic communities come together as part of Viva Victoria Festival.

Viva Victoria is described as a free festival for the whole family packed with an array of multicultural cuisines, crafts, activities and performances showcasing Victoria's rich diversity.

The Victorian Government is looking for volunteer workers to "help out on the day". If you are a Victorian worker, don't look to Minister Kotsiras for appreciation.