US conservative political commentator Candace Owens has called on the US military to invade Australia over its “tyrannical police state”.
“When do we invade Australia and free an oppressed people who are suffering under a totalitarian regime?” she said on her TV show last week.
US commentator Joe Rogan also criticised Australia as a country “with dystopian, police-state measures that are truly inconceivable to the rest of the civilised world” — although he later realised he was criticising a satirical sketch instead of a government advertisement.
Both have been mocked for their hyperbolic attitudes — but there is something to be said about Australia’s increasing government powers throughout the pandemic. Its border policy was one of the toughest in the world, isolating Australians and putting those on temporary visas in difficult positions. Fortress Australia reopened this week after almost 600 days of isolation.
The Council of Australian Governments was replaced with the opaque national cabinet; unconstitutional travel bans were implemented; police were given excessive powers to fine people and designate others as “authorised officers”; emergency powers have been extended time and again, and Victorian Premier Dan Andrews is proposing laws that would give the premier the power to declare pandemics and have public health orders enforced for three months at a time.
How did Australia quietly become a country with such emboldened police, government and military powers?
Powers emerge as quickly as the pandemic
Public health emergencies were declared by states and territories across March 2020. This allowed governments to allocate extra funding to healthcare, public housing, food relief and economic packages to support businesses.
But the new powers weren’t all about moving cash around for support. Policing powers also increased, allowing police to fine people flouting COVID-19 rules or instruct them to move along.
In Victoria, the government could appoint anyone to become an “authorised officer” who could arrest anyone suspected of having COVID or of breaching emergency directions and detain them indefinitely. Police could also take possession of any person’s property.
Fines were implemented swiftly; a learner driver copped a $1600 fine for “non-essential” travel during a lesson with her mother. In July 2020, public housing tower residents in Flemington and North Melbourne were forced into lockdown with no warning — which the Victorian Ombudsman later found breached human rights laws. (Despite this December ruling, a similar thing happened in Sydney this year).
Prime Minister Scott Morrison developed the national cabinet to replace the COAG and speed up decision-making in April. But the cabinet also kept crucial information away from public scrutiny: cabinet documents are exempt from Freedom of Information Act requests.
The government is fighting to keep this information secret despite a Federal Court ruling that the national cabinet was not entitled to “cabinet confidentiality”.
Federal Parliament was suspended for five months across 2020 due to the outbreak and again in 2021– an international anomaly — while state Parliaments also hit the pause button.
Militarisation becomes a focus
In September the federal defence legislation amendment permitted foreign armies and police forces to be called in for ill-defined “emergencies”, allowing immunity for the defence force from criminal and civil penalties; 700 defence force members assisted Sydney during the outbreak.
That same month, NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller was given new powers in his role as State Emergency Operations controller, proudly announcing: “These are some of the strongest powers we’ve ever had in the history of the NSW police force.”
Along with heightened powers, increased police presence and deployed ADF members, governments started comparing the battle against COVID as a war. Despite having no experience in public health, Lieutenant General John Frewen was appointed commander of the national COVID vaccine task force in June 2021.
Andrews called the virus a “wicked enemy”, in July 2020; Frewen launched the military-themed vaccination campaign “arm yourself”; Morrison said the pandemic response had been a “long war against this virus” with “many, many battles”, and in announcing a snap lockdown, former NSW premier Gladys Berejiklian said the outbreak was “literally a war”.
This, infectious disease specialist and University of Melbourne associate professor Stuart Ralph tells Crikey, wasn’t the best approach, especially now the rhetoric has shifted to living with the virus.
“You either need to say we beat COVID-19, which doesn’t really seem like it’s true, or we lost, and that’s obviously not suitable either,” he said.
“It shows how unsuitable militaristic language is, because in a military conflict there’s going to be a winner or loser, and that’s not really the appropriate way of dealing with infectious diseases.”
There are other concerns, too: marginalised communities with a distrust of governments may be less inclined to follow health orders coming from the military over public health officials and community leaders, and a key concern was when the increased powers would be scaled back.
What impact has this had on democracy?
Former human rights commissioner and University of Sydney political theorist Professor Tim Soutphommasane tells Crikey the pandemic had a corrosive effect on Australia’s political culture.
“There has been surprising acceptance of significantly expanded government power, even though it hasn’t been accompanied by enhanced scrutiny and accountability,” he said. “Many Australians have been happy to trade off liberty for safety. Many have accepted the introduction of emergency measures without asking too many questions.”
Soutphommasane says much of the acceptance was borne out of fear and anxiety as Australia pursued zero COVID cases — a strategy later abandoned. He says more transparency is needed, as is more information about when emergency powers will be reduced.
“The danger isn’t yet over,” he said. “It’s still possible that we may see the entrenchment of a new normal where liberties and human rights can be encroached upon in the name of public health, without people objecting.
“COVID-19 in this sense could be like what September 11 was for civil liberties.”
Well James, I have clicked on that link that you so kindly provided and I must admit that it is probably decades since I have ever seen such a cringeworthy, embarrassing, nationalistic, jingoistic ill-informed piece of propaganda. If I did not know that there are actually some people who take this nonsense seriously then I would have taken it for satire.
James, by putting up this link you have done a much better job than I ever could have possibly achieved with my earlier post, to show why governments need to enact strong legislation to keep the crazies in our midst under control in times of a crisis.
By the way, I would suggest to all readers that you do as I did, and watch this fatuous drivel. But be prepared for 4 min and 7 sec of some of the worst hyperbole and claptrap that you will have encountered for a long time.
Then again, looking at things on the positive side, perhaps this is James’s attempt at some sort of dark humor.
As distinct from an abusive, ignorant dupe with whom no-one needs engage?
We’d been warned by the experts that a pandemic was inevitable, and that we needed a plan. We had no plan. The next pandemic is also inevitable and we need a plan. We still have no plan. The reason that Covid19 caused chaos, and mistakes to be made, was that we had no plan. eg Quarantine stations – nope, still none. So of course politicians, charged with keeping us safe, were running around like headless chooks trying to react to every new piece of information. Not knowing who or what to believe. Transmissability? Who knew. Death rate? Don’t know. How does it spread? Duh.
Criticism should be levelled at the absence of any plan. Complaining about losing your freedoms is a bit like complaining of being cured of cancer, to my mind.
There’s a great phrase for this, “organised irresponsibility “. Historian Adam Tooze writes of this rather well in his new overview of the pandemic “Shutdown”.
Thanks for your article, Amber.
I don’t pay too much attention to the kind of absurd and ill-informed nonsense uttered by the Americans that you begin your piece with. The United States is now a country which is more like a giant lunatic asylum than a world super-power. The inane comments made by imbeciles like Candace Owens and Joe Rogan are an embarrassment.
Now, turning our attention to where it really matters, that is to Australia, I can only say that I fully favor increased police, government and military powers in times of an emergency such as a pandemic. My reasons for feeling this way are clear. During an emergency such as the on-going COVID crisis, we see a worryingly large number of people who behave in a totally irresponsible and selfish manner. For instance, some people completely deny the existence of the virus, others deny the efficacy of the available vaccines, others lack the wherewithal to ‘last the distance’ when it comes to lockdowns and other restrictions necessary to minimize exposure to, and infection by, the virus. For others, it was too much trouble to even wear and mask in public.
During the difficult time before we had a vaccine available and for a time when the vaccine was being rolled out to the public, we saw instances of irresponsible behavior by politically and religiously motivated groups. This behavior put the lives of the community in general at serious risk, in addition to prolonging the time required for lockdowns and other forms of COVID restrictions.
Strong measures are required to keep this irresponsible demographic in our midst in check. They literally pose a life-and-death risk to the rest of us.
I have no problem with the “Fortress Australia” model. I hate to think what the infection and death rate would have been without this approach. Also, “Fortress Australia” brought the immigration “Ponzi Scheme” and the overseas student racket, to a screaming halt. How good was that?!!
I think Amber that, with respect, you are introducing a little of your own hyperbole into the discussion with a comment such as”
“How did Australia quietly become a country with such emboldened police, government and military powers?”
Of course, mistakes will be made in the administration of laws that are designed to protect the community. This is inevitable. We must do our best to ensure that the incidence of such errors is minimized and that mistakes are quickly rectified where possible.
Some people seem to forget that the military are involved in helping the Australian community to cope during crises such as bushfires and floods. We do not see the kind of hysteria referred to in your article associated with the military being involved in those instances.
Amber, I also find your arguments about ‘marginalized communities’ to be most unconvincing. If these communities were encouraged to learn about and understand the culture and practices of the country that they have decided to make their home, then this problem is likely to be non-existent. Then those ‘corrosive effects on Australia’s political culture’ described by the ever critical and fault finding Tim Soutphommasane, would be non-existent.
Finally, I would simply mention that the ‘proof of the pudding’ is in the numbers of deaths per capita for COVID. A quick check on Wikipedia reveals that Australia is at position 148 out of 195 listed countries in terms of deaths per million from COVID. There are few developed countries with a better record. New Zealand is of course, such a country. We have a death rate of 68 per million, New Zealand’s number is 5 per million. And just for interest, the United States is 18 out of 195 with a death rate of 2,248 per million.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COVID-19_pandemic_death_rates_by_country
I know where I would rather be living and what sort of government restrictions I favor to remain safe.
Americans know very little about us hence the BS that people like Candace Owens come out. While there are some obvious similarities, there are also stark differences. One difference being, the USA was formed as a result of a Revolutionary War but the NSW/Sydney colony was established as a military base. Apparently Sydney currently operates on the ‘Rum Corp’ basis : lots of grace and favour handouts! When I hear or read BS from an American about us, I wonder 1. have they ever been here and 2. do they know what ‘borders on Stupid?’ (Answer is , Canada and Mexico). Disclosure : one of my great xxxx grandad’s fought against the British in American Revolutionary War. Thank goodness some of his grandsons caught gold fever and settled in Victoria Australia.
‘come out with’.
“Americans know very little about us hence the BS that people like Candace Owens come out.”
Maybe so, but Owens would post such material regardless of what she or her audience really knows. The whole point of her and the swarms of similar outrage merchants is to be outrageous, extreme, deranged. She has to attract attention at any cost and this is a great example. It has worked so well she has gone well beyond her typical audience.
She would get nowhere posting considered and informed views. This is how the laughably mis-named ‘social media’ works – it ‘floods the zone with siht’ and poisons all discourse.
James I must thank you for taking the time to read my post and then for making such a considered and logical response. I must warn you though, flattery (all those kind words in your first paragraph) will get you no-where!
I must admit too James I found the logic in your sentence;
“Australia has had a low death rate only because we’ve been isolated & locked up.”
to be indisputable. I was trying to convey the same message in my post but you have expressed my message far more eloquently and succinctly than I could ever have.
Most others would probably regard the rest of your post as a poor attempt to obfuscate, confuse and in general, to ‘muddy the waters’. But far be it for me to make such an accusation.
Cheers.
“Australia has had a low death rate only because we’ve been isolated and locked up”. Exactly. It worked. Death rates from flu and pneumonia have also plummeted. Deaths from motor vehicle accidents are also down. Other deaths have gone on as usual, but our ICU units have not been swamped. Lockdowns are great, but are best put in place immediately on the diagnosis of the first patient. NSW and Vic were too late with theirs, under duress from people such as yourself demanding their ‘freedom’ at any cost to others and thereby causing protracted lockdowns. I think it’s called shooting yourself in the foot.
By the way, I’m not a fascist either. Neither am I a total tool, at least not since I had my prostate out, which even precludes wanking. I assume you still have your prostate.
I was worried when I read “Lockdowns are great”, but then you allayed my concerns: “By the way, I’m not a fascist”.
Great rejoinder Robert – I totally agree with you. A couple of additional points: Being an island we had a natural advantage in combatting the virus and our international border lockdown was one of our most effective weapons. Second, at the beginning of the outbreak, governments had little knowledge regarding the lethality and infectiousness of the virus, hence absent any effective treatments or vaccines, the only prudent response to protect the community is to go fast and hard on enforcing the full gamut of preventative measures, including lockdowns. Amber also conflates the responses of the federal and state governments – most would argue that the federal government response, other than slamming the external border, was usually too slow, muddled and often ineffectual. The vaccine supply bungles and the covidsafe app being cases in point.the states did the heavy lifting and we owe the premiers of the Labor states in particular a debt of gratitude.
Thanks for your supporting comments there, Sidney. I appreciate them.
I also agree entirely with the excellent points that you make. No-one wants lockdowns and restrictions on our freedom of movement etc. But most people want to take a chance with severe illness or death even less.
James, these “fascist” diktats (note: pls check your definition of fascism; this ain’t it) are to ensure really rapid decision and hence response to a threat like this pandemic; all experience now indicates that speed of response is of the essence.
Also please check up on your definitions of “flu” and “pneumonia”. The flu is a single infectious viral disease, like COVID-19 (but much less infectious and much less virulent; did you know that?). Pneumonia can sometimes result from the flu, but also a host of other viruses, bacteria and fungi. You elide “flu” and “flu and pnuemonia” either from ignorance or, as did the Fin., by a desire to get the very high numbers to justify already-held views. In fact the death toll from flu in Australia varies year to year from a few hundred to a few thousand; only once (in 1919-1920) did it go much higher. This means that we can be pretty confidant that the flu, even when left to its own devices (ie without lockdowns, like every year before 2020, and including your favorite year, 2019), will not go stratospheric so we can be confident that the medical system will not be overwhelmed by the flu. This is not the case with SARS-CoV-2 as shown by numerous examples overseas. You note an early mis-analyzed Swedish local study but fail to note the most recent and most complete Swedish national analysis by a government-appointed commission which highlighted their own mismanagement. Since this was publicized widely in the last week I presume your failure to mention this was intentional, no doubt because it’s conclusion is at odds with your views. It is of interest that the Swedes did in fact try to achieve a de facto lockdown, but voluntarily by relying on the fabled compliance of their population. They probably did better in this approach than anyone else (except other Nordics) could have done, but comparison with Scandi-neighbours showed the inadequacy of this approach compared to mandated lockdowns. And, in case you have forgotten, if Australia did as Sweden did, we would expect about 30,000 deaths by now, instead of one-twentieth of that figure. Would that be a better outcome?
Some excellent points there Donald in that post of yours. From my perspective at least, I could not agree with you more.
James has his way of seeing the world. The colorful epithets that he cast in my direction in his earlier post do not worry me at all. Of course, like just most people, I prefer it when others agree with my way of seeing the world. It is all part of the ‘lively and robust’ exchanges that often occur here at Crikey. It is great to have a forum where we can openly and honestly exchange views.
Unfortunately that ‘substance’ is toxic.
Of course, James 1. If you say so.
Bit worried about where this article was going, just after the first couple of paragraphs, holding up Candace Owens and Joe Rogan as people we should be listening to.
The situation plays a big part in what has happened all around the World.
We are in a Pandemic, and most Countries, including Australia were ill prepared, with Governments trying to act quickly and decisively to stop the spread of the Virus, without any previous experience or knowledge on how to handle it.
With everyone relying heavily on Health advisors, mainly epidemiologists, backed up by enforcement by various means.
Not just in Australia, but all around the World, mistakes were made by various Governments, some worse than others, but all arising out of well intentioned actions.
There has been a lot of discussion around whether Restrictions, Lock downs, Border closures, etc. went too far in Australia.
But the answer lies in some favorable outcomes. Australia has had one of the lowest Death Rates amongst larger Countries. And at the moment, the Country is starting to open up with much less lingering Covid cases than elsewhere around the World.
However, there is always two sides to a coin, as there has been severe damage done to our Economy, which can be fixed over time, and in a significant amount of cases, to people’s mental health. But despite the alarmist attitudes of some, Suicide rates do not appear to have risen.
All in all, I think Australia has managed the Pandemic exceptionally well.
We certainly do not need advice from anyone in America, a Country that has had one of the worst outcomes in relation to Deaths, or sensationalist, conspiratorial reporters like Owens or Rogan.
Australia did not manage the Pandemic well. The various States and Territories that form Australia did however manage the Pandemic well.
Australia’s liberal democracy is threatened much more by the prosecution of whistle-blowers (Assange, McBride, Witness K, Collaery, etc) than public health measures to protect the vulnerable.