Bob Brown (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I have a senator injecting ‘world government’. We have a world government in the United Nations, which this country took a role in establishing. What I do not understand—and maybe I will make this a matter for some more deliberative debate in the future, Mr President—is why, each time global democracy is brought up in this place, both the big parties oppose it. We go to war over supporting democracy in countries elsewhere around the world. The opposition certainly supported the invasion of Iraq on the basis of extending democracy to that country. When it comes to a principle of democracy being given to the near seven billion people on the planet, it seems that there is no willingness to support that ethic of democracy whatever. I find that inexplicable, so at a future time in this Senate I will move for a debate on the matter so that we can evince whatever the reason can be for this widespread opposition to democracy when it comes to a planetary point of view.