It seems like an old face is back in town again, a certain Ms. Pauline Hanson. Although not with the bang that marked her last appearance in the Australian political arena in 1996, her One Party’s success in splitting the votes in the recent Queensland state election has got the Liberals in government more than a little bit worried.
There is no doubt that a person whose views are as radical (some would say racist) as Hanson’s will probably never be the Prime Minister of Australia. Contemporary politics is more an exercise in moderation that anything else; Bill Clinton’s eight years in office was a shining example of how sitting on the fence will get you elected (and re-elected). But it doesn’t mean that there is no place for radical positions. And Hanson’s is certainly that.
In 1996, she came to parliament by complaining that Australia was being “swamped by Asians”. She brought with her a brand of xenophobia and intolerance that surprised nearly everybody – some even argued that Hanson herself was surprised by her success with such an unheard of agenda. Predictably, the backlash against her and her One Nation party by “mainstream Australians” was swift and uncompromising. Come the 1998 election, her star was already waning and it surprised no one when she and her party dropped off the political radar with hardly a whimper.
But now she’s back.
At two state elections last February, she came storming back onto the political scene. Fielding candidates, taking to the pulpit and by basically making a nuisance of herself, she helped the Labor party to defy all predictions in taking Western Australia and Queensland on February 10th and 17th respectively. The incumbent state government composed of a mixed conservative coalition of Liberals and National parties could only walk away with a bloody nose, tails between their legs.
It’s not that Hanson’s One Nations did terribly well. She did pretty bad, actually, only taking 3 seats in Queensland compared to having held 11 seats the last time around. But her real damage to the incumbents lay in the fact that she took her votes from them, thus playing a strong hand in swinging the vote by more than 8% to the Labor party. Thank you very much, Ms Hanson.
When the dust settled, Labor had 66 seats from 89 while the National party held 11 and the Liberals a miserly 3 seats. A landslide by any account.
It’s terribly worrying how Hanson managed to destabilise the proceedings. By firing up her usual rhetoric, barely tempered from what she usually says, she found a niche in the discontentment held by many rural Australians, farmers and agriculturalists mostly, against the Liberals. Living in the outback and far-from-city locales, these Australians feel that they have been left out of the recent economic boom that Australia has been fortunate enough to enjoy. Displeasure is also targeted at how the government seems to have a “favourite child”: the cities and big towns. For example, the recent Olympics was nearly fully played out in Sydney; it is perceived that very little if any of the benefits enjoyed by the Sydney-dians trickled back into the rural folk. Understandably, they are more than a little peeved. It is this emotion that Ms Hanson is carefully using to her advantage.
Will we see a comeback? It is probably a little too soon to make an accurate judgement. So much can yet happen between now and the elections at the end of the year where Prime Minister Howard and Co. have to face the voters again. But unless Messrs Howard and Co. can do something quick to quell the fears of those who seem to be singing to Ms Hanson’s tune, there will certainly be a lot for him to be nervous about. Hanson-rhetoric battered the Liberals and Nationals in Western Australia and Queensland, easily handing victory to the opposition Labor. The rest of Australia is waiting for her.
Appearing in www.renungan.com 13 March 2001
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