I suspect none of the major parties federally or in any of the states and territories could entirely escape the accusation of being a “boys club”, but I’m very interested to see – for the first time I can think of – gendered cultures within a political party being raised as an election issue in Australia. The WA Labor Party is running a radio ad which you can listen to here. The ad highlights the disparity in female representation between the two major parties, and it’s reminds voters of some of the appalling behaviour associated with former leader (and current Shadow Treasurer) Troy Buswell. But aside from the ikkiness of the boy culture exposed by Troy “I did not have intercourse with that quokka” Buswell, there’s clearly something in the accusation – the way that “star” candidate Deirdre Willmott was casually elbowed aside to accommodate the resurrected Colin Barnett really seems to have been appalling from a story in the weekend Fin Review quoting Willmott at length. Apparently Barnett met her two days before, and mentioned nothing, and she wasn’t told what was going on even before the press conference at which Buswell resigned. A range of other female Liberal MPs resigned from the party in the last term, and some are recontesting, with independent Liberal Liz Constable being co-opted into a frontbench role by Barnett to try to soften the damage.
I’d be watching any gender breakdown in the polls in WA very carefully.
Elsewhere: More from William Bowe aka The Poll Bludger for subscribers in Crikey.
It’s quite amazing (surreal, after the relentless taxpayer funded propaganda of the Howard years) here in the West to see a continuous sequence of Labor ads all evening on the commercial channels with nary a Liberal ad to be seen.
While the ads become nauseous after a while, they do amount to a clever strategy in a two week window where little of a local political nature can be heard above the din of the Olympics, Georgia and the Musharraf resignation.
I doubt that the content is seen as clever or attractive to Joe and Josephine Public, but it sure as hell ensures that Labor is the only game in town.
Kim,
There has been spirited discussion on this matter over at Poll Bludger, especially by Conservative Posters who have attempted to equate Buswell’s behaviour to the alleged Shirt lifting Karaoke incident involving the Premier.
http://www.pollbludger.com/915
You don’t need a leatherman to tell you which way the wind blows when you have results like the NT, the UK by-elections and McCain catching up to our lord and savior in the mother country. So whether the ALP creep back in, or get turfed out in WA, in the greater scheme of things democratic socialism is in a serious crisis.
Take G.K Galbraith – please
I should clarify the above by saying that Buswell’s behaviour isn’t as offensive as the Premier’s alleged Shirt-lifting incident, and why the latter wasn’t criticised as much as the former.
Interesting that they choose a young girl for the main character in this ad. I wonder if the main reason was to make blokes think about the ‘what if it was my daughter’ angle(so it’s an ad that appeals to men rather than women exclusively) or whether it was to avoid the ‘scary feminist complaining about things’ vibe, which might alienate male voters.
It’s certainly a good thing that this angle is being used, of course, as both parties in future will be sensitive to it. Troy Buswell may in fact end up as the most single most important figure in Western Australian political history when it comes to major parties recruiting female candidates and fighting sexual harassment. Proof that as far as conservatice misogynists are concerned ‘The evil that men do lives after them.’
“Proof that as far as conservatice misogynists are concerned ‘The evil that men do lives after them.’”
AAARGH!!! Iron Maiden earworm attack!!!
Kim are you seriously suggesting that if Deidre Willmott had been say Dean Willmott he would still be the candidate for Cottesloe? Come on.
Putting Barnett in place as a leader is clearly the Libs best chance at victory or defeat mitigation, Deidre Willmott’s gender would have been completely irrelevant to any objective unbiased observer not looking for some “conspiracy”
I read the article. Deirdre Willmott doesn’t seem to agree with you. Perhaps if she’d been Dean Willmott she might have been treated less like an obstacle and actually consulted as to her future and her intentions.
Note to Self: Always include quote in full to avoid aural assault.
(I considered it, but couldn’t work out what ‘good’ would be involved.)
In addition, Kingsley, I very much doubt the female MPs’ resignations from the Liberal Party and the failure to preselect female candidates in winnable seats are solely attributable to Troy Buswell’s “antics”.
It’s also interesting to note that the previous Liberal Party President, Diane Blaine was a strong supporter of Buswell, and stood by him at the height of the original Bra Strapping Scandal.
Benedictus, it happens almost every election campaign that the opposition starts their TV ads only in the last few weeks of the campaign.