To clarify the exceptionally poorly-written legalese, here (I would have posted the other two pages, but image posts here don’t work like that. You’ll have to look on the Tweet link!), this letter, poorly-written though it may be, states that you are not allowed to criticize the government, or “individual politicians”, in an open forum, unless you directly label such criticism as ”electoral materials”…
Also, spot the massive syntax error, if you would, that makes it apparent some poor intern drafted this as a quickly-written threat, and probably little more… 🙄
Now, I’m no constitutional expert, but three things, here: 1) I’ve worked for Electoral Commissions, before, though not in Victoria. While they might like to think they do, especially in an election year, they absolutely do not have the power to issue this fine, and it is an “empty threat, as it were.
2) This sort of thing is absolutely not in the purview of the Electoral Commissioner. This is not something that “we”, as (former) staff there, are in the habit of doing, or writing up. So for this to have been sent, it has to have occurred at the express pressing of a politician, or their staffers. That, in itself, should contravene the “electoral act”, and is highly dubious…
And 3) Democratic “norms” expressly exist for a reason… If you ban dissent, or in any way make it illegal, as this does, then you are no longer a “democracy”, and should absolutely be called out by the international community as such.
They did it with Hungary. They did it with Poland. They did it with Rwanda. They did it with Bolivia. If this is Australia, now, and this does not get called out, then the “international community” has failed. I’m not saying I agree with three out of four of those (Rwanda, yes. Arguably Bolivia, yes.), but that isn’t the point, here. The bald-faced hypocrisy is.
Look, the last week has been completely blackpilling for the supposed “rule of law” in this country, but this should be almost as worrying as Djokovic was. I was under the impression “we” were still masquerading as a democracy. This letter clearlu calls that into question, as I just outlined…
At least for the state of Victoria. 🤦🏻♂️
Is there not some (presumably ignored) clause that limits this to actual candidates, then, or does the Australian state o Victoria simply periodically turn itself into a totalitarian hellhole, on the promise that if the population is good they'll be given their rights back?
Tweet link, as I already posted elsewhere, before:
https://mobile.twitter.com/andrewbogut/status/1483390779095916544?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1483390779095916544%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fkotakuinaction2.win%2Fp%2F141F1DeB9k%2Fyou-wondered-why-i-worry-what-i-%2Fc%2F
To clarify the exceptionally poorly-written legalese, here (I would have posted the other two pages, but image posts here don’t work like that. You’ll have to look on the Tweet link!), this letter, poorly-written though it may be, states that you are not allowed to criticize the government, or “individual politicians”, in an open forum, unless you directly label such criticism as ”electoral materials”…
Also, spot the massive syntax error, if you would, that makes it apparent some poor intern drafted this as a quickly-written threat, and probably little more… 🙄
Now, I’m no constitutional expert, but three things, here: 1) I’ve worked for Electoral Commissions, before, though not in Victoria. While they might like to think they do, especially in an election year, they absolutely do not have the power to issue this fine, and it is an “empty threat, as it were. 2) This sort of thing is absolutely not in the purview of the Electoral Commissioner. This is not something that “we”, as (former) staff there, are in the habit of doing, or writing up. So for this to have been sent, it has to have occurred at the express pressing of a politician, or their staffers. That, in itself, should contravene the “electoral act”, and is highly dubious… And 3) Democratic “norms” expressly exist for a reason… If you ban dissent, or in any way make it illegal, as this does, then you are no longer a “democracy”, and should absolutely be called out by the international community as such.
They did it with Hungary. They did it with Poland. They did it with Rwanda. They did it with Bolivia. If this is Australia, now, and this does not get called out, then the “international community” has failed. I’m not saying I agree with three out of four of those (Rwanda, yes. Arguably Bolivia, yes.), but that isn’t the point, here. The bald-faced hypocrisy is.
Look, the last week has been completely blackpilling for the supposed “rule of law” in this country, but this should be almost as worrying as Djokovic was. I was under the impression “we” were still masquerading as a democracy. This letter clearlu calls that into question, as I just outlined… At least for the state of Victoria. 🤦🏻♂️
Is there not some (presumably ignored) clause that limits this to actual candidates, then, or does the Australian state o Victoria simply periodically turn itself into a totalitarian hellhole, on the promise that if the population is good they'll be given their rights back?