Making Community Democracy Work Conference Resolutions
More than 150 people from across the state attended the inaugural Making Community Democracy Work Conference in Wollongong. Representatives attended from Eurobedella, Shoalhaven, Shellharbour, Southern Highlands, Blue Mountains, Sydney and the North Coast. Attendees expressed outrage at the level of corruption and how machine politics has destroyed democracy. Keynote speakers John Hatton and Jack Mundey both stated that they believed that the current NSW Government is the most corrupt government since the Askin Government in the 1960s.
The Conference expressed its concern regarding the lack of action from the Independent Commission Against Corruption.
The Conference resolved to work with other communities to strengthen community democracy, whereby all citizens have greater rights and responsibilities in how their localities and cities are governed. The Conference showcased how community democracy can work when committed and honest people attempt to address common challenges.
Wollongong Against Corruption released the draft Wollongong Charter for Ethics and Good Governance at the Conference. The Charter is to be circulated widely to build support for new approaches to governance in NSW. The final Charter will be launched at a public rally in Wollongong on 13 September organised by WAC to protest the destruction of local democracy. New networks are being established across the state to fight for community empowerment, participation, transparency and accountability.
WAC will work with other groups to implement the Charter and the Conference resolutions.
Resolutions Adopted
1 In recognition of widespread public concern this conference expresses its strong concerns about the Independent Commission Against Corruption:
- About delays in the final report of ICAC and that all allegations have not yet been investigated.
- For failing its charter to adequately investigate corruption especially that related to political donations and distortion of planning process as provided for in the EP&A Act.
- Its failure to adequately implement, monitor and publicly expose unsafe practice resulting in a climate conductive to corruption.
This conference calls upon the NSW Government to significantly increase resourcing of the ICAC and encourage more vigorous investigations of alleged corrupt behaviour.
2 This Conference endorses the vision of the Wollongong Charter for Ethics and Good Governance.
3 This Conference insists that all communities have democratic rights. We call on the NSW Government to restore the democratic rights of the citizens of Wollongong and Shellharbour. We urge the Minister for Local Government to set election dates in Wollongong and Shellharbour and all other local government areas by no later than March 2009 and to work with newly elected Councils to strengthen democracy and to implement new corruption prevention measures.
4 We will hold a rally in the Wollongong City Mall on Saturday 13 September 2008. In the mall:
- there will be a petition to call for a Royal Commission into corruption.
- a release of the Wollongong Against Corruption Charter.
- a call for greater protection of whistle blowers.
- a call for a Section 14 of the Local Government Act poll on the mall remaining as a pedestrian mall.