Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Defense Minister Richard Marles are trying to gain formal support for the AUKUS deal from Labor stalwarts. This agreement caused tension within the party due to concerns about alleged attempts to suppress dissent during the conference.
An internal memo from the Left faction states that only delegates, and not proxies or conference observers, will be able to attend Left faction meetings. This raised concerns among party figures who questioned the leadership. Anthony D’Adam, a member of the Left for New South Wales, expressed surprise at the exclusion of proxies, noting that this had not been the case in previous conferences. He stressed the importance of boldly representing his faction and introducing ambitious policies to counter the threat from the Green Party.
The head of the firefighters’ union, Peter Marshall, who has criticized the AUKUS deal, accused the Socialist Left and the party hierarchy of trying to suppress dissent. He criticized the requirement to submit a declaration of interest form before participating in the debates, considering it a restriction of democracy within the party.
Defense Minister Richard Marles worked behind the scenes to gain support for the AUKUS deal. He stressed the need for Labor to establish itself as the better party to manage defence, citing historical examples of the contribution of Labor leaders in this area. Marles and the party’s parliamentary faction are trying to gain support for the statement, which supports AUKUS, nuclear propulsion, the safe storage of nuclear waste, the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the Rarotonga Treaty on nuclear weapons in the Pacific.
The debate on the AUKUS agreement at the conference is expected to be divided and the amendment condemning the agreement will probably be rejected.
Source : mundurowe.info
