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PARLIAMENT OF AUSTRALIA 4COOPA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES PARLIAMENT HOUSE CANBERRA, A.C.T. 2600 TEL. (06) 277 4048, 277 4419 FAX. (06) 277 4990HON. ANDREW PEACOCK, M.P.MEMBER FOR KOOYONG SHADOW MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRSLEVEL 1690 COLLINS STREET MELBOURNE, VIC. 3000 TEL (03) 650 3455 FAX. (03) 650 5115 PRESS RELEASE BY HON. ANDREW PEACOCK, MP

SHADOW MINISTER FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS

GOVERNMENT MISHANDLES CANDIDATURES FOR INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATIONS

The Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs, Hon. Andrew Peacock, said today that the failure of Australia to secure the election of its nominee to the position of Director General of the United Nation's Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) raised serious questions about the Government's appetite for international candidatures.

Mr Peacock said that Dr Geoff Miller's credentials for the job had been excellent and it was very disappointing that he had not been elected. But the expense of the campaign in support of Dr Miller's candidacy had been very high, estimated by some to be

as much as $2 million. Nor were the costs of the FAO campaign solely financial. Australia had clearly traded off a lot in other areas in order to obtain even the 72 votes it did receive, including, for example, Barry Jones' potential candidacy for the position of President of the Executive Board of UNESCO. In the

light of such costs the Government should review its approach to pursuing high level candidatures, Mr Peacock said.

Of course it was important for Australians to be represented in senior positions in international organisations, commensurate with our standing in world affairs. But the Government tries too hard too often, Mr Peacock said. And there is a feeling abroad,

especially amongst developing countries, that our appetite for these candidatures is excessive.

In future, the Government should more carefully weigh the likelihood of success against the associated costs, taking into account the extent of possible international embarrassment associated with the potential failure of such high profile campaigns.

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Mr Peacock said that the Miller candidacy had been given the

highest priority in our diplomatic endeavours (including Ministerial travel agendas) over the last 6-9 months. When was the last time for example, Mr Peacock asked, that an Australian

ex-Cabinet Minister had visited Burundi? It was astonishing that the Prime Minister had written to virtually all his counterparts seeking votes for the Australian candidate. The Prime Minister doesn't even write to all G7 leaders prior to G7 meetings, Mr Peacock said.

Australia should only pursue candidatures that it can realistically win, Mr Peacock said. From the outset, Dr Miller's chances were never assessed as outstanding even by the Government and despite his strong personal credentials he was only given an outside chance.

Mr Peacock said that the FAO was also a pretty long shot, especially given that an Australian, James Ingram, was head of the associated body, the World Food Program, until only very recently. Australia should not assume it has a monopoly in this area. After all, we won the Olympic bid. And Australia had already succeeded in having Justice Elizabeth Evatt elected to the position of Chairperson of the UNESCO Forum of Reflection. How much more did the Government really think it could win?

Mr Peacock said that despite the expense entailed by the campaign, in the final analysis the Government botched it. It would have been relatively straightforward during the recent visit to Australia by President Aylwin of Chile (the first ever

such presidential visit) to have sought Chile's support, in the event of their candidate dropping out of the final round of voting, in return for possible Australian Government support for Chile's entry to membership of APEC - for which Chile's economic

credentials are excellent. Mr Peacock said that in his view Chile should be admitted to APEC along with Mexico and Papua New Guinea at the forthcoming Seattle meetings. The Government's shortsightedness on the issue reveals a glaring lack of coordination within the various strands of foreign and trade policy, Mr Peacock said.

Mr Peacock added that the emphasis Senator Evans places on international candidatures and on Australia's ability to influence the multilateral agenda has the potential to influence Senator Evans' thinking on the domestic agenda. Mr Peacock noted that Senator Evans had reportedly opposed the subsuming of the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO) within CSIRO on the grounds that this would jeopardise Australia's seat on the International Atomic Energy Agency. It would be rather disturbing if the Government's lust for seats in

international organisations was to drive the domestic reform agenda.

Melbourne, 11 November 1993

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT JANE DRAKE -BROCKMAN ON (06) 277 4419

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