Q+A: Modi & Minority Groups

uh hello as someone who upholds their freedom of speech and right to religion my question goes to the panel was it wrong for the Australian government to quickly Embrace Prime Minister Modi at a time when the Indian government is overseeing a rise in authoritarianism and prosecution of minority groups Tim Watts well look Australia and India are great friends and we're comprehensive strategic partners and we share a lot of interests so you know Prime Minister Modi was out here visiting meeting with prime minister albanesi they did a lot of work on trade and investment education green energy strategic cooperation defense cooperation but I just say that with respect to India and human rights in India I mean India is the biggest democracy in the world it contains multitudes it's not a monolith and you only have to look at recent election results in Karnataka in Tamil Nadu or in West Bengal where I was the week before last to see that you know India can't be defined by any one thing so while we had a really rich bilateral agenda when Prime Minister Modi was out here human rights issues are a frequent topic of discussion between our countries but when we raise those topics of discussion we're conscious that no country is perfect on human rights Australia is not perfect on human rights but we do expect all countries to protect and promote human rights and when we raise those issues with India we polarized them directly and we raise them privately because we think that's the most effective way to Advocate with a friend on these issues okay they can be friends and they certainly were and the Prime Minister visited Australia it was a significant moment but did the Prime Minister go a little overboard did it was It was kind of Next Level wasn't it the level of welcome that the Prime Minister Modi received well I think the relationship between Australia and India has never been stronger well if this was a Bruce Springsteen gag to be fair um that was a reference to the level of Applause that uh that Prime Minister Modi got at Kudos Arena I have to say that they read my name out at the arena as well and I didn't get quite the same Ovation it was polite you know I'll take it um but look I mean you know Prime Minister Modi and prime minister Albanese have met six times the last 12 months that is a record between our Nations it's a really significant time we share interest we share a perspective in the way that the indo-pacific should work Jen is it fair enough look Modi hasn't a plight say that they are the biggest democracy in the world but that that mantle is at risk we're seeing an increasing Crackdown on journalists on lawyers on activists the criminalization of people who do work like me I've got friends and colleagues who are constant risk of criminalization and arrest for doing the very same work that I do we're seeing increasing discrimination against Christian and Muslim minorities and our relationship with India cannot be at the cost of Human Rights and I share the concern of many of the Indian Australian Community here about the way that Modi was received and I would like to see the Australian government I think the Australian government should be taking a firmer stance when it comes to human rights in India James your Eric of expertise's diplomacy indigenous diplomacy do you think that Anthony Albanese could have handled this visit differently yeah look I mean if I've got that kind of reception already got from my friends I'd already have have a lot better friendships with some of them um I think yeah look I mean there is a room for private negotiation private discussion I think between nations such as India and ourselves but there also needs to be room for public condemnation where that exists and I think in India we're seeing a lot of examples especially very recently with opposition leaders potentially being jailed to prevent them from running in elections like that's very concerning and you know we may be friends with India we are good friends with India but if if your friend is exhibiting toxic Behavior you don't just let them get away with it and invite them to your house and throw them a big party you call them out on it publicly and and privately why do you need to do it publicly I think it sets a message sorry sends a message that we we as Australia we are an international actor that has some standards that we have a level of behavior that we should ascribe to and of course we don't always ascribe to that here in this country we have a lot of problems with indigenous people and human rights and Tim alluded to some of that stuff and it's entirely true I I know that firsthand is entirely true but it doesn't mean we shouldn't be trying to reflect better Behavior overseas as well as we're trying to reflect better Behavior at home Kevin look I'm going to go two for two and agree with Tim on this PK I um look the relationship with India has got gone from strength to strength over the last five to ten years we signed the economic cooperation agreement with them when we're in government the new government's now going to the comprehensive agreement and what that's doing with the quad as well which we initiated is that's making the friendship and the relationship between us stronger and that is a good thing and a great thing for us on a number of facets there a democracy like us as well that being said I certainly acknowledge no country and as Tim alluded to we're not a perfect country um India aren't a perfect country no country is but if you're taking an issue with a country and make and take a message to them where there's a strong relationship that message will be better heard than if you don't if you have a weak relationship so I think the fact we're building the relationship and it's getting stronger means we can go to with them to other messages so you were comfortable with the way that the Prime Minister handled this I thought I thought the Prime Minister and the way the whole thing was handled was excellent well I've been following Mr modi's rock star tours around the world and yeah this guy he sold out Madison Square Garden like he was Bruce Springsteen and um and I see even here he got a well-attended reception and the thing is I I mean I've traveled extensively through the subcontinent as part of these book tour after the book and uh it's it's very curious The View because everyone wants to talk to me about their personal dystopia wherever I am whether I'm in Bangladesh or Pakistan but in India I go to these literary events and they're usually in these plush palatial settings and it's all the literary types the the writers the journalists the so-called intelligencia who Regale me saying you know Mr Modi is a fascist talk about the crimes of of the past and say you know we're very worried about the slippery slope he's taking India on but then after the event I get in the taxi and I sit there and after I've exhausted talking cricket with the taxi driver the question comes what do you think of my prime minister and the only sensible answer to that is well what do you think of your prime minister and uh and the answer is invariably oh great man you know India is strong now and we're a player on the global stage and we have a strong lead and I'm no statistician but I believe there's more taxi drivers than there are literary types and so I think for For Better or For Worse um yeah we're stuck with Mr Modi um but doesn't worry you the the creeping anti-democratic moments that we've seen there the rating of the BBC offices are these moments that you think do they send you a chilling effect are you worried about them the thing is we're used to this kind of thing and um I I can again look at if I look at the last phase of Sri Lanka's War um we very clearly turn towards China and turned our back on the west and the human rights organizations to finish this war and um the the thinking even amongst Colombo Intelligentsia was well you know at least the Chinese they don't care what you do in your backyard they'll sell you the hardware it's all about business so-called mutually beneficial we don't read the fine print but um and this and when these allegations Sri Lanka's uh you know had human rights allegations from all France and the tendency the pushback is very predictable and very obvious and it is well how can America lecture us about human rights how can the British Empire do that and that's why maybe we're having these small countries like Sri Lanka going towards China because we know that China is not going to make those statements and I do feel that you know this is all what about tree obviously but the reason that argument has teeth is because we all know that these principles are not applied across the board the West will quite happily do business with despotic regimes that have scant a regard for human rights and inconsistency means that people don't trust the system well it's the question of you know you'll do trade arms trades with the likes of Saudi Arabia and Israel and human rights will not be on that agenda but yet maybe South Asia is a soft target and and that's this is not glossing over our human rights records but I think it it the the argument lacks credibility that way and there will be pushback and I think when you're a trade party and I don't envy your your job having to do this either publicly or but it is akin to going to someone's house and criticizing their furniture and and the curtains and it's not the best way to do business so um that's why we're kind of skeptical on this kind of pushback

Channel: abcqanda

Views: 16,137

Keywords: Q&A, QandA, auspol, australian politics, politics, abc, abc news, Q+A, patricia karvelas, modi, india, albanese, human rights, jen robinson, freedom of speech, authoritarianism, minority groups

Id: 1XSPC0GkD0M

Length: 9min 1sec (541 seconds)

Published: Mon May 29 2023