10th April 1998
12 Bunowen Str
Ferny Grove
Right Honourable John W Howard
Prime Minister of Australia
Parliament House
Canberra ACT 2600
Dear Prime Minister,
You may just get away with selling Telstra, but there will be no way you will escape the wrath of the Australian people if you sell out Australia to the Multinational/Transnational Corporations by signing the Multilateral Agreement on Investment.
Prime Minister, the MAI is not about trade. The MAI is a blatant surrender of the nation’s economic and political sovereignty to the unconscionable greed of financial manipulators. It will make Australia the “village idiot” of the so-called global village.
Responsible people and groups around Australia, including leaders of most Christian Churches, have already expressed grave concern at the secretive nature of the negotiations and the lack of adequate public disclosure of the full text of the treaty. The sneak-thief approach is a cause for great concern.
Many, including the writer, would regard the Australian Government’s signing of the Treaty without adequate information, public scrutiny and debate a clear mandate via a referendum as an act of treason against the Australian people.
Prime Minister, I assure you it will be an act of political suicide if you proceed, as you seem intent on doing, with this Treaty in May of this year. As you created a precedent for the introduction of retrospective legislation which resulted in criminal charges and subsequent penal action, let it be made clear to you the danger that will confront you when the Australian people realise the full and sorry consequences of this treacherous treaty.
It is not beyond the bounds of possibility that a future loyal Australian Government will emerge and extract the most severe, even extreme penalties for such treasonable conduct.
Please note: This communication is in the form of an “Open Letter” and I reserve the right to circulate it widely, unless you give a prompt written assurance and make a public statement by the 30th April 1998 that the MAI Treaty will not be signed on behalf of the Australian people without their clearly expressed consent at a referendum to be conducted concurrently with the next federal general election.
Yours sincerely,
Charles J Connelly