A national push for peace is gaining momentum in the south-west with campaigners keen to establish a local Independent and Peaceful Australia Network (IPAN) group.
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IPAN Victorian branch co-ordinator Shirley Winton was in the region on Tuesday to gauge interest in a south-west group.
Ms Winton said IPAN was a national network of more than 60 peace, church, community and union organisations who came together about five years ago to promote an independent Australian foreign policy.
She said the permanent basing of US Marines in Darwin, rising tensions in the South China Sea and a planned spend of $200 billion on defence over the next decade were among the current concerns.
“Our main concern is to keep Australia out of US wars. We have real concerns that Australia’s foreign policy is just tagging along with the US and we’re very servile to the US,” Ms Winton said.
“Our view is that by Australia continuing that kind of unquestioning support and following the US is actually contributing to instability and the threat of global war.
“IPAN has a very strong policy that Australia needs its own self-defence, there’s no question about that… but the way $200 billion is being invested over the next 10 years, it’s not in self-defence, it’s actually in participating in offensive wars.”
South-west women Julie Hart and Gillian Blair attended the organisation’s recent national conference and came away thinking that a local branch would help ignite discussion at a local level. “We want people to know more about these things,” Ms Blair said.
Ms Hart said global conflicts had far-reaching effects.
“The pollution caused by war and the destruction of homes and cities is just terrible to watch on TV, and it’s every night,” she said.
Ms Winton said it was important to talk about the issues. “At the moment there is no public debate, there is no discussion,” she said.
“One of the main tasks for IPAN is to create space for that public debate.”
For more information, or to be part of a south-west IPAN group, contact Ms Hart on 0418 106 375 or Ms Winton on 0417 456 001.