Two weeks after our extraordinary election result, we are still awaiting an outcome.
The most common view in Canberra is that enough of the independents will support Julia Gillard to enable her to form a government, but the Coalition is fighting back every inch of the way.
Whichever way it goes, there are uncertain times ahead, and even an early election may not resolve this political impasse.
There is, however, a positive side to what has been happening. I have in the past lamented the stifling impact of the tight control exercised by party leaderships.
The emergence of independents with bargaining power may well lead to a weakening of that party discipline so that all parliamentarians, including those belonging to parties, can act more independently and put their electorates first.
I recall, many years ago, listening to the frustrations of great liberals like Senator Alan Missen and Don Chipp, who felt that tight party control was seriously undermining the democratic process in Parliament.
An example of its stifling impact occurred when Indonesia launched its invasion of East Timor in 1975, killing six newsmen from Australia in the first days. A number of parliamentarians were deeply troubled as the brutality of the invasion unfolded, but party discipline silenced most of them.
Today independents like Rob Oakeshott are expressing concerns at inhumane proposals to "stop the boats". Their concerns should inspire others to speak out on a matter risking a grave violation of those human rights conventions Australia has accepted an obligation to observe.
Clearly party discipline, as it is sometimes exercised, is really a denial of a democratic right that should be an essential part of our parliamentary process.
Andrew Wilkie could now play an important role. He impressed me when we met years ago. His career as an intelligence analyst was being shattered when he spoke out against our involvement in the invasion of Iraq, now accepted as an illegal act.
We spoke to a meeting of concerned citizens in the Illawarra on how our misguided loyalty to Washington was undermining our independence and involving us in questionable and costly military operations. I, too, was an intelligence analyst on Asian issues when our Vietnam involvement was taking shape.
The Iraq war is an affair that our politicians should reflect on. The situation there may have been of close concern to the US and Europe, but it never really posed a strategic threat to Australia. Our blind loyalty to Washington sucked us into participation in Middle East conflicts that have cost us tens of billions of dollars, as well as 21 soldiers' lives.
The military intervention had catastrophic consequences for the Iraqis, costing between 100,000 and 200,000 civilian lives. It seriously destabilised the Middle East between Syria and India, increasing rather than decreasing the threat to our security.
Andrew Wilkie's courageous stand cost him dearly, but as the facts finally revealed in British and US reports, we were deceived into engaging in an act of aggression.
It is refreshing that Wilkie is now in a position to speak out on an operation that so disturbed the region that it has led to many of the citizens of Afghanistan to abandon all hope of peace and security and flee to places like Australia.
It is refreshing that Wilkie has now been elected to a position where he can make use of his skills in order to lift the vision of our Government, leading to a stronger emphasis on our humanitarian obligations.
Email a friend