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I am paying to fund terrorists

I am paying to fund terrorists.  So are you.

The Australian Newspaper reports that the Australian Government will take $70 million of our taxpayer dollars next year and deliver them to the Palestinian Authority – the one that has just formed an alliance with Hamas.

Last year I wrote to the then Foreign Minister Stephen Smith seeking an assurance that Australian aid money designated for Palestinian aid was not being misappropriated to the extent that it was indirectly (or worse, directly) funding terrorism.

The response I got was a shameful letter full of platitudes, from a departmental staffer. Here is a quote from the letter:

“ Hamas, in its entirety, has been listed as an entity subject to those terrorist asset freezing measures since 21 December 2001. Hamas’s Izz al-din al-Qassam Brigades has also been listed as a terrorist organisation for the purposes of the Criminal Code. The Government’s position on Hamas is clear – it must renounce violence, recognise Israel and commit to peace negotiations.

The Government considers Australia’s aid to the Palestinian Authority to be fully consistent with our obligations under UNSCR 1737. Our aid supports the peace process by helping establish the institutional and governance foundations required for a future viable Palestinian state. This is in everyone’s interests.

The Government is determined to ensure that aid is not inadvertently provided to any terrorist organisations. Australia’s development assistance to the Palestinian Authority is provided through a World Bank administered trust fund, and directly to United Nations agencies and international and Australian Non Government Organisations. The agreements between the Government and these partners include counter-terrorism clauses, and accountability mechanisms, to ensure that this money benefits the people for whom it is intended.”

Not satisfied with above response I wrote back.  I wanted to know what audit measures were in place to ensure that the Government’s objective, undertaken by third parties lacking in credibility, made sure that my taxpayer dollars were not funding terrorism.  I wanted to know what the counter-terrorism clauses referred to were, and what substance and detail was included within “accountability mechanisms” that were cited.  The Governement was either unable to, or unwilling to, provide this information.  In short, Australian foriegn aid gets provided to international agencies for disbursement.  There seems to be little to no control over how this money is aquitted and applied.

The reality of middle eastern politics is changing very rapidly.  The Palestinian Authority has made a clear choice to refuse negotiations and embrace a terrorist regime.  Australia should be reevaluating how its funding is directed in light of the PA-Hamas alliance.  There should be some serious investigative journalism into what happens to our foreign aid.  Sadly, there are very few journalists left in Australia.

The Gillard Government has just handed Australian taxpayers the worst budget in this countries history.  Australian households are cracking under huge taxation burdens, alongside hefty increases in charges such as utilities, private health cover, and rising food costs. State and Local Government taxes are also rising exponentially.  There is no incentive to run a business or create wealth in this country any more.  The economy will suffer without having sufficient disposible incomes within households to allow for spending – both essential and discretionary. 

I would like to suggest to Julia Gillard, Kevin Rudd, and the entire Government that instead of taking $70 million of Australian taxpayer dollars and giving it to a terrorist supporting administration that wants to kill Jews and eliminate the world’s only Jewish State, that they use the money for better purposes.  For example, the money could be applied to educating Australian children.  If the money really has to be spent on Palestinian aid how about using it for the following:

  • Producing text books for Palestinian Children that do not teach that the Holocaust was a Zionist fabrication, and do not have maps in them that exclude Israel from its very existence.
  • Exporting and importing goods that are produced by Palestinian and Israeli businesses that jointly develop technologies and consumables.
  • Providing ecological, agricultural, water, sustainable energy, and waste management expertise to Palestinian towns so that infrastructure can be developed.  This money could be spent directly instead of given to international agencies who subcontract on the basis of political affiliations.    

However aid money to Palestinians is provided by Australian taxpayers, it is time that us taxpayers sent a clear message to Canberra that we will not tolerate our tax dollars being applied to fund terrorists.  Based on what has been reported today, that is exactly what we are about to do.

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