The improbable rise of Kevin Rudd to Prime Minister of Australia might be a political harbinger for the upcoming US presidential elections in November. In order to fully appreciate the significance behind the change of leadership in the 'Land Down Under', a few words on the former PM are required.
.
John Howard, PM from 1996-2007, was not only one of the most popular Australian heads of state but also the second longest serving PM in the history of the nation. On 9/11 (2001), he was in Washington, DC on a White House visit and immediately pledged his full support to President Bush. Out of sympathy for the victims of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, Australians, who had then enjoyed a booming economy, largely adopted the stance of their leader. Then came Iraq.
.
When the Prime Minister committed troops to oust Saddam Hussein from power, Australians began to defecting from the Howard-led Liberal-National Coalition, and the electorate slowly but surely began to reassess his record. Hard questions were being asked. Why did Howard continue to categorically reject revising the Kyoto Protocol (1992) - in a similar vein to George Bush - to make the reduction of carbon emissions palatable for global businesses? How is Iraq related to Al-Qaeda and the 'War on Terror'? The third and somewhat surprising query was rooted in the shadows of Australian history: Should not the government issue a formal apology to the 'Stolen Generation' - whereby white Australians forcibly separated Aboriginal children from their parents for more than a century (1869-1970s) as a weapon of ethnic coercion?
.
By 2005, John Howard was a quickly becoming a political relic. Large numbers of Australians were opposed to his unshakable alliance with President Bush, and the tides began to turn in favor of the Australian Labor Party (ALP). Enter Kevin Rudd.
.
Rather being a scion of an industrialist of the son of a highly respected parliamentarian, Kevin Rudd was a relative unknown with a degree from Australia National University in Canberra. His concentration of study, Chinese language and history, prepared him for a seven year stint in the Department of Foreign Affairs - which included an appointment to the Australian embassy in Beijing.
.
Due to his even temperament, experience and progressive ideas, Rudd earned a chance to debate Prime Minister Howard on 21 October 2007 just prior to parliamentary elections. In short, Howard did not fare well in the exchange. As he had already been abandoned by many independents and largely ruled out by a new generation of voters, Rudd took office a month later following the defeat of the eleven-year coalition. Howard even lost his seat in parliament - an utter repudiation of his reign.
.
The (Australian) world had truly turned upside down, and the new Prime Minister immediately tacked in the opposite direction. In his first three months, Rudd signed the Kyoto Protocol, apologized to the 'stolen generation' for excesses and abuses over the course of Australian history, announced a timetable for complete withdrawal from Iraq and pledged more assistance to the homeless.
.
If you are planning to tune-in to the Beijing Olympics for the opening ceremony, look for the unassuming, bespectacled, Mandarin-speaking Australian head of state among the other world leaders. A revolutionary of his kind may never be seen again.
.
J Roquen
.
For a collection of recent articles on PM Kevin Rudd, see the following LA Times link: