NSW Members

All NSW members should have now received their membership cards. If you have not received yours, please contact David Leyonhjelm at treasurer@ldp.org.au

IF YOU HAVE ALSO RECEIVED A FORM 20 PLEASE FILL IT IN AND RETURN IT IN THE ENVELOPE PROVIDED.

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The rebellion at the Eureka Stockade in Ballarat, Victoria in 1854, was significant in the early history of Australia, as it was a protest against taxation and Government oppression as well as being a fight for democratic representation.

The rebellion was brought about by grievances over heavily priced mining supplies, the expense of a miner’s licence and the overbearing actions of the government and its agents, the police and military. While the events that sparked the rebellion were specific to the Ballarat gold fields, the underlying grievances had been the subject of public meetings, civil disobedience and deputations across the various Victorian gold fields for almost three years. The miners' demands included the right to vote and purchase land, and the reduction of license fees. Agitation for these demands commenced with the Forest Creek Monster Meeting of December 1851 and included the formation of the Anti-Gold Licencing Association at nearby Bendigo in 1853.

Although swiftly and violently put down, the Eureka rebellion was a watershed event in Australian political activism. The preceding three years of agitation for the miners' demands, combined with mass public support in Melbourne for the captured 'rebels' when they were placed on trial, resulted in the introduction of full male suffrage for elections for the lower house in the Victorian parliament. The role of the Eureka Stockade in generating public support for these demands extended well beyond the goldfields, resulting in Eureka being identified with the birth of democracy in Australia.

“We swear by the Southern Cross to stand truly by each other and fight to defend our rights and liberties."

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The Economy

The following cartoon from the Unfiltered News, 11 Sep, shows who really is paying for all the money the government is spraying around

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"MOVIE motor Chitty Chitty Bang Bang has been banned from a lord mayor’s procession — for not having an MoT. Thousands of people were looking forward to seeing the famous flying car, but cops said they would not bend the rules. 

Spokesman Harry Mitchell said: “Our priority is the safety of the public and we cannot make exceptions.” 

The vehicle, which featured in the classic 1968 film of the same name, was due to join a huge parade through Norwich this Saturday. 

But Helen Selleck, the city council’s events manager, said: “Although the road is closed for the procession, it is still classed as a public highway and the DVLA is clear that all vehicles in the procession need to be fully covered.”

The car was due to be displayed by Norwich’s Theatre Royal. 

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Bradfield By-Election

Members are invited to consider standing as a candidate for the LDP in the Bradfield by-election, which will follow the resignation of Brendan Nelson.

The Labor Party has said it will not be running, which will give minor parties such as the LDP an opportunity to do particularly well. This will also be our first outing since the party's name was restored.

Interested members should contact Peter Whelan at president@ldp.org.au or 02 9652 0415. It is not necessary to live in the electorate to run as a candidate.

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Contributions

Contributions and details of meetings are welcome up to 6pm on the second Friday of each month, after which the newsletter is submitted for editing.

Send to Graham Nickols at secretary@ldp.org.au

Urgent material missing the deadline should be forwarded directly to David Leyonhjelm at treasurer@ldp.org.au

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Liberty Links

Given the size of the LDP a lot of our members aren't able to make it to our state branch meetings. So here's a list of links of websites that may interest you. None of the listed websites are affiliated with the LDP and none of the views expressed represent LDP policy.

Australian Libertarian Society
Catallaxy Files
Free Market.Net
Introduction to libertarianism
CATO Institute
Centre for Independent Studies
Institute for Public Affairs
US Libertarian Party

If you have a link you'd like to appear here email info@ldp.org.au and let us know about it.