Webdiary - Founded and Inspired by Margo Kingston

Jack Robinson

Whatever happens to the mechanics and form of the Australian version in the coming years, and especially over the next few sessions of parliament, the last month should have reminded voters and representatives alike of the essence of democracy:

It's individual human beings standing up in public on behalf of their fellows and urging us all to make the world the best possible place we can. Embracing their better angels openly and unashamedly in their public lives so that maybe we'll try to do the same in our private ones. It's called 'leadership', and the only kind that ever worked is leadership-by-example.

Here I stand; now who will stand with me?

We saw that in the evolving story of the Rebel 4(+).

The individual MP choice to make a stand. The allies found, sounded out, secured. A joint aim and strategy adopted. Arguments made publicly, voter support sought, attracted, rallied, maintained, exploited in the party rooms. Legislation drawn up; bargaining chips stock-piled; negotiations fought; concessions won. The wrap-up, the public exposition, the explanation to the rest of us. Some terrific speeches in our House, and a passed piece of legislation that will make the world a better place for yet more of the world's vulnerable.

But everything - everything - starting with and resting upon that first lonely, individual MP's choice to stand firm publicly. It's why it's called 'representative' democracy: us voting dills can't possibly know what we truly think - where we truly stand - until our Representatives give us a few solid options to choose from.

And at least one of our Reps must offer us the 'better angel' option, too. Any Rep - the party doesn't matter, or shouldn't. Even the policy nuance of the stance is less important than the conviction of the person making it; it's the 'stand' as much as the 'here' in that famous Martin Luther declamation that rallies followers to a cause.

In the Rebel 4 case, the final 'here' on mandatory detention was far from perfect. But it's a far better 'here' than Mr Howard's unchallenged one ever was...and that's what marks the Rebel 4 as genuine democratic leaders.

Every time a politician makes life better for someone without making it worse for someone else, it's democracy's better angels winning the war against humanity's worst animal instincts.

It sounds awfully cheesy to say that this week some of those speeches in the House of Representatives made me proud of our politicians, and I suppose it is. But it did.

Luckily I'm an awfully cheesy kind of bloke.

Yeah, I'm also a realist.

It would have been nice had the key debates happened in the House, not through the media. Harry Evans is right: Parliament should be the national debating place of public primacy, where the nub of issues that affect all Australians get thrashed out, on-the-record and for anyone who's interested to see.

In this case all our chambers saw were the post-action wrap-ups. Better that than nothing at all - which may well become the norm in the sessions ahead, when the Senate faces redundancy.

And I'm well aware that what the Rebel 4 and those who came before them have achieved on behalf of detainees is short of what many wanted and what is really needed. We can fight on.

I also know that a lot of mundane horse-trading and backroom cynicism and politicking-as-usual went into this modest win. As attractive as the idea is to those of us with a poetic soul, there are no Gregory Pecks or Gary Coopers or Jimmy Stewarts in real-world politics; no angelic individuals who can 'change the world' overnight with a single inspiring speech...not a sweaty armpit or unshaven chin or dog-tired, late-hour, grubby-minded compromise required. Alas, no; real policy advance is always messy and ragged and imperfect and grinding. This one was doubtless no different behind the scenes.

It's occasionally nice to pretend otherwise, though. Listening to some of those fine speeches, it was easy to do so, too.

Let your better angel take hold, I mean.

I know, too, that such is his political adroitness and the nature of the current Australian dynamic that the Prime Minister and his team have probably come out of what was really a political defeat in a much stronger political position.

If that's mostly luck and timing, then the PM makes his own, as usual.

If it's mostly spin from the Murdoch Howardistas, then for balance we should at least keep in mind that some News' journos have played key roles in keeping this issue in the public eye.

I know that some people who deserve little credit are getting a lot while most who deserve a lot are getting none at all: the real movers and shakers, the hardcore, lonely, vilified refugee advocates who really drove the events of the last few weeks to a head.

And will drive home the next round of changes, too. And the next.

They'll never get any acknowledgement from the power-players, from the 'mainstream'. It's the cursed nature of aspiring to change the world. Even when you do - no, especially when you do...that changed world will never thank you for it. That would be too much like the world admitting it was wrong before. Instead, the world will probably just claim that the change was all its own doing.

Big deal. Who works to change the world for the credit alone?

So I know all these imperfections in the win our democratic better angels had this week. I couldn't care less.

As I've written before, I refuse to let such thoughts spoil the real policy progress the Howard government agreed to last week and our pollies have now put into Australian law, however belatedly and grudgingly, nor diminish the goodwill towards them that our parliamentarians have inspired in me.

It may be naive to be so easy to impress. My admiration may not last.

But it was a decent thing our politicians did this week, and it made me proud to be a stakeholder and part-caretaker of the Australian version of democracy.

I haven't said that for quite a while.

It feels good.

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