SYDNEY, Australia — Incoming prime minister
Anthony Albanese vowed to end Australia’s reputation as a climate dawdler and
reset relations with the rest of the world Sunday, as he raced to form a
government in time for a key Tokyo summit.
اضافة اعلان
Fresh from an electoral victory that ended a decade
of conservative rule, Albanese signaled an era of fairer, greener, and less
pugilistic politics for Australia. “I want to change the country,” the
59-year-old center-left leader said. “I want to change the way that politics
operates in this country.”
It is still unclear whether Albanese’s Labor Party
will win enough parliamentary seats to form an outright majority, or whether he
will have to turn to independents or smaller parties for support. But “Albo”
and key ministers are expected to be sworn in on Monday to be able to attend a
summit with Japanese, Indian and US leaders — the so-called “Quad”.
Albanese said the summit was “an absolute priority”
for Australia and an opportunity “to send a message to the world”. He said
partners overseas can expect wholesale changes “particularly with regard to
climate change and our engagement with the world on those issues”.
In recent years, images of smoldering eucalypt
forests, smog-enveloped cities, and blanched-out coral reefs have made
Australia a poster child for climate-fueled destruction. Under conservative
leadership, the country — already one of the world’s largest gas and coal
exporters — has also become synonymous with playing the spoiler at
international climate talks.
Albanese has vowed to adopt more ambitious emissions
reduction targets and make the sun-kissed continent-nation a renewable energy
superpower. After the summit and bilateral meetings with Quad leaders on
Tuesday, Albanese said he would return to Australia on Wednesday. “Then we’ll
get down to business,” he said.
US President Joe Biden called Albanese to
congratulate him.
Notable among the foreign leaders who have welcomed
Albanese’s election are the ones from Australia’s Pacific Island neighbors,
whose very existence is threatened by rising sea levels. “Of your many promises
to support the Pacific, none is more welcome than your plan to put the climate
first — our people’s shared future depends on it,” said Fijian Prime Minister
Frank Bainimarama.
Others will be watching closely to see if Albanese’s
premiership brings a less hawkish tone on China, and whether ministerial
meetings with Beijing resume after a more than two-year hiatus.
Political earthquake
Official results showed Labor expected to win 75 seats - almost within
reach of the 76 required for a majority in the 151-seat lower house. A handful
of other races are still too close to call. But it is already clear that the
vote was a political earthquake in Australia. For many Australians, the
election was a referendum on polarizing outgoing prime minister Scott Morrison.
His tumultuous tenure saw the country smashed by
bushfires, droughts, floods, and a pandemic, all of which shattered usually
happy-go-lucky Australia’s sense of security and their faith in
government. Morrison drew revulsion for
playing down the role of climate change in Australia’s ever-worsening disasters
and insisting “I don’t hold a hose, mate” when asked to justify holidaying
overseas during the bushfire crisis. “Being in Hawaii when half the country is
burning to the ground was probably not a wise decision,” said Dean Bergin, a
32-year-old investment fund manager. “Anyone with half a brain can see that.
It’s the opposite of leadership.”
Voters responded at
the ballot box with a sharp rebuke of his Liberal-National coalition — ousting
top ministers from parliament and virtually expelling the party from major
cities. “I am very, very happy,” said Kathy Hopkins, a 60-year-old disability
support worker in Sydney’s beachside suburb of Clovelly, part of what was
considered an ultra-safe conservative seat.
Election wipeout
For Morrison’s conservative allies, the defeat is already spurring a
battle for the soul of the party. A leadership contest is informally underway,
with moderates blaming the loss on a drift to the right. Speaking at his
Pentecostal church on Sunday, Morrison tearfully told the congregation his time
in the top job had “been a very difficult walk”. “God calls us” to duty he
said, pausing repeatedly to compose himself. The 54-year-old then pulled out
his phone to conclude his speech with a Bible verse. “Do not rejoice over me,
enemy of mine. Though I fall, I will rise. Though I live in darkness, the Lord
is alive for me,” he said.
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