“The 40 per cent of ACT voters who put David Pocock as their first preference at the last election should be feeling very proud of his performance,” writes political columnist MICHAEL MOORE.

Why does it take the independents to identify that Australia has faltered in maintaining its proud record of upholding human rights globally? 

As independent ACT senator David Pocock points out: “Of all the many issues people contact me about, human rights and the Gaza Genocide is by far the biggest”. 

This is not surprising. How often does the subject of war crimes come up in conversations with friends and colleagues at a barbecue or over a beer? 

A group of independents are taking on the federal government’s failure on human rights, and it is not just about the shocking actions of Israel in the Middle East.

As independent MP Andrew Wilkie says: “Australia has often had an outsized influence in the creation and preservation of international law”.

He added Australia’s role has included “critical matters from peaceful scientific settlement in the Antarctic, to the end of apartheid in South Africa and Independence for East Timor” and drew our attention to the “moral and legal obligation not to fund, arm or invest in illegal settlements, war crimes or genocide”.

Wilkie originally came to prominence when he was pilloried (rather than being protected) as a whistleblower who identified that there was no evidence for “weapons of mass destruction”.

It was the excuse used by the “coalition of the willing”, led by the US, to justify the invasion of Iraq and the removal of the regime of the dictator Sadam Hussein. His current concerns should not be surprising.

As an aside, Israel has nuclear weapons – they are considered as “weapons of mass destruction” – and yet the US still supports the Netanyahu regime in that country. 

The attacks on the International Criminal Court by the US and its leader, Donald Trump, shows a complete lack of respect for international law. The president’s statement to the UN threatening to annihilate Iran was another example. Withdrawal from the World Health Organization, and rejecting compliance with International Health Regulations is yet another.

The US support for Israel, when both completely ignore international law, should be a wake-up call for all nations. While the Australian government is slumbering on these international moral and legal obligations, it is the independents who have taken action.

The 40 per cent of ACT voters who put David Pocock as their first preference at the last election should be feeling very proud of his performance.

It has been enhanced by working closely with other crossbench independents and the Greens in the Senate and the House of Representatives.

The legislation that they have agreed to support is a combination of amendments that they have dubbed the Red Line Package Omnibus Bill. It is time to draw a red line around any actions that undermine international law.

The Omnibus Package, if it passes, will have the effect of stopping defence goods, technology and services that originate in Australia being supplied where they are in breach of human rights and international law. This includes greater transparency where they might facilitate genocide, war crimes or crimes against humanity. 

More specifically, the package is designed to stop the Future Fund, superannuation funds and registered charities investing in companies or activities connected with violations of international law. There are criminal and civil liabilities set out in the package.

In a 2025 report, UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese described faith-based charities as “key financial enablers of illegal projects in occupied Palestinian territory”.

The report found that the Jewish National Fund and more than 20 affiliated entities funded settlement expansion and military-linked projects, while online platforms such as Israel Gives have enabled tax-deductible crowdfunding in more than 30 countries for Israeli military units and settlers since October 2023. 

Michael West Media reported that the Jewish National Fund by receiving “over $200 million in tax-deductible donations, is breaking international law, while the government looks the other way”.

This is why pro-Palestinian activists target Spotlight, Anaconda, Mountain Designs and Harris Scarfe, arguing they support the charitable Spotlight Foundation in its similar support for activities that violate international law.

The Red Line legislation that was introduced with the support of independent MP Sophie Scamps and seconded by Wilkie, illustrates the importance of independents in their role of exposing government failure. The message is powerful when so many Independents work together to improve human rights.

Michael Moore is a former member of the ACT Legislative Assembly and an independent minister for health. He has been a political columnist with “CityNews” since 2006.

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