During last year’s federal election campaign I worked on a documentary that followed voluntary euthanasia campaigner Dr Philip Nitschke’s efforts to unseat Immigration Minister Kevin Andrews in his eastern Melbourne seat of Menzies. The animosity between these two men is immense due to Andrews’ role in repealing the Northern Territory’s 1997 voluntary euthanasia law that Nitschke helped four patients to use.

The documentary’s director, Joan Robinson, and I have cut a teaser of the film which we’d very much like you to watch and tell all your mates about. Chatter and buzz about the teaser will equal faster completion of the film, so help us out. The documentary’s website is www.OpposingKevinAndrews.com and the YouTube video is here. Enjoy!

Good ol’ Margaret Tighe from Right to Life Australia has been working hard in the electorate of Menzies to try and ensure that Australians continue to enjoy freedom from freedom. This time she’s been distributing pamphlets urging voters to put independent candidate and voluntary euthanasia campaigner, Philip Nitschke, last on their ballot papers. The front cover is — in the tradition of religious nutjobs who are desperate to impose their morals upon others — calm, fair and balanced.

The inside contains four Nitschke quotes that make a hell-of-a-lot of sense to anyone who believes that people should have the right to choose what they do with their own lives and bodies. But it’s the back of the pamphlet that is most interesting.

Section 328 of the Commonwealth Electoral Act requires the person authorising political advertising (any material intended or likely to affect voting intention) to declare a street address at which they can be contacted during business hours. The use of a PO box address is not legal.

I understand that the AEC has been notified. Hopefully the pamphlets containing this right-to-life rubbish will end up as, well, rubbish.

UPDATE: Philip Nitschke’s office has issued a press release about the pamphlet.

Church weighs in to prop up Kevin Andrews Menzies Seat

In a move that can only be described as “desperate” Right to Life Australia have weighed in to the election debate supporting Minister for Immigration Kevin Andrews, by leafleting all homes of the Menzies electorate on Saturday with a brochure headed “Vote Nitschke Last”.

The brochure, authorised by Margaret Tighe of Right to Life Australia, has the title “Are you Dying to Vote for Nitschke?” and features a picture of a coffin and a cross on the cover.

According to Voluntary Euthanasia Activist and Independent Candidate for Menzies, Philip Nitschke, the leaflet represents a last minute grab to stem the overwhelmingly feeling in the electorate that Mr Andrews has betrayed his voters and has not acted ethically in issues like Workchoices, the Dr Haneef affair and Sudanese refugees.

“When we are out at the shopping centres, the response to our campaign plan to remove Kevin Andrews has struck a chord. While many voters support our pro-choice agenda on the so-called ‘moral issues’, many others are motivated by concerns over his role in human rights, refugees and industrial relations. Indeed Andrews is now carrying a great deal of damaging electoral baggage.”

The Right to Life leaflet is a “deliberate misrepresentation” of the views of Dr Nitschke.

“Every time Right to Life want to discredit me they wheel out these out of context quotes” said Dr Nitschke.

An additional issue of concern is that the leaflet represents a clear breach of the electoral act.

“The Act states clearly that political advertising must have printed at the bottom the name and address of the person printing the advertisement. This leaflet with only Right to Life’s post office box number is a clear breach of the electoral Act.

“We have reported this breach both the Australian Electoral and the Australian Federal Police and we expect action to be taken, especially given that this leaflet’s sole purpose is to smear my name in the last week of the election campaign.”