Australia’s Parliamentary Embeds
(click to view full)
In democracies, the politicians vote to determine what the armed forces will get. But how many of them really understand life on the other side of the fence? Quite a few, once upon a time. Now, not so many. Australia’s situation is typical: “About 30 years ago, approximately 40% of federal parliamentarians had served in the ADF in some form. When the ADFPP began in 2001, that figure was no more than 5%.”
So they decided to do something very clever to bridge the divide.
The Australian Defence Force Parliamentary Program (ADFPP) gives Senators and Members of Parliament a taste of what it is like to serve in the ADF, as well as providing an exchange program for the attachment of ADF members to Members’ and Senators’ offices.
The program offers Parliamentarians a number of ADF attachment options each year, programmed during the Autumn and Winter recesses. Eighteen different attachment options are programmed for 2006, including deployments on board Navy ships both around Australia and overseas, fast jet aircrew training at RAAF Williamtown, patrol and training activities with the 51st Far North Queensland Regiment and joining Security Detachment troops for their preparations before they deploy to Baghdad.
There are approximately 50 parliamentarians who have taken part in the program since 2001, some of whom have taken part every year. Last year 21 parliamentarians participated, and 12 ADF personnel were attached to the offices of Members and Senators.
“In gaining this type of experience, parliamentarians will be able to contribute to debate on Defence and National Security issues in a more informed manner,” Senator Macdonald said. See release.
POSTSCRIPT: US Senator Bob Graham [D-FL, ret.] used to do something like this, called Workdays. He’d spend a day doing various jobs from police officer, dock worker, railroad engineer, construction worker, fisherman, garbageman, factory worker, busboy, and teacher. It did carry over into public policy (for instance, he was quite vehement about port security in part because of what he saw) – and did we mention that he never lost an election? Clever move to draw from the same wellsprings, extend the time time to a week so it would be meaningful, and institutionalize the practice in both directions.
