Government explicitly targeting Australian charities
By Glen Klatovsky, Deputy CEO, 350.org Australia
Proposed law reform to ban foreign political donations – the Electoral Funding and Disclosure Reform Bill – has been roundly condemned for bundling the charity sector in the same category as overseas political agents and lobbyists seeking to influence Australian elections.
The big question is whether silencing and hampering Australian charities was always the intended effect of the draft reform, or whether charities were merely the unfortunate victims of poorly worded and ill-considered legislation.