Hillary Clinton condemns 'outrageous sexism' against ex-prime minister Julia Gillard

Updated

Former US secretary of state Hillary Clinton has again condemned the "outrageous sexism" experienced by former prime minister Julia Gillard but has stopped short of naming current Prime Minister Tony Abbott among those at fault.

In her book, Hard Choices, Ms Clinton says the treatment meted out to Ms Gillard during her time as the nation's leader by her former political opponents "shouldn't be tolerated in any country".

Speaking to the ABC's 7.30 program, Ms Clinton reiterated her strong opposition to discrimination against politicians based on gender.

"I'm referring to the way her political opponents characterised her," Ms Clinton said.

"The menu at that famous event, that was in print, about a prime minister who happened to be a woman. Some of the language that was used in debate or by the Parliament, out of the Parliament, but still in the political to-and-fro.

The speech that Prime Minister Gillard gave about misogyny was very striking to me ... I thought it was an important statement from a woman leader to make clear that this was behaviour that should not be tolerated. Hillary Clinton

"I don't have a problem with anybody - man or woman - contesting anyone's position, anyone's policy, taking a person to account, but doing so in a way that I thought depersonalised the very personal, that demeaned, just didn't seem to fit the Australia that I have come to know.

"As a woman and as someone who knows that double standards still exist, I thought it was regrettable that that was injected into Australian political debate."

In Ms Gillard's famous 2012 speech, she accused Mr Abbott - then opposition leader - of misogyny. The speech went on to receive millions of hits on video sharing website YouTube.

But Ms Clinton has stopped short of naming the current prime minister as an offender.

"I'm not going to name names ... that's really for the Australian people to judge," Ms Clinton told 7.30.

"The speech that prime minister Gillard gave about misogyny was very striking to me, because she did go chapter and verse - and again this is not about whether you approve of, voted for, or had any affinity with the positions she put forward.

"I just don't think there is a place for sexism in our politics. I think we should be purging those kinds of comments and holding ourselves to a higher standard."

Ms Clinton says the most striking aspect of Ms Gillard's speech was that she gave it.

"Often times when women are treated in a sexist way, when comments are made - whether it be about their appearance, their hair, their body, their marital status, whatever it might be - you just swallow it," she said.

"You go on, you try not to let it bother you, maybe you deflect with humour, all of which are good tactics.

"But she just went right at it, and I respected that. I thought it was an important statement from a woman leader to make clear that this was behaviour that should not be tolerated."

Ms Clinton told 7.30 the sexism she saw and experienced while campaigning against Barack Obama in 2008 for the Democratic presidential nomination was "very much part of our culture ... it just was taken for granted".

"My goodness, men come in all sizes and shapes, so do women, and it's about time we saw that for what it is - just human nature and reality," she said.

Australia, Canada urged to continue leadership on climate change

Ms Clinton - who is yet to rule in or out another tilt at the US presidency - says the world is in a race against time on climate change.

Mr Abbott, on his recent North American tour, reaffirmed his "special relationship" with Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper. Both leaders have campaigned strongly against carbon taxes.

Ms Clinton says climate change is no longer a debatable issue and she hopes Australia and Canada will not form an alliance to block global moves to curb emissions.

"In many ways, both Canada and Australia have been leaders in trying to deal with and combat climate change," she said.

"Countries like my own can create a lot of jobs, can, I believe, be the clean energy superpower of the 21st century and I assume the same is true in terms of opportunity, growth, and economic progress in Australia, Canada and elsewhere.

"I know that Australia was facing up to a lot of these issues in a large measure because, your weather patterns - the floods ... the droughts and other kinds of indicators - seem to be connected to, if not caused by changes in the climate.

"Australia is such an extraordinary natural resource. You have a treasure house of resources and ground resources that you can grow, it would be a shame to engage in short-term measures that undermine that long-term prosperity.

"I think dealing with climate change is part of any longer-term agenda to make sure the country stays strong and prosperous."

China's rise 'should enhance regional stability'

Ms Clinton's tenure as secretary of state was characterised by her drive to realign US foreign policy with a focus on Asia.

She says the move towards enhanced military cooperation with Japan, South Korea and Australia, while at the same time not sending a message to China that the enhanced alliances are not about containment, is about striking the right balance.

"We want China to continue to grow, to be able to provide a better standard of living for their people," she said.

"Eventually, we hope that they will adopt some of the democratic values that Australians and Americans cherish, and open the doors to freedom of expression, assembly, press freedom and the like.

We have been trying to help ... but we can't want peace and stability and security more than the government and people of Iraq want it for themselves. Hillary Clinton

"Nobody is under any illusion that you can hold up a "stop" sign with respect to China's rise. However, it is important that China understands that that should be a peaceful rise, and a rise that enhances regional stability, not undermines it.

"Much of that frankly rests with China. We know that they are taking very significant steps to build up their military. Their claim on the China Sea and East China Sea defy international understanding, so China also has to be a very positive actor in this effort."

Mr Obama recently said the military alliance with Japan would be triggered if China was to invade the Senkaku Islands.

Ms Clinton says "cooler heads" should prevail and is hopeful "we never even get close to thinking about that".

"These are barren islands in the middle of practically nowhere that do not deserve this kind of hype, attention and tension," she said.

"But we will stand with our treaty allies, such as Japan, Australia, South Korea ... the Philippines.

"I don't understand the aggressive posture that China is taking. Declaring air defence zones and informing people they can't fly through what is international air space without getting Chinese permission.

"Pushing around the little Philippines, claiming property, small rocks and shoals, confronting Vietnam over its efforts to determine whether they have resources in what are clearly territorial waters. That should not go without an international, and certainly a regional, reaction."

Obama 'very deft' on Ukraine and Iraq

The US president has received criticism for his approach to the ongoing political and military crisis in Ukraine, but Ms Clinton - seen by some as more hawkish than Mr Obama - says he has handled the situation "very deftly".

"Imposing sanctions and having a united front between the US and Europe is absolutely necessary," Ms Clinton said.

"Now that there's been an election, with a new president ... who has said he will sign the EU association agreement, the EU will begin to work with Ukraine and deal with this endemic problem of corruption and dysfunction. The US will try to support their border security and the training of troops within Ukraine to be able to defend their borders and integrity."

Iraq has dominated the news over the past week as government forces counter-attack a surge by militants that was instigated by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

Iraqi prime minister Nouri al-Maliki has called for US airstrikes to help keep the insurgents from reaching the capital, Baghdad.

But Ms Clinton says she agrees with the White House's reluctance and has criticised the Iraqi leadership.

"You have a regime in Baghdad headed by Maliki, who has failed to build a conclusive government [and] has used religion within Islam Shiite against Sunni, to try and consolidate his position," she said.

"[He] has not been the leader that Iraq needs and deserves to have, and the army has apparently not been professionalised despite our efforts and the efforts of others.

"We have been trying to help, and we have made it clear we will continue to try to help, but we can't want peace and stability and security more than the government and people of Iraq want it for themselves."

Bill doesn't pull the strings

In her book, Ms Clinton tells of the night the operation to kill Osama bin Laden was carried out, and the fact she did not inform her husband, former president Bill Clinton, that the administration was getting close to killing the former Al Qaeda leader.

She told 7.30 the anecdote was more about how secret the mission was, rather than an attempt to show Mr Clinton would not be pulling the strings if she was to become president.

"Well, he wouldn't in any case. He didn't when I was a senator, he didn't when I was secretary of state, so that's really not an issue to be given much thought," she said.

"There were very few of us who knew [about the bin Laden mission] - the circle grew somewhat larger as the military planned the assault - but we were all under the same admission not to tell anyone. And I didn't. Not even my husband.

"So, when the president called the former presidents to tell them, he started by saying, 'I assume Hillary's told you?' And Bill said, 'no, I don't know anything about it'."

Topics: world-politics, government-and-politics, discrimination, community-and-society, australia, united-states, iraq, china

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