October 12, 2004. Copyright, 2004, Graphic News. All rights reserved

Profile of AustraliaÕs four-time election winning prime minister, John Howard
By Joanna Griffin

LONDON, October 12, Graphic News:  John HowardÕs unexpectedly comfortable win in AustraliaÕs elections has left certain other leaders facing re-election searching for helpful clues. How exactly did Howard, whose policies have earned him a Òlike him or loathe himÓ reputation, manage to extend his majority and secure a place as his countryÕs second longest serving leader?

If, as the Sydney Morning Herald commented, the October 10 victory of his Liberal-National coalition over Labor all boiled down to the twin emotions of ÒtrustÓ and ÒfearÓ, the wily Howard has surely had plenty of experience at manipulating both.

Born in a suburb of Sydney in 1939, Howard joined the Liberals at 18, and made his first foray into politics while still a student. He practised law for 10 years and in 1974 was elected MP for Bennelong, a northwestern suburb of Sydney. A year later he became minister for business and consumer affairs, and in 1977, treasurer.

Impressed by what Margaret Thatcher was doing in Britain, Howard overcame strong resistance to introduce tax cuts and privatisation, earning plaudits for his toughness. Even so he lost two leadership bids in the 1980s, and the party languished in opposition. But in 1996 the Liberals were back, and now Howard was at their helm.

Successive victories in 1998 and 2001 appeared to vindicate Howard for unpopular policies that included new laws on gun control and welfare cuts. But his ÒtoughnessÓ drew a mixed reaction when in 2001 he turned back 400 migrants rescued by a Norwegian tanker from a sinking Indonesian ship, winning praise from middle-class Australians but angering human rights groups.

Nowhere has he divided opinion so sharply as over his decision to send 2,000 troops to Iraq. Like Bush and Blair, HowardÕs motives in going to war have not always held up to scrutiny. But if in the early days of campaigning it looked as if the issue might win the vote for his rival Mark Latham, Howard has been praised in many corners for backing up his vision of an Australia with more international clout.

The prime minister has cultivated a statesmanlike image at times of crisis, and his victory speech emphasised depicting Australia as Òon the threshold of a new era of great achievementÓ. While Latham spoke of supporting regional interests, HowardÕs colours have remained firmly tied to the White House mast.

Throughout the campaign Howard presented himself as a trustworthy steward of the country in a new era of global instability, urging voters to allow him to continue to protect them from the continued threat of terrorism, playing on fears that have grown since the 2002 attack on a Bali nightclub in which 88 of his compatriots died.

In the end, however, it seems more likely that more mundane concerns to do with trust and fear won him the vote. Australia is enjoying a boom, rising house prices and low unemployment. Howard evoked the terrifying ghoul of rising interest rates, and scored particularly highly in the Òmortgage beltÓ suburbs of Sydney and Brisbane.

In his fourth term in charge, he is likely to push through policies that include the loosening of media ownership laws, and selling off state telecommunications firm Telstra. At 65, he is also set to overtake Bob Hawke as his countryÕs second longest serving leader and to enjoy at least several more years basking in the Australian sun.
/ENDS