Democracy focus for this year’s Kerferd Oration

VETERAN ABC journalist Barrie Cassidy will deliver the 22nd George Briscoe Kerferd Oration titled 'The Fragility of Democracy' at the Beechworth Memorial Hall on Sunday, July 7. Wangaratta-born Mr Cassidy grew up in Chiltern and undertook his secondary schooling at Rutherglen High. With a career spanning five decades, Mr Cassidy had been a press secretary to former Prime Minister Bob Hawke as well as being a Washington and Brussels correspondent. The former ABC journalist also hosted ‘Insiders’ for 18 years from 2003. Kerferd chair Ross Kearney said Mr Cassidy's understanding and insights into the political scene in Australia and overseas are particularly important in 2024. “This year well over two billion voters worldwide are eligible to cast their vote in government elections, including in India, Russia, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Mexico, United Kingdom, and the United States,” he said, “For many voters, their election is not the free and fair process we believe we experience in Australia.” Mr Kearney said Mr Cassidy will participate in a Q&A session after his Oration. In the lead up to the event, different questions over four weeks will be posed to and answered by a local community member. Local identity Scott Landells will answer the first question, to be published in the Ovens and Murray Advertiser on June 14. Scott has been asked to answer the question “In recent years, surveys have been finding people trust governments less and less, has the quality of government really declined, or do we just know more about what they do"? The Kerferd Oration committee invites the community to engage in an online conversation with the first question placed on its Facebook page on the same day. The Oration is a free community event, but a gold coin donation is requested to help cover costs. The event will also be live-streamed from 11.00am in the Beechworth Memorial Hall. For more information visit www.kerferdoration.org.

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