‘Merchants of death should not be funding Australian War Memorial‘, Sydney Morning Herald, 7 November 2018
To fund worthy causes such as a national commemoration, mounted in all our names, is why we have governments and taxation. Meeting the cost should not be an opportunity for arms firms to indulge in feel-good philanthropy, while promoting their brand names …
How can it be contemplated for a moment that weapons manufacturers should fund a shrine and museum that plays such a pivotal role in shaping our national memory of war? How is it respectful of those who have died?
A glaring problem stands out: conflict of interest.
Douglas Newton is among Honest History’s distinguished supporters. He contributed a chapter to The Honest History Book. For related articles, see our earlier posts here, here and here, plus Henry Reynolds, and cartoonist First Dog on the Moon in Guardian Australia. Honest History’s long-term pursuit of this issue can be traced using our Search engine with the search term ‘arms’.
