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Salient. Official Newspaper of the Victoria University Students' Association. Vol 44 No. 5. March 30 1981
Milk biscuit and bible
Milk biscuit and bible
Early last week Salient was granted weekly accreditation to the Parliamentary Press Gallery for staff reporter, Michele A'Court. This means Michele will have ready access to press releases, the debating chamber and other parliamentary facilities, and, more importantly, to Cabinet Ministers and their Private Secretaries.
It is hoped that because of this, Salient will be able to give greater coverage to national political events, especially to those of particular interest to students.
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Michelle A'Court, Salient reporter.
Muldoon Backs World Vision
Once again this year, the Prime Minister has plumped for the "safe" methods of charity - this time joined by the leader of the Social Credit Political League.
Mr Muldoon this week recommended that New Zealanders could "do their bit to assist those in the Third World" by supporting the World Vision appeal, and so "playing their part in the war on want".
A couple of days later, Social Credit's Bruce Beetham echoed the Prime Minister's statement.
In New Zealand, World Vision has been involved in wars other than the one on want. Its motives for and methods of giving aid have been much criticised and so has the government's preference for the American based World Vision ahead of our own indigenous aid groups such as the Christian World Service, the Catholic Commission, and CORSO.
Hard Line Christian Views
World Vision was imported to New Zealand half-way through the 70's and is described as being built along the lines of a multi-national. It is administered by a hierarchy involving about 100 people - compared, say, with CORSO's full-time administrative staff of ten.
A significant percentage of World Vision's funds are spent propagating hardline Christian views in the Third World. The Milk-biscuit-and-bible approach of World Vision aid is criticised because it does nothing to get to the real roots of poverty and hunger. Convert someone to Christianity and give them a milk biscuit on Sunday, they'll be hungry and Hindu again on Monday.
The fundamental criticism of World Vision is that it does little or nothing to explain the causes of oppression and poverty in the Third World. Its image is that of the starving child and its method of appealing to the public is based on guilt - "... she has so little ... we have so much."
We are asked to sponsor an individual (usually a child) to "change his/her life forever". Unfortunately this often means the child becomes a member of a privileged elite, educated as a doctor or lawyer who is then totally divorced from his/her original community.
Causes of Poverty Remain
The avoidance of dealing with the root causes of oppression means that, in effect, World Vision is propping up the status quo and perpetuating the poverty. People of the Third World become dependent on charity, instead of being helped to help themselves.
Rumoured links with the CIA aside, it is most probably World Vision's political conservatism that has kept it in the New Zealand government's favour. In 1978 the National Government made donations to World Vision tax-deductible. A year later it removed tax-deductability from donations to CORSO, as well as ending its annual grant of $40,000. CORSO had a reputation of exposing the causes of poverty and pushing for change which seems not to be in line with the government's conception of aid.
People who support the methods of aid groups like CORSO believe it will take more than what Mr Muldoon calls "the natural generosity of New Zealand citizens" to "speed the day of victory" in the war on want.
Michele A'Court