Sydney Life

Dr Condoleeza Rice, the first African-American female US Secretary of State, is a facinating public person and an enigma to most. I've heard her referred to as "The Most Powerful Woman in the World", "The Neo-Wicked Witch of the West" and "The Right-Wing Oprah". See what happened when she came to speak to 300 students at Sydney University's Conservatorium of Music...

The lecture given by Dr Rice, Remarks on Foreign Policy, was a strictly invite-only affair complete with Australian Federal Police background checks on all invitees. Imagine my surprise when I (a proud protester against the Iraqi war in 2003) was invited along to witness the lecture.

All invitees had to arrive early and walk through anti-war protesters outside the Con. The numbers of protesters were only matched by the swarms of police and fully-suited sinister-looking secret service officials (complete with ear pieces!) who surrounded the place. Even helicopters were circling the sky above. It was very surreal.

Once past the protesters, we were ID-ed, security checked and made to surrender our mobile phones. On entering the hall where the lecture would take place, we were even handed little welcome cards and pins with intertwined American and Australian flags. (Apparently surrendering our phones was not enough... they were after our hearts and minds too.)

Then at 3pm, Dr Rice made her entrance with the University Chancellor, Justice Kim Santow, and Vice Chancellor, Dr Gavin Brown. The most powerful woman in the world was elegantly and understatedly dressed in a black pin-stripe pants suit, with a string of pearls, sculpted hair, a lean figure and a captivating smile.

Above: Justice Kim Santow, Chancellor of the University of Sydney, and Dr Rice.

Dr Rice began her address. She spoke about democracy and freedom in today’s world order, the war on ‘terror’ and her own past as an African-American growing up in a segregated South:

“It was a time when it was perhaps hard to believe in democracy in America let alone democracy in any other place in the world, but in my lifetime Birmingham transformed, America transformed. I stand before you as a black Secretary of State, something that I think 30 or 40 years ago would have been impossible.”

When she began to speak on the war in Iraq, she was interjected by a student who stood up and said: “Condolezza Rice, you are a war criminal”.

He was joined by a female student, who held their hands out in front of them and repeatedly chanted: “Iraqi blood is on your hands and you cannot wash that blood away”. They were quickly escorted out of the room.

Above: Security officials remove protestors from inside the hall.

Dr Rice remained composed. Once the protestors were removed, she retorted that she was glad to see democracy was “alive and well” at the university. She added that she was glad that democracy would now also exist at the “University of Kabul and the University of Baghdad”. A remark that half the room applauded. I’m unsure whether they applauded because they agreed with the sentiment or because they found it a witty appropriation of President Bush’s famous remark in the Australian Parliament in 2005, after Senator Bob Brown interjected his address.

Then the floor was opened to questions. The audience seemed convinced that this was a courageous move by Dr Rice and the students clearly were excited to see the results of their questions. Her performance (and I mean ‘performance’ in the artistic sense) was exquisite. She answered each question posed to her with completion, immaculate diction, rehearsed mannerisms and apparent sincerity. One could almost believe the intelligent woman actually believed what she was saying.

She is a clever woman. Clearly, someone realised that questions from inexperienced students would pose no match to a woman who had been questioned by her own government in the September 11 commission. The questions often gave her wide scope to retort in the jingoistic spin we’re more used to hearing from her commander in chief, President Bush. “Freedom”, “equality” and “democracy” were mentioned so often, I was convinced that she was attempting to influence opinions through rote learning and brainwashing rather than through coherent arguments.

The skeptical students amongst us however had the chance to give her feedback on her performance. Her last question was taken from a ‘Jeremy from the University of Sydney'. Jeremy asked Dr Rice what she meant by the term “freedom” when people locked up in Guantanamo Bay were being held indefinitely without charge and anti-terrorism legislation was stripping everyday citizens of their political and civil rights. This question was enthusiastically applauded by many students in the room.

She answered the final question with similar disengaged spin. No one bothered to ask how she could legitimately call people “terrorists”, and assume their guilt, without ever putting them before a fair trial or even giving them the chance to answer to charges. (That’s because, there have been no charges!) It is blatant hypocrisy to argue that democratic and civil society values can be legitimately imposed on other sovereign nations through force, when you don’t enforce them in your own country.

And so with a Sydney University jersey presented to Dr Rice, the address was concluded with another smile and a warm wave to the audience. After the performance was over, some friends and I went and sat in McDonalds. For some, it is depressing how fake and disengaged the pomp and circumstance of polite politics in today’s world can be. I am however inspired that in our little university at least, there are people that are courageous to stand up to the most powerful woman in the world and ask the big questions. From all the Jeremys in this world:

What freedom are you talking about Dr Rice?

Above: Dr Rice exits the building.