Fraser decries bipartisan appeal to redneck minority

Malcolm Fraser has accused both sides of federal politics of appealing to a redneck minority in the asylum seeker debate.

The former prime minister says the Federal Government has a responsibility towards asylum seekers from Afghanistan because of Australia’s military intervention in that country.

Mr Fraser allowed tens of thousands of refugees into Australia after the Vietnam War in the 1970s and says people trying to flee the war in Afghanistan also deserve protection.

He says the current debate over asylum seekers is one of the most terrible in the history of the Parliament, with both the Government and Opposition chasing cheap votes at the expense of the lives of vulnerable people — via redwolf.newsvine.com