G’day!
I'm Gerard and I've written a novel called Corruption, set in three Australian States in the period 1980 to 2020. I've tried to capture some of the intrigue of the political landscape of the time woven around a fictional money launderer. What I want to do here is to point to the factual dark underbelly that lies beneath the fabric of a thriller.
Definition of corruption
What is corruption? In a political or administrative sense, it is the use of powers by government officials or their network contacts for illegitimate private gain. Forms of corruption vary, but can include bribery, lobbying, extortion, cronyism, nepotism, parochialism, patronage, influence peddling, graft, and embezzlement. Corruption may facilitate criminal enterprise such as drug trafficking, money laundering, and human trafficking, though it is not restricted to these activities. Misuse of government power for other purposes, such as repression of political opponents and general police brutality, is also corrupt. (Wikipedia).
Australia’s corruption
Like just about any other nation, Australia has its own corruption. Australia is ranked 14th out of 180 countries in the 2023 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), as reported by Transparency International. The CPI offers an annual snapshot of the relative degree of corruption by ranking countries and territories globally. Australia received a CPI score of 75 out of 100.
The events covered in my novel, Corruption.
Although Corruption is a work of fiction, it is based on a series of events in the Australian political history of the period 1980-2020. This is the period that saw the establishment of anti-corruption commissions in most of the states. It is notable that the Federal Government has only just established its independent body in the current term of government.
Specific characters
Although there are numerous personalities that could be used as models, here are the more significant ones I used:
· The minister for police in the Bjelke-Peterson Queensland government of the time was Russ Hinze, who was charged with eight counts of corruption, but died before going to trial;
· Izzy Mace in the novel is based on the Sydney crime boss, Abe Saffron. The deals involving New South Wales politicians reflect the activities of Messrs Obeid and McDonald who were both convicted of corruption while holding public office;
· An oblique reference to the Essendon Australian Football League doping scandal can be found in Dr Advani;
· To portray ASIO as corrupt (in the story, it uses the services of the money launderer) is not accidental. Its willingness to bug the Timor Leste cabinet room in relation to negotiations on oil rights is particularly reprehensible, in my opinion. To follow that up with the legal persecution of the whistle blower and his lawyer makes it worse. Whistle blower protection is critical if there is to be openness in government as a counterbalance to corruption;
· Senator Dastyari is an example of Chinese interference in Australian politics along the lines described in the book.
Corruption is available through the publisher, Austin Macauley, Amazon, or your favourite book supplier. It is available both as eBook and paperback.
Gerard Hogan
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