Invisible enemies: Infectious disease and national security in Australia

Release of Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) Strategic Insight No. 16/2005 

The Australian Strategic Policy Institute has today released a new ASPI Strategic Insight publication, examining the threat of emerging pandemics and Australia’s need to reassess its preparedness for a major outbreak of infectious disease. 

Authored by Professorial Fellow in Medical Geography and Director of the Health Studies Program at Macquarie University, Peter Curson, the Insight argues that Australia can no longer take refuge in the barriers of time and distance as an effective defence against world wide pandemics. 

“Over the last 30 years, approximately 40 newly emerged infections have been identified in the world, including AIDS, Legionnaires Disease, Lyme Disease, Ebola, Mad Cow Disease, SARS and Bird Flu.”

“The harsh reality is that when faced with a microbial enemy that proliferates rapidly, mutates frequently, spreads internationally, and which cannot be directly linked to a particular aggressor, Australia’s reliance on distance and national borders no longer constitute a satisfactory defence.”

Professor Curson advises that: “If left unchecked, epidemics of infectious disease can substantially undermine public confidence, jeopardise law and order, severely threaten a state’s social, economic and political viability and become a major agent of social and political change.”

“The spread of infectious disease endangers Australia’s national security on the proposition that the health of Australia’s population is a critical resource vital to the stability of the nation, and such disease threatens not only the livelihood and way of life of individuals, but also targets the stability and viability of the state.” 

The paper highlights the challenges for Australia as infectious diseases stake a claim on the national security agenda.