The attack on Helen Haines has shaken confidence in Australian democracy, former independent MP Cathy McGowan told a community vigil in Wodonga, warning that women across the electorate are questioning whether they can enter public life without facing violence.
Ms Haines, 65, remains in a critical but stable condition in hospital after a vehicle allegedly drove into her outside her Wangaratta electorate office on Monday afternoon. Both her legs have been amputated.
Speaking to hundreds of residents on Wednesday night, Ms McGowan said the incident had left north-east Victoria confronting grief, shame and the reality that one of its own representatives had been attacked in the community she served.
“That this happened in our town, [allegedly] by one of our community members, to one of us. In the attack on Helen, it is an attack on all of us,” she said.
Brendan Nugent, 43, from Tarrawingee near Wangaratta, made no application for bail when he appeared before Wangaratta Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday over the incident.
Ms McGowan, whose 2013 election victory helped establish the modern community independents movement, said the violence had struck at more than an individual. It had also unsettled the grassroots political culture that had shaped the Indi electorate for more than a decade.
“There is another level of grief, different and deeper from the actual violence, from the sorrow, the shame and the hurt,” she said. “It’s about Helen in her role as our elected representative – in attacking her, we intuit that this is an attack on our political system, on our democracy.”
A message of hope from Governor-General Sam Mostyn prompted an emotional response from the crowd.
“We now know that Helen’s heart and head are good. She is going to get better, and she is going to come back fighting,” she said.
Flowers and handwritten messages were placed outside Ms Haines’ second electoral office in High Street, Wodonga, while the city’s water tower was illuminated in her honour. Volunteers distributed orange cardboard cockatoos, designed by a local artist and made from recycled corflute, in a symbol associated with both Ms McGowan and Ms Haines.
State MPs Tim McCurdy, Bill Tilley, Cindy McLeish and Annabelle Cleeland joined nine mayors from north-east Victoria in condemning intimidation aimed at public officials.
The civic leaders said threats and violence had “absolutely no place in our democracy or in our communities”, while stressing that disagreement remained an essential part of democratic life. They said “decency still outweighs division” and urged the public to reject political hatred.
Michael Gobel, the mayor of Wodonga, told the gathering that the nation, region and community were united in shock.
“We are neighbours, we are friends, and we are colleagues. And while we may not always agree, we share a deep connection to this region and to each other,” he said.
Ms McGowan said conversations since Monday had highlighted the fear felt by many women, including those considering or already holding public office.
She acknowledged the distress of Ms Haines’ family and staff, the Wangaratta residents who intervened during the incident and the medical teams treating the MP.
Ms McGowan urged the community not to respond by withdrawing from political participation. Instead, she called for next month’s Victorian election to demonstrate the democratic values she said had been threatened.
“My ask, in closing, is that we don’t let violence win, that we ensure the legacy of this attack on Helen will be a stronger, more vibrant and effective democracy,” she said. “And from a personal perspective, all candidates and especially women, know they can run for office and be safe.”
