Over 300 Christians descended on Canberra this week to meet with Federal politicians about tax corruption and its impact on the global poor.

Micah Challenge’s annual Voices For Justice Conference spent its first two days over the weekend bringing delegates up to speed on the ins and outs of corporate corruption and the impact tax dodging can have on the world’s most vulnerable people. They were then sent out to over 100 private meetings with MPs and Senators from both sides of the aisle.

The G20 meeting will be chaired by Australia later this year, giving Micah Challenge an opportunity to put the spotlight on the “scourge of tax dodging, which robs developing countries… of vital revenue for poverty reduction and sustainable human development”.

“Most people don’t realise that the vast majority of money flowing out of developing countries is not stolen by corrupt politicians and dictators, but is rather pulled out by large multinational corporations who exploit loopholes in the global tax system to shift their profits away from the countries they operate within,” said John Beckett, National Director for Micah Challenge Australia.

According to Mr Beckett, while multinational tax dodging and corruption impacts all nations, including Australia, developing countries suffer the worst.

“Highly conservative estimates show that poor nations lose more than $160 billion each year through corporate tax dodging, which is more money than they receive annually in foreign aid,” said Mr Beckett.

“The impact on developing countries is devastating, denying them the money they need to be self-sufficient and making them dependent on aid and debt. It truly is a case of the rich getting richer while the poor miss out.”

Amongst the Voices For Justice delegation this year is 13-year-old Tahlia Richardson and her three friends from Gerringong Uniting Church, Tara and Georgia Culey (aged 17 and 14) and Ruby Burgess (aged 15). The group has been convicted that justice is an integral part of their Christian faith. This year is Talia’s first time in Canberra, meeting with politicians.

“We’ve learned so much,” she says, after just stepping out of a meeting with Ann Sudmalis, Member for Gilmore. “One of the biggest things we’ve learned is that politicians are just normal people. They’re happy to sit and talk with us. They’re very supportive and they’ve listened to what we had to say.”

Kaye Reid is head of ministry and missions for Churches of Christ in Victoria and has been a delegate at Voices For Justice for the past eight years, almost since Micah Challenge first started its Canberra advocacy work. She says she’s always been overwhelmed by the freedom Australians have in “just driving up” to Canberra and asking to meet with our nation’s leaders.

“What is really cool about it is that we can talk to politicians about things that aren’t for our own interest, but in the interest of others. And I think that stands out, compared to what other lobby groups might speak with Government about.”

This year, Kaye’s group of four Christians has met with several Members of Parliament including Labor Senator Claire Moore from Queensland and new Liberal Senator Michael Sukkar from Victoria. Talking to Mr Sukkar was of particular interest, says Kaye, given Mr Sukkar’s previous vocation as a tax lawyer.

“We were speaking to him about tax dodging and corporate corruption. He was really well informed and it’s the first time he’s met with Christians from our movement.”

Kaye has spoken to politicians through good and tough economic times, and has seen various Federal Governments fluctuate on their commitment to foreign aid, particularly in the last two years which has seen a dramatic decrease in Australia’s financial commitment to overseas aid, as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

After eight years of meeting with politicians, Kaye says there has never been a year that she hasn’t heard a politician tell her that due to Federal budget considerations, Australia can’t afford to increase its generosity to the global poor. But none more so than this year.

“But I’ve learned along the way that this is a long term process. You have to keep persisting and having these conversations, even when it’s really discouraging,” says Kaye.