AUSTRALIA, July 3, 2005 (vinnies.org.au): The National Council of the St Vincent de Paul Society has issued a Media Release titled We will not be Silenced concerning the current debate on income inequality in Australia – “The needs of the poor take priority over the desires of the rich, the rights of workers over the maximization of profits .. ” This is how Pope John Paul II summed up his social teaching. This is also why Vinnies reported the growing income inequality in Australia in its Issues Paper, The Reality of Income Inequality. After receiving wide publicity, the Paper was criticised in The Australian on three occasions: once by Peter Saunders of the Centre for Independent Studies (10 June) to which The Australian gave the right of reply (15 June); then twice by columnist, Christopher Pearson (18,25 June). Since the VdP were denied a right of reply to the last article, they have posted a detailed response to the criticism on their website, entitled Stats and Stones: Vinnies, report from the trenches on the poverty wars.

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