Page 53 - Week 01 - Tuesday, 12 February 1991
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Mr Collaery: What about the Eureka Stockade? Do they deny that?
MR HUMPHRIES: The Eureka Stockade is a good example. The Spanish civil war, Mr Duby reminds me, is another good example. The Russian revolution would be another example. There are many good examples. I wonder whether, if there were an international force to invade South Africa and dismantle the apartheid regime, those opposite would be quick to condemn that? I very much doubt that they would, quite frankly. They would, in my view, be right behind that and I think that it shows up the sophistry in the opposition of those people opposite to this motion of the Government's.
Apparently, from their point of view, raising this issue is wrong. I wonder whether those opposite would have voted against a motion opposing the war. It seems to me obvious that they are in effect opposing any attempt to show up their own position on this matter; but, having identified a division in the ranks of the Labor Party, it is interesting that the Left's position on this matter prevails, and that Mrs Grassby and Mr Connolly are forced to go along with the ALP Left line. It is a line that we know is not shared by the rest of the Australian Labor Party in this country. They have to go along with the Left line and are forced to support their position of opposition to this motion. It is just a case of numbers, isn't it? It is all about numbers.
We are not wrong to debate this. Every parliament in this country, I think you will find in the coming days, will be debating this, because it is the concern of every parliament and every part of this country to be debating this.
Mr Moore said that he found it incredulous that Christians could advocate war. It is a pity that Mr Moore was not present this morning when Dr Carey, the Archbishop of Canterbury-designate, spoke in St Andrew's Church in Forrest on this subject, because he is one of the leading Christians on this planet and he had a very cogent and coherent argument as to why Christians ought to be fighting this war. He said, and I paraphrase very loosely, "Those who say 'Peace at any cost' are people with whom I would have no truck. There comes a point where oppression of other human beings is intolerable and other people, other Christians, have the right to make some effort to liberate those people from that oppression".
Mr Speaker, the intermittent role of the United Nations is not a matter of concern to me. If it now fights for a just cause, it ought now to be supported. I wish to finish my speech, Mr Speaker, by quoting the Prime Minister. This is not something I often do, but I will do it on this occasion. He said:
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