Page 2442 - Week 09 - Tuesday, 6 August 1991
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Mr Connolly: We will see.
MR STEFANIAK: We will see, because South Australia is building the Collins class submarine. Your comrades in Victoria were very keen and, I think, are doing a lot of work in relation to the Anzac frigate proposals. They are not backward in coming forward when it comes to industry. They know the political realities. They might have stuffed up the economy of their States; but they are certainly trying, and taking every opportunity, to generate business and industry in their particular States. And what are you doing? You are completely crucifying this golden opportunity. So, firstly, now that Aidex will not continue here, some other Australian State will take it; that is for sure.
Also this rather pathetic little gesture by the local Labor Party will have no impact whatsoever on the arms race, or on arms supplies throughout the world. It will have no impact at all on human nature. That is utterly impossible, and I think the Government is deluding itself if it thinks this act will have any effect whatsoever in terms of what it naively hopes to achieve. It will have absolutely none whatsoever.
Another thing I would point out to the Government is that Australia, as they know, is a democracy, a proud parliamentary democracy, which has gone to war on a number of occasions in this century. Sometimes perhaps, as in the case of the First World War, the morals might not have been quite so certain as they have been in other wars; but basically Australians have fought and died in the cause of freedom, to preserve democracy. A sad fact of life is that there will always be bullies. At an individual level, we see them from the playground up. And there will be bullies at the international level. We have seen quite a few of those recently, the last one having been Saddam Hussein.
Mr Connolly: Who bought his guns at arms fairs.
MR STEFANIAK: And who beat him? And how was he beaten, Mr Connolly? Would it have been possible for him to be beaten if the United States and the United Nations countries that went to the Gulf did not have any arms?
Mr Connolly: There would not have been a war if we had not armed him.
MR STEFANIAK: Unfortunately, some wars have to be fought, Mr Connolly. Unfortunately, human nature being what it is, from the time of the creation of human beings, and probably, unfortunately, until we - - -
Mr Berry: Grow up a bit.
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