Page 2452 - Week 09 - Tuesday, 6 August 1991
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MR DUBY (8.40): Mr Speaker, I do not often admit to making a mistake, but today I am going to do so. I well remember the Aidex exhibition of 1989 - and I think many of us do - when we were regaled with the bold sight of the protesters who revelled under the name Penises for Peace and who tried, in their own way, to bring down that exhibition. At the time, I think a lot of us thought it was a bit of a lark. What I am alluding to is the fact that I thought at the time, in 1989, that that particular arms exhibition was a one-off event. I did not realise - - -
Mr Collaery: Nor did I.
MR DUBY: Mr Collaery says, "Nor did I". I did not realise that there was a standing commitment for that particular event to be repeated in 1991. The reason I am saying this is that I was the Minister responsible for Natex. If I had known at the time, in December 1989 when I became Minister, that this event was to be repeated in 1991, I would have taken all possible steps to make sure that it did not occur this year. I must admit that it came as a complete surprise to me that it was a biennial event that was due to occur in 1989 and, of course, in 1991.
I endorse completely the actions of the present Government in stating that the citizens of Canberra do not wish to be part of the international arms trade. Indeed, there is a relevant quotation in the Canberra Times editorial of 2 August - and I do not particularly like reading the Canberra Times editorials that often because, for various reasons, I often do not agree with them. However, I think I should quote this one. It says:
The Canberra Times has, time after time, given its position on the arms trade: it is unequivocally opposed to the whole abhorrent industry. We need a clever country, but there is nothing "clever" about making weapons to intimidate or kill other humans.
At the same time, this paper has always upheld the rights and freedoms of people to speak, trade and behave as they desire, without censoring public officials peeking at them and punishing them. But just as the right of a woman to physical safety outweighs the need of her husband to bash her, the right to life of anonymous millions of potential war statistics should outweigh the rights of local manufacturers to increase their profits, or their share of the world market.
In that quotation, for "The Canberra Times" we can put "The citizens of Canberra". We do not endorse it, and I am frankly a little bit embarrassed that it is actually occurring in 1991.
Mr Connolly: They did not seek your approval, Craig. You were not aware of that at the time.
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