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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 9 Hansard (2 September) . . Page.. 2712 ..

MRS CARNELL (continuing):

Mr Speaker, it is with great sadness that I rise today to move that this Assembly forward an Address to Her Majesty the Queen to express our sorrow at the death of Diana, Princess of Wales. I think there are very few in the community who could fail to be moved by the tragic events over the weekend. Diana, Princess of Wales, was a person of great charm and grace. She was a woman who strove to use her position to help others. She sought a real role for herself in her public life. Like so many people, Diana also sought to protect and nourish her family.

It is with great sadness that we now reflect on what she achieved in so short a life. Over the last two days, we have heard many people speak about her commitment to working for other people. We have heard especially of her work for AIDS and leprosy sufferers and for children, and of her contribution to the important task of banning landmines.

We have heard praise and admiration for Diana's work, and for her personal warmth, from many world leaders. We have also learnt, from the spontaneous reactions to the sad news of her death, how much she has touched the lives of people all around the world. Indeed, the extent and strength of this reaction is testimony to her achievements and her character. She will be remembered for her ability to reach out and to communicate with people from all walks of life.

The accident in Paris has cut short her life in very tragic circumstances. We all express our deepest sympathies for the loss suffered by her family and, Mr Speaker, in particular, her two sons. Prince William and Prince Harry have suffered the very great loss of their mother. We share in the grief of their loss and extend, I am sure, the regrets of every Canberran to those two young men.

Mr Speaker, I doubt that there would be many people in the world who would have achieved such a level of praise and admiration as Diana has done. There are also very few people who have used their position to such effect in helping people who may not, under normal circumstances, have attracted the level of attention that, due to Diana's commitment to their cause, their charities have achieved. I refer to children who are HIV positive and to the important task of banning landmines. They are very important issues, but issues that certainly would not have ended up with such a level of community understanding and such a profile in the community if it had not been for the commitment of Diana, Princess of Wales.

I am sure that every Canberran shares with members of this Assembly the very deep sorrow we feel at the events of the weekend in Paris.

MR BERRY (Leader of the Opposition): Mr Speaker, the Labor Opposition wholeheartedly supports this motion. There are few people who would have attracted so much media attention in such a short life. This woman was thrust into the media limelight with her marriage to a member of the Royal Family. Of course, her every move was then under the microscope. So, it is not surprising that every deed that this young woman was involved in was carefully examined by people right across the world. She made many great contributions to society. Each one of them was carefully noted by her supporters, and perhaps by her detractors, right across the globe.

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