Page 1801 - Week 06 - Wednesday, 8 June 2016
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
This is a chance to reflect upon what it means to travel halfway around the world. You may have to learn a new language and a new way of living, where day-to-day tasks that we all take for granted like shopping, going to work and going to school can feel very hard and very different.
I am continually amazed by the strength, the fortitude and the willingness to learn of new arrivals in our city from around the world. Refugees are fleeing from conflict zones, often having endured unspeakable horrors, persecution, homelessness, torture, starvation and, as Mr Hinder said, perilous travel across deserts and oceans. Yet they come to Australia and here to Canberra with the aim of making new lives for themselves and their families—to prosper, to be safe but, importantly, to contribute.
Who amongst us would not do the same thing in such circumstances—seek refuge in a safe, stable democracy like Australia and in a city like Canberra? I am proud that Canberra is such a welcoming and inclusive community. We have long supported those who are looking to make a new life in this country. Each wave of new arrivals has made Canberra stronger; each wave of new arrivals has made Canberra more inclusive; and each wave of new arrivals has made Canberra more interesting.
Our communities of refugees from Europe, from Vietnam, from the Sudan, from Kosovo and many other places, and now including Syria, only make Canberra a better place. Canberra opens its arms time and time again because we recognise that common humanity trumps any ideology. So it is incredibly pleasing to see our business and community leaders, along with government and non-government organisations, working together to help refugees reach their full potential in their new home.
Many of our leading Canberra residents first came to Australia as refugees. Canberra is a city which proves that refugees, if given the chance, can not only start a new life but give back so much to their community. All of this makes our nation’s immigration minister’s recent comments beyond baffling. He, of all people, should be aware that Australia would not be what it is today without refugees.
Minister Dutton’s comments were as appalling as they were obvious in their intent. They represented a low, pathetic and desperate statement showing that there was no depth to which he would not stoop to try to garner a few more votes. I condemn those statements utterly and I know that every member of this government and the Labor parliamentary party rejects them completely. I am disappointed that the Prime Minister did not repudiate his minister’s comments in the strongest possible terms. But clearly, yet again, Prime Minister Turnbull’s determination to present a united front supersedes his own personal views.
Today I call on every member of this place to stand in support of Canberrans who were once refugees and those who are yet to come to join us. I call on them to stand unambiguously against the hateful, divisive and ridiculous rhetoric of our federal immigration minister.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video