Jane Prentice (Ryan, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

In an ideal world we would not need the Counter-Terrorism Legislation Amendment Bill (No. 1) 2014. In an ideal world no-one wants this bill, but this bill is vital to the safety of all Australians—innocent Australians, and Australians who are a threat to themselves and others.

The foreign minister recently informed the House that there are about 80 nations around the world who count foreign fighters among their citizens. This is an alarming situation. I know some will say: 'Let them go. Let them fight in a war that is not their own—just don't let them come back.' But, if we allow this, if we allow extremists to gain skills and experience in actual warfare, they will make contacts and connections and pass this on to others, and so the cycle of grooming new recruits will continue. Regardless of this, it is a breach of our international obligations. For the safety of Australians and the rest of the world, we have a duty to control would-be foreign fighters leaving our country.

Australia is home to people of diverse cultural backgrounds. People come to Australia to make a better life for themselves. Whether they are fleeing war or seeking warmer weather, whether they believe in God, Allah or Buddha or no-one at all, whether they cover or bare their skin, they all choose to call Australia home. It does not matter why people choose to come here. As the Prime Minister often says, 'Those who were born in this country have won the lottery of life.' We understand why others choose to come here. This is why it is so troubling that Australians choose to fight in a war that goes against everything Australians believe in. Unfortunately, what we need to do now is have strict procedures in place for those who do not respect our country and do not respect their fellow citizens. We need to have these measures in place so those who decide to fight against the country they were either born in or were perhaps welcomed to realise that we will not tolerate it, that this attitude and behaviour is not welcome.

We know that the horror coming from Daesh is not about religion; it is about power. Along with all of the terror and horror that is IS wrongly comes an unconscious suspicion of all Muslims. This is not fair. We as Australians have a history of accepting people from all walks of life, regardless of their beliefs. We stand up to bullies. We will not be intimidated. We cannot be frightened. We need to stand up for the wider Muslim community also. They do not want any part of this death cult and, indeed, in many cases that is why they travelled half way around the world to come to Australia—to escape what was happening in their own country.

IS is pretending to operate under the guise of religion. This could not be further from the truth. We as a country that is home to so many different cultures, as a country that celebrates so many ways of life, need to be strong in the face of this threat. With at least 70 Australians believed to be on the ground and more than100 suspected of funding or facilitating Daesh, now is the time to stop them in their tracks. This bill will mean Australians are safer. It is that simple. These terrorists operate as a group. Being part of a group is what attracts people to IS. Delayed notification on search warrants means there is no chance to alert the group and allow other members to hide or destroy evidence. If people are involved in activities that will harm Australians, it is important that the Australian Federal Police get information as quickly as possible.

Amending the threshold for arrest is equally important as it means these terrorists will be arrested swiftly, giving police more time to find their accomplices and minimising potential harm to innocent citizens. Now I know there is concern that some people may be wrongly arrested, but if you are indeed innocent you have nothing to worry about. These measures are designed to increase capabilities of Australia's law enforcement, and in times like these there is nothing more important. As the Prime Minister said, we have a duty to protect our citizens. Those people who are concerned about rights of terrorists or people who cause trouble in our community need to think about the consequences if we do not make hard decisions. We have already seen examples of how this death cult operates, how they treat journalists, aid workers, soldiers and police. The actions of a 'lone wolf' in the past couple of months show just how insidious this cult can be.

We are already investing heavily in protecting the safety of Australians. Now we need to pass this bill so that our defences against these terrorists are effective. We need to keep our community safe. Seeing the face of a 17-year-old Australian boy inciting terrorist ideologies is a shock for us all. It shows just how far this death cult will go. IS or Daesh call everyone who does not agree with them their enemy. If we stand by and do nothing, they will not just go away and leave us alone. As Edmund Burke said, 'The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.' They are already infiltrating our country and brainwashing our youth. Daesh want to crush our Western morals and values. It is our duty to play a part in stopping IS before it is too late—too late to defend our values, our democracy and our country. At the end of the day, we need to do all we can to make sure there is no chance of attacks against Australians on Australian soil. While some people may call these amendments harsh or too freedom-limiting, I believe it is better than the alternative in hindsight—wishing we had done more, when it is then all too late. I commend this bill to the House.

See this speech in context