Anne Aly (Cowan, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise today on the last day of this sitting fortnight, because the past fortnight has been harrowing, with terrorist attacks and the loss of innocent lives in Manchester, Kabul, Baghdad and the attack in Egypt which killed 28 Coptic pilgrims travelling on a bus in the town of Minya. This one is particularly close to home for me, because Minya is actually my mother's home town. She grew up there, and I have aunts, uncles, cousins, nephews and nieces who live there. And my sister, who grew up here in Australia, also lives in Minya.

What is particularly harrowing about this attack is that it does not represent Egypt, an ancient civilisation in which various religious, primarily Coptic and Muslim, have coexisted peacefully for hundreds of years. They have coexisted because of a love for their country, the land of the Pharaohs, and a deep sense of pride that unites them as Egyptians first.

The Egyptian Christian population is around 15 per cent of the population. In terms of numbers, it is the largest in the Middle East and North Africa. This week, 11 Australian bishops from various Coptic churches are in Egypt. They include bishops from the Armenian, Coptic, Orthodox and Maronite churches. They are there as part of a delegation from Australia to build on Australia's strong relationship with Egypt, and today they will be meeting with President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.

I call on my parliamentary colleagues and all Australians to unite against terrorism wherever it occurs and to ensure that the fight against terrorism does not weaken or threaten our shared identity.

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