John Madigan (Victoria, Democratic Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Today I moved a motion calling on the government to do three things: engage in dialogue with the Indonesian government and work with the West Papuan people towards the establishment of a free state of West Papua, offer whatever support was required for the organising of a free and democratic election, and support the West Papuan people's request for UN recognition. I did not hold out much hope that it would receive overwhelming support but as this has been a policy of the Democratic Labor Party since the time West Papua was forcibly incorporated into Indonesia it is something the party feels strongly about and is determined to pursue.

This morning Senator Di Natale proudly held up the Morning Star flag of Free West Papua to the media and announced the Greens would support the West Papuan people in the celebration of what they consider to be their independence day, 1 December. In fact, Senator Di Natale moved a motion in the Senate several minutes before mine calling for the Senate to note these facts and calling on the Minister for Foreign Affairs to express to the Indonesian government that they should not continue with any human rights violations against the West Papuan people. He spoke of how the West Papuan people will, next week, celebrate their unofficial date of independence, 50 years since the West Papuan community first raised the Morning Star flag and sang their national anthem. He stated that the conflict between the West Papuans and the Indonesian military is escalating in West Papua. He mentioned that people were arrested and detained and that a number of people remain in prison at this time. He advised us that a number of people were killed during the Third West Papuan People's Congress, where people were seeking their right to determine their own future. He went on to state that the Greens, protectors of the down-trodden, want the Australian government to take a leadership role and express in the strongest possible terms to Indonesia that Australia will not tolerate any human rights abuses—in fact, any violence—on the West Papuan community. He ended stunningly on a high note proclaiming that if a motion is not an appropriate way for dealing with issues of foreign policy then he wanted to know what is.

Naturally, I was more than pleased to support the motion by Senator Di Natale, even though it was not as direct as I would have preferred. I showed my support and moved across to sit beside the Greens, a photo of which will probably become a collector's item in the years to come. Unfortunately, the motion was defeated, but undaunted I prepared to move mine, knowing I would have the support of the party who have so often held themselves out as the champion of the oppressed. I spoke briefly on the motion, reminding senators that the peoples of West Papua were entitled to pursue the right to live in a free and democratic society. I reminded the house that Australia had rightly supported this right for other people around the world and had recently supported the people of Libya, who fought to obtain the right to live under a freely elected government of their choice. I reminded the senators of the lessons we have learned from the tragedy of East Timor and the need to continue to support other nations, especially our neighbours, when they hold out a hand for assistance.

As I finished, Senator Di Natale rose to also speak on the motion. I settled back, sure in the notion that Senator Di Natale would speak in support of the West Papuan people and the need for us to uphold their rights for a free and democratic future. Surprise! Surprise! Not only did Senator Di Natale, on behalf of the Greens, fail to support the motion, he explained that, despite his tub-thumping speech on behalf of the West Papuan people—who, in his own words, face oppression, violence, imprisonment, human rights abuses and possible execution—that the Greens do not want to see a free West Papua, do not support independence for West Papua and, for that matter, believe it should be left to the West Papuans to decide for themselves. There was no explanation as to how these people, who have been oppressed for decades, would achieve this feat—possibly the Greens would support NATO air cover in the manner that assisted the Libyan people to achieve their freedom, or maybe a Greens fact-finding mission. Needless to say, my motion seeking support for the West Papuan people was defeated. It is a shame. I did not realise that all I needed to do was call for the West Papuans to rise up alone and, unsupported by their neighbours, ask politely for self-determination.

As I said, this is an issue the DLP will pursue, but for now I will seek support elsewhere. Having been left a little dejected by the rejection of the self-appointed conscience of the federal parliament, I moved on to my second motion in support of the Tasmanian timber communities. I must admit that before today I did not hold out much hope that the motion would pass, despite support from the coalition. But once I knew the Greens were so adamant about allowing regional people the right of self-determination my confidence grew and I again waited to welcome the support of the defenders of community rights and of cultural heritage.

I spoke on the motion reminding senators of the connection these communities have with their environment, how they have grown to be identified with this environment and have formed, over generations, a cultural heritage which we should celebrate and respect. I asked the Senate to call on the government to pull back from the IGA until the concerns of these communities regarding the protection of their heritage have been adequately addressed. As I finished, Senator Milne rose to speak on the motion. As the senator is a Tasmanian, and obviously an advocate of the Greens' recently declared policy of people's self-determination, I felt sure she was there to wholeheartedly support the rights of the Tasmanian timber communities to determine their future and to safeguard their heritage. Surprise, surprise! Not only did Senator Milne, with Senator Di Natale's endorsement of self-determination ringing in our ears, fail to support the motion; she explained that the IGA is what the communities actually wanted. The senator explained that all it took to satisfy their needs for the protection of their cultural heritage was to throw enough money around that they will 'transition out of native forest logging'.

Naturally I had difficulty understanding how removing the industry that has been part of their community's culture since they first began generations ago would assist the community to survive. After all, in the past there have been other communities who the government said would be better off if we poured lots of money into them and encouraged them to move away from their connections to their cultural heritage. I suppose if enough money were thrown at them many of the people who live in these communities could simply pack up and transition all the way to the mainland. After that, the mining, fishing and farming communities might also see the benefits of 'transitioning' and would be happy to become mainlanders. It would leave Tasmania rather empty, but I am sure the Greens could find someone to fill the vacancies.

Of course, the motion was defeated. I should say I appreciate the coalition's support for the rights of Tasmanian communities. Unfortunately the ALP-Greens government remains joined at the hip. On behalf of all these communities I will be pursuing their right to have their cultural heritage recognised. This is not a divisive issue. As with the right and proper recognition of the cultural heritage of the Indigenous members of the Australian community, this is an issue that should bring our nation closer together. When we hear that self-determination is right and proper for the West Papuan people but not for our own citizens we have a right to consider this a double standard. I was once told that blue is considered the colour of truth, red of passion and white of purity. Maybe now we can say the colour of hypocrisy is green.