Malarndirri McCarthy (NT, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Minister for Indigenous Australians) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Like all Australians, I was horrified by the terrorist attack by Hamas on Israeli families on 7 October 2023. The hostages taken must be released. There is simply no excuse or justification for the atrocities that day; likewise, there is no excuse or justification for the wider use of civilian shields by any of the parties to the current conflict in Gaza and the West Bank.

Australia joined more than 150 other countries voting for a humanitarian ceasefire at the UN in December 2023. I have been meeting with Northern Territory constituents deeply moved by the retaliatory action of the Israeli defence force as they move in to search and destroy terrorist elements and supporting infrastructure based in Gaza.

My meetings have been with both supporters of the Palestinians and also the Jewish community here in Australia—teachers, doctors, mums and dads—who are all aghast at the trauma, as we are, and at the intergenerational aspects of the long-time conflict in the former Palestinian territories and homelands in Israel. The scale of the impact on the civilian population is frightening: 400,000 Palestinians suffering dire food shortages equals starvation and 1.7 million people in Gaza are internally displaced from their usual home—a place of safety and security that is surely a basic human need.

Most recently, representations from my constituents have put some difficult questions which I wish to put to the Senate: concern about the impact of the pause on part of our financial contribution to alleviate food shortages and starvation in Rafah through the UNRWA; steps Australia can take to increase pressure on those controlling land access to facilitate the transport of aid currently bottlenecked at border crossings into the communities of the Gaza Strip; steps Australia can take to force meaningful negotiations to finalise a sustainable two-state solution that aims to undo the intergenerational aspects of the history of conflict in this part of the Middle East; the potential for graduated economic sanctions against all aggressors not heeding our support for a peaceful future or operating outside of international law; a call to any Australian companies involved in the manufacture of military hardware used in that conflict to cease that support as a humanitarian gesture. In this regard, I note that Australia as a nation has not supplied weapons to Israel since the current conflict began and for the past five years. The unknown question of how intelligence gathered by Australians and our allies might be assisting to inform Israeli military action is another point that constituents have put forward.

A two-state solution that aims for peace in the Middle East has always been central to Australian foreign policy. Australia has been clear: there must be a two-state solution that brings a true peace and benefits the local population. We've certainly come to regard the current conflict as a failure of politics everywhere. It has recently been said that peacekeeping should seek to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, uphold international law and treaties, and promote social progress. In a similar vein, Senator Gallagher, in a speech to the G20 earlier this year, noted that the foundation for economic growth that lifts living standards is peace and stability. Australia is deeply alarmed by the conflict in the Middle East and the human catastrophe is worsening. The price of defeating Hamas cannot be the continuous suffering of all Palestinian civilians. Some wars are just a cover for genocide. We have seen this in conflicts over centuries. The International Court of Justice continues to consider that issue in the context of the current conflict in the Middle East. We have called on all parties to respect the findings of that judicial review.

In terms of a major ground offensive in Rafah, which is a place of refuge for large numbers of Palestinian refugees, we have been clear. We say to Israel: do not go down this path. Australia has a respected voice in this part of the world, and one way we maintain and use that influence is by ensuring that our aid is directed to support victims in conflict. We cannot say that is the case of the moment, after the self-declared irregularities with a small number of staff in UNRWA. UNRWA does life-saving work, but recent allegations against some staff are grave and need to be investigated. We applaud the early intervention of the UN in urgently cleaning out pockets of inappropriate behaviour in that organisation. While that review is underway, we have paused the $6 million earmarked for delivery through that agency, and 14 other countries have also paused their contributions. Australia is committed to providing aid where we can. Since 7 October, the Albanese government has provided $46.5 million in humanitarian assistance in the region. The situation is absolutely dire.

I call on all our political representatives in Australia to work together to ameliorate the impact of this conflict on the innocents, particularly Palestinian children. I applaud the leadership of the Prime Minister, Foreign Minister Penny Wong in particular, and the Attorney-General in pursuing a humanitarian ceasefire and lasting peace built with a sustainable two-state solution.

I also thank the advocacy of the Northern Territory constituents in their pursuit for peace in the Middle East and for continually putting this issue at the forefront, in spite of all our own issues domestically in this country. I thank them for that.