Alan Griffin (Bruce, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Veterans' Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

to move:

That this House:

(1)

recognises that the atrocities that occurred in Rwanda between 1994 and 1995 were some of the most horrific and appalling crimes seen in recent history;

(2)

notes that between April and July 1994 up to one million Tutsi and moderate Hutus were killed at the hands of the militia;

(3)

notes that in response, Australia deployed 657 ADF members to Rwanda in 1994 and 1995 as part of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Rwanda (UNAMIR);

(4)

notes that the Australian contingent was largely a medical team whose key role was to provide medical care and health support for UNAMIR and, where possible, those injured by the massacres;

(5)

acknowledges that Australian troops came under direct fire in and around refugee camps and faced the daily threat presented by landmines and other explosive devices placed to maim or kill Australian soldiers;

(6)

acknowledges that these peacekeepers experienced the most horrible events such as the massacre of up to 8,000 men women and children at the Kibeyo refugee camp in April 1995;

(7)

notes with concern that many of these troops are now suffering serious mental and physical disabilities as the result of their service;

(8)

notes that despite the severe trauma and the danger faced by Australian Peacekeepers in Rwanda, their service is still not treated as warlike service under the Veterans’ Entitlement Act; and

(9)

calls on the Government to immediately reclassify this service from ‘hazardous’ to ‘warlike’ in recognition of the risk faced by these troops and the magnificent contribution they made to the protection of Rwandan citizens.

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