Judi Moylan (Pearce, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I thank my colleague the member for Fremantle for bringing this motion to this House today. Today is indeed an opportunity to think about and consider the International Day of Peace. The day actually falls on 21 September but this House has the opportunity to consider it this week as we do not sit on that particular date. To me it seems fitting to the memory of those innocent people who lost their lives in the destruction of the twin towers in New York and other targets in other places on this day in 2001, just five years ago, for us to be speaking to this motion for the International Day of Peace.

It gives us time to pause and to offer expressions of sympathy and sorrow for those who lost family members, work mates and friends in the horrendous and barbarous attacks of 2001. Several Australians lost their lives on that day, as did people from other nations. I think there were about 80 different nationalities affected in that horrendous event. Our heartfelt sympathy goes to all of those families who suffered losses and to all of those people who lost friends and work mates. But for the American people it signalled both a personal loss and a symbolic loss, and our thoughts are with our American friends on this day.

War and acts of violence affect everyone, but it seems to me that they impact disproportionately on the lives of innocent men, women and children. War destroys and damages people, property and the natural environment. For many developing countries already struggling to improve their quality of life, war deprives people of the basic necessities of life, legal rights and ultimately, of course, the loss of human dignity.

Working for global peace is the responsibility of every living person. This is not somebody else’s responsibility; it is ours. I think I might have reflected in the past that when I was a very young child, less than 10, I asked my father why we had wars, because I was born at the end of the Second World War and I recall my uncles coming back from the front. My father turned to me and said, ‘Why do you fight with your brothers and sisters?’ He did not have to say another word. The message was a very graphic one. I think about that often and thank my father for that lesson because wars are about not respecting others; they are about having disagreements and ultimately using violence and force to resolve differences and they are about a lack of tolerance for other people.

The responsibility for global peace rests with every one of us. Each of us can play a role. At the foundation of achieving global peace is respect for human life and a commitment to upholding human dignity through equality of opportunity and through tolerance. The International Day of Peace is a time for all of us to stop and reflect on the task of working toward a peaceful world, and each person can participate. I think on the United Nations website on this day it says, ‘Peace begins with ourselves, living in harmony with one another and with the earth.’ I do not think I could summarise it any better than that.

There is no doubt that achieving global peace is a formidable task, but Australia is committed to peace building in a very real way and to conflict resolution in many parts of the world. None of us, as the member for Fremantle said, should feel defeated because preventing war, which prevents peace, is difficult. Democracy and good governance play an integral part in upholding human dignity and equal opportunity, and the Australian government has an outstanding record of participating in the strengthening of democratic principles and in the governance of the Asia-Pacific region in particular as well as many other parts of the world.

I conclude by personally acknowledging and thanking members of the Australian Defence Force who are currently serving to bring about peace in many parts of the globe, including Iraq, Afghanistan, East Timor, Sinai, the Middle East, Sudan and the Solomon Islands. May I say how much we appreciate the task that they do and that we wish them all safe missions and a speedy return home.

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