Natasha Griggs (Solomon, Country Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to add my voice to the statements of condolence on the 10th anniversary of the Bali bombings. As a lifetime Territorian I have travelled quite frequently to Bali. It is a shorter flight to Bali than to any other capital city in Australia and it is also a lot cheaper. It is for this reason that Bali is quite a popular holiday destination amongst many Territorians. It is not uncommon for people from my electorate to travel to Bali more than five or 10 times. I have been there at least 15 times since I first travelled there in the late eighties.

Like all Australians, I was absolutely in shock when I first heard the news of the terrorist attacks in Bali—a place that I know so well. It really was a wake-up call for all Australians. Terrorists had just attacked us so close to home. In these terrible bombings, 202 people were killed—88 Australians and 38 Indonesians among many of the victims. Hundreds more had been injured. A holiday to Bali would never be the same from that time on, because forever in the back of the minds of travellers is the thought of another attack. That innocence had been lost.

As member for Brisbane said, my electorate had a bit of involvement after the bombings. It is often said that the true human spirit comes out in the most tragic of times, and I think this is true of the Bali bombings. In the immediate aftermath we heard stories of bravery, mateship and sacrifice. One of the stories I am most proud of is the story of the Royal Darwin Hospital. The Royal Darwin Hospital is, as many know, the major public hospital in the Northern Territory, and it happens to be in my electorate of Solomon. It services the needs of people in Darwin and Palmerston and the greater Northern Territory. Now it even plays a role nationally and internationally. After the bombings in Kuta, the Royal Darwin Hospital was put on notice to prepare to receive the injured, because the hospital in Bali was not able to cope—it was not resourced adequately—with the hundreds of people injured in the explosions. We heard stories about how the staff were called in to assist in the preparations. Two surgical wards on the second floor were cleared, with patients being sent home or relocated within the hospital or transferred to the private hospital.

Some of the more serious cases were wanting to give up their beds for the bombing victims but, because of their injuries, were forced to stay.

By the end of the emergency, 63 critically injured patients had been treated in Darwin. The staff at the Royal Darwin Hospital and those who came from interstate to help performed well above expectations and, as a community, we were so proud of what they achieved and how hard they had worked. Sixteen Territorians were recognised with honours for their work in the response. Some of the staff include Dr Didier Palmer, Dr Gary Lum and Dr Len Notaras. These three doctors were instrumental in the set-up of the response and they continue to play important roles in the Royal Darwin Hospital today. Dr Notaras is now the Executive Director of the National Critical Care and Trauma Response Centre. Dr Palmer is the Director of Emergency Medicine in the Royal Darwin Hospital and Dr Lum is the Assistant Secretary of the Health Emergency Management Branch in the Office of Health Protection.

These three are just three of the many remarkable people who worked tirelessly over those critical 36 hours looking after the victims of the Bali bombings. Recently Dr Notaras commented that the Royal Darwin Hospital dealt in 36 hours with more casualties than any other single hospital dealt with in either the 9/11 or the Oklahoma bombing in the United States. That is a pretty impressive comment to make. It is a truly outstanding achievement that all Australians, not just Territorians, can be proud of.

One of the few positives to come out of such an awful act of hatred is the National Critical Care and Trauma Response Centre. The response centre was set up in 2005 with funding from the then federal coalition government. According to the National Critical Care and Trauma Response official website:

The function of the NCCTRC is to ensure enhanced surge capacity for Royal Darwin Hospital to provide a rapid response in the event of a mass casualty incident in the region. As a result the NCCTRC has channelled significant funds into Royal Darwin Hospital to enhance the capacity of the hospital’s surgical and trauma divisions.

Additionally, since its creation the response centre and the Royal Darwin Hospital have dealt with the second Bali bombings in 2005, the East Timor unrest in 2006, the attempted assassination of East Timor President Jose Ramos-Horta in 2008, the Ashmore Reef CF36 incident in 2009, and the Pakistan floods in 2010. Locally, the centre and the Royal Darwin Hospital have been involved in responses to Cyclone Helen, the Ghan derailment and the petrol bomb attack on the TIO office in Darwin City.

In recognition of the 10th anniversary of the bombings, the National Critical Care and Trauma Response Centre held its conference recently, the War and Disaster 2012 Conference. As part of this conference a gala dinner was held on the Thursday night with former Prime Minister John Howard as the keynote speaker. Former Prime Minister John Howard recognised the Royal Darwin Hospital's effort and response to the attacks as a remarkable achievement, saying:

The response, particularly that organised through the Royal Darwin Hospital, was a triumph of what I think I can describe as the gentle efficiency of the Australian people when faced with a great crisis.

Mr Howard acknowledged that the terrorists had failed in their attempt to drive a wedge between Australia and Indonesia. I think that one of the best examples of this failure is the success of the relationship that now stands between the Royal Darwin Hospital and the Sanglah Hospital in Bali, a testament to the strength of the relationship between Australia and Indonesia.

Recently I tabled a private member's motion to acknowledge the work done by our medical profession across Australia in the wake of the Bali bombings. I am happy to say that I have secured support from my coalition colleagues, and I am working to secure support from the Labor government so that we can debate this motion. I think that it is important to recognise the contribution that these people made in 2002, and continue to make today.

The thoughts and prayers of the people of Darwin and Palmerston are with the families and friends of those 88 Australians who died and the many more who were injured. We must also take time to acknowledge our friends in Indonesia, who also suffered a great loss but who continue to offer the hand of friendship to Australians and who stand with us against the menace of terrorism.

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