George Christensen (Dawson, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

I second the motion. Mr Deputy Speaker, as a North Queenslander, I can assure you that severe tropical cyclones can have a huge impact on a community. They are both frightening and devastating. Cyclone Pam was no different when it slammed into our neighbours in the Pacific. While the winds howled around homes in Vanuatu, North Queensland held its breath. When the terror had passed, and thousands of families started picking up the pieces of their broken homes and shattered lives, North Queensland felt the grief.

North Queensland shares a special bond with the people of Vanuatu for one simple reason—they are family. The Mackay region is home to the largest Australian South Sea Islander community in the country. They are the Australian born descendants of Pacific islander labourers brought to Australia to work in the sugarcane fields in the early days of the industry in the 1800s and 1900s. While some came of their own free will, many were tricked or kidnapped under the practice of blackbirding. So while Cyclone Pam was wreaking havoc in the Pacific Islands, the thoughts of many in Mackay were with family and friends.

North Queenslanders understand, as well as anyone, the frightening nature of severe tropical cyclones and the destruction that they can cause. In Vanuatu, the havoc was extensive. Most homes in Port Vila are damaged or destroyed. Across the 80 islands of the archipelago, villages are flattened, power lines are down, phones are out, and families are left without food, water, or shelter.

The Australian Government has responded quickly with the arrival in Port Vila of HMAS Tobruk, having departed Townsville in North Queensland with 335 personnel on board, carrying troops and equipment from the 3rd Combat Engineer Regiment and additional Australian aid supplies.

The Australian Defence Force, through Operation Pacific Assist, has delivered tools and equipment for the repair of homes, water purification, and shelter, as well as health and hygiene products. More than 500 defence personnel are now deployed to Vanuatu. Given the difficult topography of the region, HMAS Tobruk will be a valuable asset, allowing delivery of supplies, equipment and reconstruction teams by landing craft, helicopter, and crane.

In the immediate aftermath, the government sent an Australian Medical Assistance Team—otherwise known as AUSMAT—of 28 people to provide lifesaving medical support. An Urban Search and Rescue Team of 56 people was dispatched to help with the immediate clean-up and early reconstruction, focusing initially on Port Vila hospital.

Over 16 and 17 March, the Australian Government assisted 242 people to return to Australia via Australian Defence Force military aircraft, including 208 Australians and 34 foreign nationals. Today, the government continues to work closely with our counterparts in New Zealand to coordinate medical assistance, including support for the New Zealand NGO health specialists. We are also working closely with international NGOs and the UN to coordinate additional support.

While the government has coordinated a swift and comprehensive response, non-government organisations have also been quick to react, and the public has responded to calls for donations. In Mackay, the community has launched its own coordinated response. A team of Australian South Sea Islander community members and organisations met in Mackay last week. The appointed chair of the local response team, Mr Greg Sutherland, has provided me with an update from that meeting, and I thank him and his colleagues for the professional and thorough manner in which they have undertaken this task. They recognise the recovery process will be long and arduous and, consequently, they are working on short, medium, and long-term strategies to assist Vanuatu. Fundraising began immediately with the organising of a luncheon, market day and cent sale, with further plans for a concert and dinner.

I make special mention of organisations like MADASSIA and MARABISDA, Frangipani Art and Culture Group, and Yamadi HACC, who have joined forces for this united cause. I note also that the Queensland Police liaison officers are lending a hand with Rotary collection cans. The Rotary Club of Mackay has established the Rotary Australia World Community Service project, which will assist with donations. As I said, the group recognises the need for ongoing support, which will be required beyond the emergency of the first few days. Yamadi HACC already has received donations from Moranbah and will continue their collection for a shipping container. Meanwhile, they are seeking support for transporting the shipping container to Vanuatu.

The Australian Government and the South Sea Islander communities in North Queensland are deeply concerned for the welfare of our neighbours and family in the Pacific, and will provide whatever assistance we can to help them through the recovery process.

On behalf of those who desperately need our help, I offer thanks and support to our local community lending a hand, ably led by Greg Sutherland and Erryn Tomarra. Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Vanuatu, Kiribati, and Tuvalu. We wish them a safe and speedy recovery. In the brief seconds I have left, I also mention Dr Graeme Cumming who has gone over there to assist those people. When he was asked why he said that he was going to help his family. That sums up the North Queensland attitude when it comes to this.

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