Julian Leeser (Berowra, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on this motion on Syria. The Kurdish people know all too well what is meant by the phrase 'in the firing line'. For decades, they have lived across the borders of a very tense and dangerous part of the world with no homeland of their own. They've been caught in the crossfire of other people's conflicts, but they've also been an easy target of hostility themselves. Despite being the fourth-largest ethnic group in the Middle East, numbering about 35 million, the Kurds have no nation-state and have straddled the borders of Iraq, Turkey, Syria, Iran and Armenia for many years. After World War I, the Treaty of Sevres made provision for a Kurdish state, but, when the boundaries of Turkey were created in 1923 at the Treaty of Lausanne, no Kurdish state was created. The Kurds have instead been a minority group spread across multiple countries. The interests of Kurds have frequently been sacrificed for the desires of governments that don't have them as a priority. Throughout the 1980s, Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq systemically targeted the Kurdish people. The Anfal campaign included bombings, firing squads, the raping of women, and chemical warfare against the Kurds. We don't know exactly how many people were killed during the years of Anfal, but the numbers are estimated to have been as high as 182,000, including women and children. Thousands of schools, hospitals and mosques were destroyed, and about 90 per cent of Kurdish villages in the region were wiped out.

From the earliest days of the Islamic State, Kurds have been caught in the midst of violence. In 2013, ISIS attacked Kurdish areas of northern Syria. It wasn't long before Kurdish fighters were at the forefront of the international coalition's fight against ISIS. The Kurds have done more than their fair share of fighting and dying for a cause we also believe in. In the fight against ISIS, Kurdish fighters, under the name of the Syrian Democratic Forces, have been steadfast allies. They have been central to the fight, and Australia will never forget their courage and sacrifice.

Their service continues as the Kurdish forces continue to assist the international community by providing security and support for internally displaced persons camps. The Kurds are continuing to keep the international community safe. Thousands of ISIS fighters are now under Kurdish guard. While the territorial defeat of ISIS brought desperately needed peace to Syria and its neighbours, that stability was interrupted by Turkish military operations crossing the border into the Kurdish controlled area of northern Syria late last year. The Turkish invasion of Syria has reignited conflict, caused civilian deaths and displaced tens of thousands of people. Thousands of Kurds are living as internally displaced people in the midst of a cold winter. They continue to experience untold levels of suffering, as civilians are raped and killed and people are displaced. I also want to acknowledge that 15 February will mark 21 years of Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan being held in a Turkish jail.

Turkey's actions will have significant consequences for the security of the region and the ability of the international coalition to ensure ISIS doesn't regain a foothold. Turkey has legitimate domestic security concerns, but taking military action across borders will not solve those concerns. Australians are deeply troubled by these events. Turkey's actions will increase the displacement of people, compromise the ability of international agencies to provide humanitarian support, and cause more unnecessary suffering. As our foreign minister and Prime Minister have indicated, Turkey alone is responsible for the decisions it's made conducting this incursion. Turkey alone is accountable for the actions of its military forces and the militias it's employing. Turkey alone is responsible for the humanitarian suffering it's causing and its military operations. And Turkey is fully accountable for the detention, custody and escapes of ISIS fighters. If Turkey embarks on a program of changing the demography of these occupied Syrian territories through mass relocations of ethnic groups, or worse, Turkey will be fully accountable for that as well.

Australia calls on all parties to exercise restraint and prioritise stability at this time. When the incursions first occurred last year, I said in the House that Australia has a good and perhaps unique relationship with a Western secular Muslim democratic Turkey, formed on the principles of Kemal Ataturk, whom so many Turks and Australians admire for his bravery at Gallipoli and his conception of modern Turkey. I repeat that sentiment again today. Turkey is a nation with a proud and strong history to draw from. President Erdogan and his regime should remember that legacy and ensure his nation does not again choose to be on the wrong side of history.

I urge all parties in the region to act with restraint, to prioritise stability and humanitarian care and to prevent the needless re-escalation of conflict. Australia's priorities are to stop ISIS resurging and focus on avoiding a humanitarian crisis. It's also important that the Kurds aren't forgotten again by the international community. I want to finish by thanking the Kurdish people for their extraordinary service and recognise the role of many of the leaders of the Kurdish Australian community and the wonderful role they play in this nation. We should do all we can to protect the Kurdish people, to whom we are indebted.

See this speech in context