Russell Broadbent (Monash, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for McMahon for bringing this motion forward and those members who have supported this motion. The 60,000 Assyrian Christians have been taken into the bosom of this nation. Mesopotamian history goes back thousands of years. This country's history goes back thousands of years. We know there are paintings that are some 60,000 years old in this country. You also have an enormously long history in the Middle East. So, you've come into the bosom of a country that has a long history. The Assyrians in this country are not only making a great contribution; they are also leaders throughout our communities, which we appreciate very much. This nation loves its multicultural being.

This motion also recognises the oppression of Christians around the world, especially, in this case, in the Middle East. I have never been dispossessed. I live in this country that has freedom of movement and freedom of religion. While our values, our relationships with one another and the respect we have for one another are sometimes tested, we live in a world that has not suffered the dispossession and the attacks that this community has suffered in Iraq. I want to recognise that today. I don't come from a place where I have stood in your shoes, because I can't. It comes from my heart. I've grown up in this country and have only observed and heard and cared about what was happening to my fellow Christians around the world, especially in Iraq.

You have stood the test of time. You still exist today. You are part of hundreds of generations. We need to send a message to those we can. Australia has reasonable influence. We're not without influence. You're a part of that influence. You, as a community—and I'm talking about the Assyrian Australians—are very important. Australians with an Assyrian heritage are extremely important to the families within the Assyrian community because you are all connected back to your homeland, even though you're in the bosom of this great south land.

As members of parliament we are saying to you that we actually care about what is happening. The member for McMahon didn't bring this to the table in this green part of the parliament for no good reason. He brought it to the table because there's an issue here that we as a nation recognise needs to be addressed. When you're in pain, we're in pain. When you're suffering, we're suffering. We're recognising that. If a part of our community is suffering, it means we're all suffering. You are very much a part of the Australian community, and I talked about our having taken you into the bosom of this nation.

I am honoured to have had these few moments to address this issue, to support the member for McMahon and to say to Christians around the world: 'We're on your side. You stand with the authority of your maker, and we stand with you.'

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