Karen Andrews (McPherson, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Home Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) recognises that 21 August 2022 is the International Day of Remembrance and Tribute to the Victims of Terrorism;

(2) remembers those Australians who have lost their lives in terrorism incidents, both abroad and on our shores, and their families who are forever impacted; and

(3) thanks the men and women of our law enforcement and national security agencies who work every day to keep Australians safe from the threat of terrorism.

I rise to move this motion and recognise that the 21st of this month is the International Day of Remembrance and Tribute to the Victims of Terrorism. It is fitting that we pause and remember those victims, especially those Australians who've perished both here and overseas.

I stood in this place in August 2014 to express the heartfelt shock, grief and sorrow that we all felt about the shooting down of flight MH17. On that flight was one of my constituents, Helena Sidelik, who lived a life of joy, generosity and strength. She embodied all that is good and right with the world—the complete opposite of those who commit atrocious acts of terrorism. At the time, I joined with well over 200 friends and family members to celebrate her life and to mourn with them the loss of a remarkable lady. Sadly, there are stories like this in many communities across Australia.

We all know that Australians were killed in the World Trade Centre attack, the Bali bombings, MH17, the London Underground and London Bridge attacks and other attacks abroad. Sadly, we've also had a number of incidents here, including the Lindt siege and the Bourke Street attack. The truth is that the threat of terrorism and violent extremism has not diminished.

Here in Australia, 144 people have been charged in 71 counterterrorism related operations around Australia since 2014, when the national terrorism threat level was raised to 'probable'. That is why the previous coalition government took decisive action to prevent, detect and deter terror attacks. The new counterterrorism strategy we developed sets out a comprehensive plan to counter violent extremism, equip our law enforcement and intelligence agencies and ensure our laws and arrangements are fit for purpose. Importantly, we delivered record funding in the fight on terror, including an extra $1.3 billion to the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation and boosting the Australian Federal Police's annual budget to more than $1.7 billion. We've strengthened laws to ensure our highest-risk terrorists remain behind bars and that terrorists serve their full sentences, even when weak state laws provide discounts, and enable us to cancel the citizenship of dual-national terrorists. We've listed terrorist organisations under our Criminal Code, making it illegal to be a member or supporter, including Hezbollah and Hamas in their entirety.

I want to pay tribute today to those brave men and women who work in our national security and law enforcement agencies, because they take up the fight against terror every single day, and we owe them an enormous debt of gratitude. It's a fact that they have thwarted many planned attacks here on home soil and have saved countless lives. Of course, the public rarely get to hear about the attacks that didn't happen. Our teams have also contributed to international intelligence to prevent terrorism abroad. We can be proud of our counterterrorism officers and the contribution that they make. Australia, as it often does, is doing more than our share in the international fight against terror.

Australia is one of the most successful democracies in the world. We have a peaceful, cohesive society, made up of those who have come across the sea as well as those who were born here. Ideologically based violent extremism in any form threatens our way of life and our social fabric. It will never be tolerated. It will never be accepted. And neither should it be. Terrorism has senselessly taken too many Australians from us. On 21 August, we will remember them, and we will acknowledge their families, who still suffer the pain of their loss.

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