Peter Slipper (Fisher, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Deputy Speaker Somlyay; it is always good to see you in the chair. I rise in the Main Committee today to express my sympathy and the sympathy of the people in my electorate for the family of the Australian soldier who has been lost with the Black Hawk helicopter disaster off the coast of Fiji to express my best wishes to those who are injured and to their families and to express our feelings and prayers with respect to the SAS trooper who is lost.

Over the last two years I have been privileged to participate in the ADF parliamentary program. I think this is a very worthwhile program because it gives members of parliament—who these days have mostly not had very much or any service in the military forces—the opportunity to experience conditions in the armed forces for a short period of time so we are better able to understand the challenges that confront the serving men and women of the Australian military forces. I understand the honourable member at the table, the member for Canning, has also been to this ADF parliamentary program. The Kanimbla, the ship from which the Black Hawk was lost, is a ship in which I spent a day or two off Darwin last year. I was really impressed with the high degree of professionalism.

Mr Deputy Speaker, you and I and our colleagues understand how many days we have to be away from home to serve our constituents in the Australian parliament. But given the fact that we have so many deployments I was shocked to learn that, in 2006, members of the Royal Australian Navy are often away from home for basically two out of every three months. I want to place on record my admiration for those men and women in the Australian Defence Force and in particular those in the Royal Australian Navy who tend to be away as much as they are.

I notice that this tragedy occurred off the coast of Fiji. This year I was invited by the Minister for Foreign Affairs to join the honourable member for Denison as part of an election observer team. We were based at Savu Savu and also at Taveuni, which is known as the garden island of Fiji. We were very keen, as part of the Pacific Islands Forum observer team, to see that the Fiji election was free, fair and open. I want to compliment the government of Fiji for ensuring that the election was fair and free, and I congratulate the Prime Minister of Fiji, Mr Qarase, who has formed a coalition government with the opposition Labour Party which is strongly supported by the Indo-Fijian community. Also, I am completely appalled by the prospects of a coup in Fiji by the military commander and by some people who support him.

My own observation and the observation of the Pacific Islands Forum observer team was that the election in Fiji was fair and free. There was a very high degree of integrity. There was an absolute determination by booth workers of all political parties to make sure that the election was in fact equitable, fair and free. I am appalled that in 2006 we would find the military commander of Fiji threatening the government. Because he is under some possibility of being charged with sedition because of his threats against the government, he is talking about having a coup in Fiji. I have to say that in 2006 this is absolutely unacceptable. The impact of a coup upon Fiji would be as devastating on the economy and the international standing of that country as the previous coups were.

One could understand that, if the election had not been fair and free, there might be a demand from the community to replace the government, but there is absolutely no doubt in my mind or indeed in the minds of all of the other observers that there was a very high degree of integrity in that election. There was a great degree of determination to make sure that the people of Fiji were able to choose the government they wanted. There was an absolute determination to make sure that the election was held on a democratic basis. Having said that, the constitution of Fiji has now been observed, the opposition Fiji Labour Party is included in the government, and the fact that we find this coup is being threatened is absolutely unacceptable. I want to salute the serving men and women of Australia’s armed forces, I want to recognise in particular those who were touched by this tragedy, and I want to say how much I am opposed to any possibility of a coup in Fiji. (Time expired)

Question agreed to.