Ed Husic (Chifley, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Recently, during a visit of my mobile office to Woodcroft, I was approached by a number of community members from the Australian and Egyptian Coptic seniors, including Mr Wadi Botros from Hebersham, Samir Hanna from the Universal Peace Federation's Australian peace embassy and Kamal Iskandar. They related stories to me of friends and loved ones suffering in fear of religious perse­cution in Egypt. While we have obviously been moved by the vision of everyday Egyptians taking such courageous steps to bring democracy to the lives of the many who have sought it, there have been disturbing stories emerging which, to a great degree, cast a shadow on the events we have witnessed. I, like many others, was stunned by the New Year's Day attacks on the Al-Qiddissin Church, the Church of the Two Saints, in Alexandria, Egypt. Courage and tenacity has driven the Egyptians in their fight for democratic rights, but with this fight there must be an equal determination to honour the right to freedom of religion and culture. I wish to place on record my dismay and opposition to the persecution of Egyptian Copts. They deserve what we all enjoy: freedom, peace, security and the right to practice their religion free from persecution.

At a local level, I want to acknowledge the efforts of our Australian Coptic Christian Orthodox community. Approximately 63 per cent of Coptics live in Sydney and one of 14 Coptic churches in the archdiocese of Sydney is in the electorate of Chifley—Archangel Michael and St Bishoy located in Mt Druitt. We are also blessed by the presence of the St Bishoy Coptic Orthodox College, along with many active youth groups and organisations. A special mention goes to the great work of the Coptic Orthodox Youth Association, formerly the Coptic Youth Centre. I acknowledge and commend their local work and seek to reassure them of my abiding commitment to represent their concerns to the Australian government.

I also wanted to let the House know of an exercise I was very pleased to be associated with a few weeks ago. I have previously indicated that nearly a third of the Chifley electorate is under the age of 19. Ensuring that more young people maximise their time in education and training, as well as ensuring they maintain a focus on their own health and wellbeing, are critical priorities for our area. That is why I was so keen to host a recent visit to three local primary schools by the Sydney Kings NBL team. Three young players—Ben Hollis, Jarrod Weeks and Nathan Wilson—along with coach Ian 'Moose' Robilliard and assistant coach Tim Hudson dropped into Willmot Public School, Tregear Public School and Plumpton's Good Shepherd Primary School. While there, they engaged the students in some basketball exercises. They also delivered some import­ant messages to the students about the need to build their bank of personal skills by staying on in school as long as they can and about ensuring they eat well and exercise often to see the benefit this generates for their personal health.

It was a sensational day and the 200 or so students—and the players—enjoyed the opportunity to mix and learn about these important issues. I want to thank the teachers and staff for their help, especially principals Maureen Johnson, Russell Hawkins and Mary Creenaune for helping with the organisation of the day. I was also especially grateful to the Sydney Kings for their time on the day and was really pleased to hear from the players how impressed they were with the students and how much they enjoyed the visits.

A person central to the organisation of the day was Bob Turner. It is rare to describe someone as iconic, but, when it comes to Sydney basketball, Bob Turner wears that label well. I was not the only Sydneysider celebrating the return of an NBL side to our great city last year. Bob Turner played a healthy part in making that happen and, in his own way, he helped draw some of the biggest crowds in the league. It was terrific to be present for some fantastic home games at the Kingdome. Bob was also instrumental in beginning to refashion the franchise's approach to community engagement. It became something of an emerging, fast-growing passion for Bob—using his love of the game to try to shape closer links between the sport and community.

Just as so many Sydneysiders were delighted that Bob was able to bring the Kings back to Sydney, there are many who are saddened by the fact he is moving on to other ventures. He may have left the Kings, but basketball is ingrained in his DNA and it is great to hear that he is moving to set up a not-for-profit organisation called B'Ball4A11, designed to use the best aspects of the sport to open up opportunities for young people doing it tough. I wish Bob and his wife Alison every success and happiness in future endeavours and I thank them for their commitment to the game of basketball in this country—for what they have done and what Bob Turner will do.

House adjourned at 20:00