Matt Thistlethwaite (Kingsford Smith, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) acknowledges the devastation caused by Cyclone Pam on the people of Vanuatu, Tuvalu and Kiribati;

(2) recognises the enormous destructive force of Cyclone Pam and notes the loss of life and destruction caused including:

(a) damage to 90 per cent of Port Vila homes and entire villages across the archipelago;

(b) displacement of 45 per cent of Tuvalu’s population and significant destruction of the outer islands of Tuvalu; and

(c) severe damage on three of Kiribati’s southern islands:

(3) recognises the:

(a) enormous effort that will be required by governments and non-government emergency teams to find those missing from the disaster; and

(b) huge task now facing our friends in the Pacific to rebuild and repair following the devastation of Cyclone Pam;

(4) acknowledges the international effort to provide assistance to Vanuatu; and

(5) calls on the Australian Government to monitor the situation closely and to work with the governments of Vanuatu, Tuvalu and Kiribati to provide timely and appropriate further assistance as needed.

On 13 March Cyclone Pam wreaked havoc on one of our closest neighbours, the archipelago of Vanuatu. A category 5 storm with winds of more than 300 kilometres an hour, Pam smashed into the string of 83 tropical islands home to 270,000 of our nearest neighbours. Trees were toppled, boats and ships whipped from their moorings, hospitals and schools damaged—some destroyed—and homes obliterated. Cyclone Pam was a natural disaster unlike anything Vanuatu had seen before. As a result, up to 70 per cent of Vanuatu's population has been displaced and, tragically, the latest UN death toll stands at 16. The nearby island nations of Tuvalu and Kiribati also could not escape the cyclone's fury, with 45 per cent of Tuvalu's population displaced as well.

Vanuatu and the Pacific islands are our neighbourhood. They are our close friends. In difficult times such as this, Australia stands with our neighbours in their time of need. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Ni-Vanuatu and those affected by this devastating natural disaster as they begin the long and arduous task of rebuilding their homes and their lives. Labor supports the government's assistance through $10 million worth of aid, and we thank the more than 450 Australian Defence Force members, 56 search-and-rescue personnel, 26 medical staff, including doctors and nurses, and the wonderful 22 members of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade who have been working with Vanuatu officials to help those most in need. We also commend Vanuatu's Prime Minister, Joe Natuman, and the Vanuatu government on the terrific job that they are doing in assessing the needs of the people and ensuring the worst-affected regions are receiving food, water, shelter and medicine.

Typically, many Australians are also digging deep to generously offer their support through financial donations. I ask Australians, however, to be wary. Unfortunately there are those who would seek to take advantage of this generosity. People should be wary of Cyclone Pam fundraising scams on social media, door to door and at their local shopping centres. The best way to identify a scam is to ask the person for their identification and to check the charity on the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission website.

Tragically for the tropical islands of the Pacific, weather events such as Cyclone Pam are becoming more and more violent. For these people, climate change is not just something to think about down the track; it is occurring now. Whenever I meet with Pacific leaders, their No. 1 concern for their future is climate change. For Australians, climate change is something that we think about in 20 or 30 years. For the Pacific, it is a present danger. As the world continues to warm and sea levels rise, the relatively small and vulnerable Pacific island nations are the globe's canary down the mine, and already they are noticing changes. In the wake of Vanuatu's storm, the President of Vanuatu, Baldwin Lonsdale, made an emotional plea to the international community to do more on climate change. The Premier of Niue, Toke Talagi, said this week:

We keep talking and talking about climate change. We keep talking about actions on climate change. But the consequences to the inaction is what's happened in Vanuatu, in Tuvalu and in Kiribati.

Homes are being inundated, the acidification of the ocean continues to threaten fish stocks, and the very existence of many small island states hangs in the balance. More must be done by countries that are able to alleviate the effects of climate change, particularly on our regional neighbours in the Pacific. I thank all of those Australians who have been working in Vanuatu with Vanuatu government officials, with Ni-Vanuatu communities, to repair the damage, to get those communities back on their feet. Our thoughts and prayers are with all those—our neighbours, our friends—who are suffering from this horrendous natural disaster.

Craig Kelly (Hughes, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is there a seconder for the motion?

George Christensen (Dawson, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second the motion. Mr Deputy Speaker, as a North Queenslander, I can assure you that severe tropical cyclones can have a huge impact on a community. They are both frightening and devastating. Cyclone Pam was no different when it slammed into our neighbours in the Pacific. While the winds howled around homes in Vanuatu, North Queensland held its breath. When the terror had passed, and thousands of families started picking up the pieces of their broken homes and shattered lives, North Queensland felt the grief.

North Queensland shares a special bond with the people of Vanuatu for one simple reason—they are family. The Mackay region is home to the largest Australian South Sea Islander community in the country. They are the Australian born descendants of Pacific islander labourers brought to Australia to work in the sugarcane fields in the early days of the industry in the 1800s and 1900s. While some came of their own free will, many were tricked or kidnapped under the practice of blackbirding. So while Cyclone Pam was wreaking havoc in the Pacific Islands, the thoughts of many in Mackay were with family and friends.

North Queenslanders understand, as well as anyone, the frightening nature of severe tropical cyclones and the destruction that they can cause. In Vanuatu, the havoc was extensive. Most homes in Port Vila are damaged or destroyed. Across the 80 islands of the archipelago, villages are flattened, power lines are down, phones are out, and families are left without food, water, or shelter.

The Australian Government has responded quickly with the arrival in Port Vila of HMAS Tobruk, having departed Townsville in North Queensland with 335 personnel on board, carrying troops and equipment from the 3rd Combat Engineer Regiment and additional Australian aid supplies.

The Australian Defence Force, through Operation Pacific Assist, has delivered tools and equipment for the repair of homes, water purification, and shelter, as well as health and hygiene products. More than 500 defence personnel are now deployed to Vanuatu. Given the difficult topography of the region, HMAS Tobruk will be a valuable asset, allowing delivery of supplies, equipment and reconstruction teams by landing craft, helicopter, and crane.

In the immediate aftermath, the government sent an Australian Medical Assistance Team—otherwise known as AUSMAT—of 28 people to provide lifesaving medical support. An Urban Search and Rescue Team of 56 people was dispatched to help with the immediate clean-up and early reconstruction, focusing initially on Port Vila hospital.

Over 16 and 17 March, the Australian Government assisted 242 people to return to Australia via Australian Defence Force military aircraft, including 208 Australians and 34 foreign nationals. Today, the government continues to work closely with our counterparts in New Zealand to coordinate medical assistance, including support for the New Zealand NGO health specialists. We are also working closely with international NGOs and the UN to coordinate additional support.

While the government has coordinated a swift and comprehensive response, non-government organisations have also been quick to react, and the public has responded to calls for donations. In Mackay, the community has launched its own coordinated response. A team of Australian South Sea Islander community members and organisations met in Mackay last week. The appointed chair of the local response team, Mr Greg Sutherland, has provided me with an update from that meeting, and I thank him and his colleagues for the professional and thorough manner in which they have undertaken this task. They recognise the recovery process will be long and arduous and, consequently, they are working on short, medium, and long-term strategies to assist Vanuatu. Fundraising began immediately with the organising of a luncheon, market day and cent sale, with further plans for a concert and dinner.

I make special mention of organisations like MADASSIA and MARABISDA, Frangipani Art and Culture Group, and Yamadi HACC, who have joined forces for this united cause. I note also that the Queensland Police liaison officers are lending a hand with Rotary collection cans. The Rotary Club of Mackay has established the Rotary Australia World Community Service project, which will assist with donations. As I said, the group recognises the need for ongoing support, which will be required beyond the emergency of the first few days. Yamadi HACC already has received donations from Moranbah and will continue their collection for a shipping container. Meanwhile, they are seeking support for transporting the shipping container to Vanuatu.

The Australian Government and the South Sea Islander communities in North Queensland are deeply concerned for the welfare of our neighbours and family in the Pacific, and will provide whatever assistance we can to help them through the recovery process.

On behalf of those who desperately need our help, I offer thanks and support to our local community lending a hand, ably led by Greg Sutherland and Erryn Tomarra. Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Vanuatu, Kiribati, and Tuvalu. We wish them a safe and speedy recovery. In the brief seconds I have left, I also mention Dr Graeme Cumming who has gone over there to assist those people. When he was asked why he said that he was going to help his family. That sums up the North Queensland attitude when it comes to this.

Richard Marles (Corio, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Immigration and Border Protection) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On 13 March Vanuatu experienced one of the most significant natural disasters in its history, with a category five cyclone, Cyclone Pam. Prior to the cyclone reaching Vanuatu, on 10 and 11 March king tides were experienced in the country of Tuvalu. On the island of Nukufetau and Nui significant flooding occurred, which has had an enormous impact and has given rise to significant health concerns in terms of infections, and a lot of concern in respect of respiratory illnesses and diarrhoea. In Kiribati the storms had an enormous impact, and in South Tarawa, which is the main population centre of Kiribati, the key causeway from the main islet of South Tarawa to the islet of Betio has had to be closed down because of the storm surges. I have gone over this causeway on many occasions. It connects the major population centres of South Tarawa.

This weather event has had an enormous impact across the Pacific. Its biggest impact has been in Vanuatu. It is one of the worst storms recorded in the history of the country. Perhaps it is summed up by the fact that a trade school on the island Tanna, which had been opened only 10 days prior to the storm, was completely destroyed by the storm.

One positive that has come out of the events of Cyclone Pam is that Vanuatu was very evidently a country and a community that was prepared. It says a lot about the progress and development of the Pacific, and in particular Vanuatu, that they were. Given the size of this storm, to date we see comparatively few lives lost—11 across the country. This is a tragedy of course, but it could have been so much worse. That is in part a tribute to much of the traditional knowledge possessed by the people of Vanuatu. There are stories of traditional cyclone shelters, which people were utilising during the storm itself, and the buildings in Vanuatu are built from the perspective of experiencing cyclones every year, albeit not of the size and scale of Cyclone Pam. It is a tribute to the Vanuatu government. And I want to pay tribute to Prime Minister Joe Natuman, a person I know well who has done a tremendous job in leading his government through this disaster. It is also a tribute to new communications. Most of Vanuatu, in a remarkable achievement, has had access to mobile phone technology. Both Digicel and Telecom Vanuatu were really important in sending emergency SMSs in the lead-up to the cyclone. And so we saw a country that was prepared.

We have now seen, as a result of the cyclone, two dozen islands affected and almost half the population—who live in a country with very lush vegetation, which has been flattened—now face significant and serious food shortages. The Pacific Institute of Public Policy—again, run by a good friend of mine, Derek Brien, whom my thoughts are with—has spoken and published a fair bit on this since Cyclone Pam. Dan McGarry described this as now representing the biggest logistical challenge for Vanuatu since the Second World War.

Australia has much to be proud of—a $5 million assistance from the Australian government, humanitarian supplies, medical teams, crisis response teams, urban search and rescue teams. But I also want to make mention of the FRANZ agreement, which dates back to 1992. It is a disaster response agreement between France, New Zealand and Australia, and it has been very important in the days since Cyclone Pam. Of course, people will be aware that Vanuatu has a unique colonial history. From 1906 through 1980, it was a condominium run jointly by France and Britain. And so both countries have a role in Vanuatu. Britain has been involved in the disaster recovery; we have seen France play an important role, as well.

I send my best wishes to Prime Minister Joe Natuman, Prime Minister Enele Sopoaga of Tuvalu and President Anote Tong of Kiribati—all of whom I know and who are doing an incredible job at this time.

Philip Ruddock (Berowra, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Kingsford Smith for proposing this motion. I thank the member for Dawson who seconded it to give it its bipartisan character. I thank him for acknowledging the devastation caused by Cyclone Pam on the people of Vanuatu, Tuvalu and Kiribati and for acknowledging the enormous destructive force of Cyclone Pam and its loss of life, as well as the damage to 90 per cent of Port Vila and 45 per cent of Tuvalu's population and the destruction of its outer islands.

The motion recognises the enormous effort that will be required and the huge task our friends in the Pacific face. It is appropriate to acknowledge the international effort that is being provided. But the motion also goes on to call on the Australian government to monitor the situation closely and to work with the governments to provide timely and appropriate assistance as needed. Let me just assure the honourable member that that is exactly what has been happening.

It is important to recognise that this cyclone has been quite devastating. We have seen in Australia cyclones and we know the very significant impact they can have upon communities—the destruction of the means of support, so much housing and the like. This tragedy has cost lives. The number was not, as I understand it, as suggested by the member for Corio. I am told that the official death toll stands at 16 and not 11. Australia has pledged support. It put in place quickly an emergency response. I commend the Foreign Minister, who travelled to Vanuatu on Sunday to see first-hand what was happening. She met with Prime Minister and the Foreign Minister and assured them of our continuing support.

Australia does remain committed to working in partnership with Vanuatu, in coordination with regional and humanitarian partners to meet their needs. As at 23 March, we have committed over $10 million in response beyond the $5 million that the member for Corio mentioned. It included $5 million to assist the efforts of Australian non-government organisations such as Red Cross and the United Nations, including the world health program, as well as UNICEF. They have been providing, particularly, urgent food aid. Also, it provided: $50,000 for emergency sexual and reproductive health services for women in Vanuatu; additional humanitarian supplies for up to 7,500 people, including sanitation and shelter kits; the deployment of a crisis response team to provide consular assistance to Australians; the deployment of an Australian Urban Search and Rescue personnel team; the deployment of Australian Medical Assistance Teams, AUSMAT, as well as the Australian disaster expert to monitor the United Nations disaster assessment and coordination. In addition, the Australian Defence Force has delivered emergency relief supplies, equipment and personnel in support of the ongoing consular and humanitarian response.

We have been assisting Australians. And there were some 1,798 Australians in Vanuatu as at the 23rd, and we have made contact with all of those. We have identified seven Australians in need of assistance. All Australians are believed to be accounted for. The government has assisted people to return to Australia, and this has been particularly important. It is important, also, in the context of Tuvalu that we provided up to A$1 million for humanitarian assistance and that we are working closely with the government of Tuvalu and partners to make available more relief supplies and personnel. I think it is important to recognise that Australia has seen something of the disastrous devastation that has occurred and has, as I have outlined, actively supported the governments that have been so very much affected, along with their people, and provided assistance—as you would expect.

Gai Brodtmann (Canberra, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Defence) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise today to speak about the devastating impact that Cyclone Pam has had on Vanuatu, after the country was hit by a category 5 system on 13 and 14 March, and I thank the member for Kingsford Smith for moving this motion.

Cyclone Pam descended upon Vanuatu, Tuvalu and a number of other Pacific islands, battering them with 250 kilometre per hour winds and 320 kilometre per hour gusts, which caused widespread damage to infrastructure, impacting services such as electricity. There is a range of figures around at the moment of the tragic death toll. The latest I have heard is that 16 people have died as a result of Cyclone Pam. That is absolutely tragic.

The cyclone has affected more than 166,000 people, including 82,000 children across 22 islands in Vanuatu. And one of those affected is from Canberra. Canberra teenager Zoe Marshall was volunteering on Pentecost Island, working as a teacher for her gap year. During the cyclone, she took shelter with another volunteer and 11 children from the family she had been living with on the island. For days after the cyclone, Zoe and seven other Australian volunteers were unaccounted for, losing all contact with the outside world. The whole Canberra community was hoping and praying for her safety. In an interview with The Canberra Times, Zoe said, 'Running to the village during the storm was the most terrifying 20 minutes of my life' and:

'We walked back up the hill from the village where we'd been sheltering and it was just silent,' she said.

'There were trees through houses, there were trees everywhere, coconuts and branches just all over the ground.'

This gives us just some insight into what the people in Vanuatu experienced during Cyclone Pam. Across the country, 50 to 90 per cent of homes have been damaged, leaving 65,000 people in need of shelter. Food, water and health services are also urgently needed.

According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the lack of shelter remains a key factor, as infants are falling sick because of overexposure to the sun. Aid organisations such as Care, Red Cross, UNICEF and World Vision are all responding to the disaster. I would like to acknowledge and commend those organisations and others who are working to assist those in need, including our wonderful AEF. I would also like to acknowledge and commend the volunteers, who are tirelessly giving up their time to help the situation in Vanuatu.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has said that, as of Sunday, its financial tracking service had recorded a total of US$10 million in contributions from foreign donors, including Australia, Britain, New Zealand and the European Commission. Labor support any efforts by the Australian government to give greater assistance to the people of Vanuatu. Australia has now provided more than $10 million to non-government organisations for Vanuatu. We are Vanuatu's biggest aid donor. The foreign minister has pledged long-term support, which I welcome. However, I would like to use this opportunity to talk about foreign aid more broadly.

It is events like Cyclone Pam that remind us of the critical need for aid funding. Australia is now at its lowest level of aid in modern history. We have fallen to 0.2 per cent of our national income and just in this last week we have seen further speculation that there could be more cuts to the aid budget that would embarrass Australia internationally. So we have to remember that while of course we are now providing aid to Vanuatu, it comes after very substantial cuts at the hands of this government, and those aid programs help the people of Vanuatu prepare for these sorts of disasters.

In closing, Vanuatu now has a huge task ahead of it to rebuild and repair following the devastation of Cyclone Pam. Vanuatu is a close friend and a close neighbour for us. We have got a strong history of providing support to Vanuatu for economic development and for disaster preparedness. While we commend the government for the aid it has given to date, it may be necessary to do more and we will be monitoring the situation in Vanuatu. I also call on the government to rule out more cuts to foreign aid. All Australians are still very concerned for the people of Vanuatu and what they have suffered after Cyclone Pam, and our thoughts and condolences are with those who have lost a family member or friend.

Jane Prentice (Ryan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak in support of the motion moved by the member for Kingsford Smith. Australians are a caring and compassionate people. We come together in times of disaster and hardship, and our generous spirit never hesitates when a neighbour is in need. As news of the destruction and devastation brought about by Cyclone Pam filtered through to Australia, I was overwhelmed by the very kind and generous offers of support from constituents and friends. The compassion and generosity of the Australian spirit always shines in difficult times. Through liaison with the office of the Minister for Foreign Affairs, I have been glad to play my part in ensuring that offers of support were accepted and targeted to areas of most need.

Among the many, I place on record my appreciation to Gwen Braga OAM and Connected, who volunteered emergency supplies and food to assist the relief effort in Vanuatu, as well as Ron English, who is coordinating provisions of food and water. I also commend the work of Allen Cox and Churches of Christ Queensland, who through their medical aid program, Churches of Christ Medical Santo, have organised for the provision of seven medical staff to assist in Vanuatu in addition to their two staff currently in Port Vila. I would also like to mention the Murphy family of Canstruct constructions, who in conjunction with the Australian Defence Force, are working to relocate a surplus force-10 medical centre, designed to withstand cyclones, to Vanuatu. I also welcome the announcement from the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, the Hon. Peter O'Neill, that his government has very generously committed five million kina to support Vanuatu's recovery effort.

On Friday, 13 March, Vanuatu was savaged by Cyclone Pam, a severe tropical cyclone of a category-5 intensity. From early reports, it has been estimated that 90 per cent of Port Vila homes as well as entire villages across the archipelago have been affected

While much remains unclear as the damage and harm caused by Cyclone Pam continues to be assessed, it is clear from reports that a significant portion of the country has been impacted by this catastrophic event, which has brought extremely damaging winds, very heavy rainfall, storm surges and flooding. Australian reconnaissance missions, which are focusing in the south, have advised that on Tanna Island 80 per cent of homes appear to have been destroyed.

If members need any indication as to the likely human toll inflicted by Cyclone Pam, it has been estimated that 45 per cent of Tuvalu residents have already been displaced from their homes. Plainly, Cyclone Pam's impact on Vanuatu has been savage, and the recovery effort that will take place will be a long and challenging process for the nation and its people. However, they will not go it alone. Australia, as both a regional partner in the Pacific and a close friend of Vanuatu, has and will continue to provide significant humanitarian and logistical support in both assessment and recovery missions following this disaster. Australia's Minister for Foreign Affairs has pledged $5 million in support to be administered by Australia's non-government organisations, the Red Cross and United Nations authorities, which includes the provision of emergency temporary shelter, essential supplies and support personnel.

With the assistance of the Australian Defence Force, supplies and personnel have arrived at Port Vila, and these missions will continue on an ongoing basis. Between Sunday and Wednesday of last week a total of nine Australian Defence Force planes departed Australia for Vanuatu carrying personnel and humanitarian supplies in addition to a number of aircraft continuing to perform reconnaissance missions. The Australian government also committed to assisting the government of Vanuatu to get the Port Vila hospital operational again, which involves the deployment of an Australian Medical Assistance Team, which will work to establish a temporary hospital ward and boost hospital capacity, which has been severely impacted by the cyclone.

The recovery task that is before the people of Vanuatu is immense, and it may take years before life returns to normal for many of these residents, whose homes and possessions have been destroyed by an absolute freak of nature. The Australian government understands the scale of the recovery task and the human impact this disaster has had and will continue to provide assistance to the government of Vanuatu now and into the future until the job is done. I commend this motion to the House.

Ed Husic (Chifley, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary to the Shadow Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am very grateful that the member for Kingsford Smith placed this motion on Cyclone Pam before the House. I am also particularly grateful for the depth of feeling that has been expressed by members across both sides of the chamber in relation to this matter, because from time to time our friends in the Pacific may mistakenly believe that their concerns and the fate they experience from these terrible events go unnoticed. But clearly the debate today demonstrates otherwise.

One of the things I am most grateful for in representing the seat of Chifley in this place is the diversity of the people who make up the seat, but in particular the members of the Pacific Islander community, who form a very strong community within Chifley. Their community and other nations within the Pacific experience these horrific events from time to time. I have members from the Australian-Fijian community who have had to respond to the terrible aftermath of cyclones through their area, as well as the Solomon Islands, Samoa and Tonga. And obviously I have some residents who are originally from Vanuatu. They all experience these things, and while they may in their own way deal with these things as a fact of life in the Pacific, it does not make it any easier.

There are two things that stand out. One is the immediate aftermath. A number of members have reflected on the types of challenges that confront Vanuatu in the aftermath of Cyclone Pam. There is not just the aftermath itself but also the ongoing reconstruction process. I was very moved by some of the things the member for Corio indicated in his contribution tonight. And it was not just Vanuatu that was affected. Tuvalu and Kiribati have also had to deal with the effects of Cyclone Pam. In Tuvalu, for instance, not only has water supply been damaged and buildings affected by flooding, but the human impact is of great concern. In some cases skin infection in children under 12, trauma cases and respiratory illnesses have been reported, and there are also people in need of psychosocial support. The Ministry of Health has asked for health professionals to support the central hospital there to allow medical staff to go to affected islands and backstop clinics. There has been an additional request for medicines, mainly intravenous fluids and oral rehydration salts, in addition to 1.3 tonnes of medical supplies that New Zealand kindly offered and sent.

It is also disturbing to hear reports from the Red Cross that 50 people are now living in a school and assessments are required to determine whether they can rebuild or whether more shelter materials are required. In Kiribati 107 houses are reported to be destroyed on one island alone, and the response there has been hampered by disruptions to communications and damage to infrastructure that has made access to those areas to reach people and provide assistance exceptionally difficult. The other challenges in reaching the affected islands in the north include the fact that only one ferry is able to be used to reach that remote location. And obviously a storm with such impact will affect communications, and that has been experienced there. It may be the case that after further assessments are undertaken a call will be made that greater support will be required than what is being provided up to this point.

We know that coordination and logistics support will also be of benefit. We on the opposition side welcome the assistance that has been provided by the Australian government and stand shoulder to shoulder with the government on that. It was also enormously pleasing to see the foreign minister visit Vanuatu and express the well wishes of the Australian people towards our friends who have been affected by this across a number of countries in the Pacific. We hope that Vanuatu, Tuvalu and Kiribati will be able to get back on their feet relatively quickly, knowing not only that there will be resources support but the support of our well wishes towards them, and we do wish them all the best in their recovery.

Sharman Stone (Murray, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On Friday the 13th the small island nation of Vanuatu, and its near neighbours, was flattened by a category 5 cyclone named Pam. The cyclone left a path of destruction behind it and the people of Vanuatu, in particular, have a long gruelling task ahead of them in rebuilding their small island nation.

In Australia we know all too well the devastation that natural disasters can cause. Cyclone Marcia recently damaged over 3,300 homes, 1,000 had structural damage and 350 of them can never be reoccupied. We are currently experiencing other cyclonic weather at the top of the country, across the Northern Territory and in Far North Queensland. But at least in our country we have a huge population of many millions of fellow Australians who are ready to give a hand, and who can.

This is quite different in a very small island nation where people are often subsistence agricultural workers or have only very recently managed to build up their infrastructure for their education, health and transport needs. Australia is deeply concerned for the safety of the people of Vanuatu and its near neighbours as their homes, their infrastructure, their crops and their food supplies have been destroyed.

As soon as we knew of the destruction, Australia sprang into action to deliver important services to help as many people as we could. The sum of $10 million has been given to partners who are on the ground, including the Red Cross and United Nations agencies such as UNICEF. Australia has also provided humanitarian supplies for up to 7,500 people, including water and sanitation, shelter kits and $50,000 for emergency sexual and the reproductive health services for women. At this point, Australia has sent 28 people to Vanuatu as part of the Australian Medical Assistance Team. I have seen them in action in PNG, and I know they are stunning in the work that they do and how they manage. They are providing life-saving medical support for those most in need. We have also sent an Urban Search and Rescue team of 56 people to help with the clean-up and reconstruction. The first priority, of course, is to help the people of the Port Villa hospital community. The hospital had supplies delivered during last week by Australian Defence Force aircraft. Together with New Zealand and our NGOs, we are working hard to help the people of Vanuatu, and so we should.

In my electorate of Murray we too have experienced tragic effects from natural disasters. Although we do not have tropical cyclones we have floods, bushfires and drought. So we know the importance of resilience in tough times, and natural disasters are unfortunately a more common occurrence now throughout the world, so it is imperative that we learn how best to help one another on a scale and in ways never before needed.

When Cyclone Pam hit Vanuatu there were Australians visiting the country. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade made contact with them and also those working there. Over 1,700 Australians have been offered consular assistance, in the way that we usually do. I commend our consular support for the excellent work they have undertaken.

It is a miracle that the cyclone's peak winds were up 320 kilometres an hour but so far only 16 people appear to have lost their lives. That is a miracle, given the devastation that was caused. We also acknowledge that there has been enormous damage done to Tuvalu and Kiribati. We have been supplying dollars to help provide support there, and the royal Australian Air Force is providing aerial surveillance to help—as particularly requested by the Solomon Islands.

Australia and Vanuatu have a long and intertwined history, not all of it good. It dates back to the mid-19th century, before Federation. As the convict ships, with cheap or free labour on board, began to slow from the United Kingdom, our farmers, particular those in the sugarcane industry in Queensland, looked to other places for sources of cheap, hardworking labour. They looked to the South Pacific Islands, and the vast majority of the new and often forced and unpaid workers were from Vanuatu. Some were promised good pay, good work and a good life. Occasionally that occurred, but, for most, it was quite different. They were forced into slavery and indenture.

At the end of that period, which fortunately came in 1901 with Federation, more than 39,900 people had come from Vanuatu to work in the cane fields of Queensland. We acknowledge that past, and we acknowledge that that gives us a special sense of needing to support Vanuatu and other nearby South Sea islands in ways that perhaps are special. I commend very much the efforts of all Australians and of our government, which has leapt into action, as it should and as it wants to. I commend are own Minister for Foreign Affairs, who has been on the ground making sure all is well. On behalf of the people of Murray, I commend our actions and give our thoughts and condolences to those who have been badly affected.

Michael Keenan (Stirling, Liberal Party, Minister for Justice) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I did not expect to contribute to this debate, but in the few minutes we have left I am very pleased to do so, because I think it is important that Australia acknowledges that a friend of ours, a very good friend of ours, Vanuatu, has been very severely affected by what is a very significant natural disaster—a category 5 cyclone. Last week I was representing Australia in Japan at the Third United Nations World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction, and when the news hit of such a severe disaster hitting Vanuatu it really focused everybody's minds about how important it is that the world work together to reduce the risk that disasters pose.

I sought out the President of Vanuatu, who was representing Vanuatu at the conference, and I had a meeting with him and his ministers. The President, Baldwin Lonsdale, and the whole Vanuatu delegation were very shell-shocked. It was very difficult for them to be in contact with their home country, because communications were down, and the information they were getting about what was going on was relatively patchy. I was able to explain to the president and his ministers what Australia was doing in response to the difficult circumstances. It is a terrible situation that Vanuatu and some of their neighbours are in. I explained that we were sending in RAAF aircraft, C-17s and C-130s, full of supplies. We have deployed Australian Urban Search and Rescue personnel. We deployed and AUSMAT team that provides medical assistance and can set up a hospital very quickly. The foreign minister has spoken very eloquently about how important that hospital has been to the people of Vanuatu. We also diverted HMAS Tobruk, a heavy landing craft, which was actually on its way down from Townsville to a more southerly port, to Vanuatu. I understand it has arrived.

The president was very grateful for the assistance that Australia was providing. It reminded me of what a great friend Australia is when our friends find themselves in need. Others in the international community were certainly contributing to the effort, but I must say that I think the extraordinary heavy-lifting that Australia was doing, in doing everything we can to assist our friend, shows what a big-hearted country this is.