Julian Hill (Bruce, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Minister for Citizenship, Customs and Multicultural Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Happy wedding anniversary to the member for Casey.

Aaron Violi (Casey, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you.

Julian Hill (Bruce, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Minister for Citizenship, Customs and Multicultural Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I speak with a heavy heart to acknowledge a tragedy that has deeply affected my community. Fariba Hussainzada and her six-year-old son, Farzad, lost their lives in the waters of the Dandenong Creek. Fariba, originally from Afghanistan, had been living in Australia for 10 years. She was a loving mother of three and, when her little boy slipped into the creek, she did what any parent would instinctively do. She tried to save him. Her bravery in that moment was extraordinary. Unfortunately, both mother and son lost their lives. This devastating loss has torn a family apart, leaving a four- and a one-year-old without their mother. The whole community—it's a tight-knit community in Dandenong, and a growing Hazara community—has been left in mourning. I extend my heartfelt condolences to Fariba and Farzad's family, and to the grieving community in my electorate. Please know that we stand with you in this time of grief.

I'm proud to represent the largest community of Australians born in Afghanistan—of any MP in this parliament. Afghanistan is a diverse country. It is rich in cultural traditions and languages. Fourteen ethnicities are acknowledged in the national anthem, and they live alongside many other, smaller ethnic groups and tribes. Modern Afghanistan has a proud but complex history that is sadly marred by tragic cycles of violence. While there will never be a single view of history, no part of Afghanistan or Afghan society has been immune from violence or persecution—whether Pashtun, Hazara, Tajik, Uzbeks or any other of the ethnic groups.

While Australia's relationship with the state of Afghanistan endures, Australia has no intention of accrediting a representative of the Taliban or establishing diplomatic relations with the Taliban. I'm pleased, though, to have formed a new Parliamentary Friendship Group for the people of Afghanistan. This group has been formed to express Australia's support for the people of Afghanistan, and to serve as a forum for parliamentarians to engage with advocacy groups—including those working on refugee issues, human rights, women and girls—and for international engagement on issues related to the ongoing humanitarian and economic crisis in Afghanistan and across the broader region. Millions of Afghans have been displaced. I'll write shortly to all members and senators inviting them to participate.

Afghans have long been a part of Australian society. The Afghan cameleers arrived from around 1860, and helped to explore and develop inland Australia and build our nation. While relatively small in numbers in Australia, subsequent waves of migration from Afghanistan have enriched our country, including people coming as skilled migrants, business migrants, students and—more recently, since 2021—humanitarian migrants fleeing bloodshed and repression from the Taliban.

The Taliban remains one of the world's most medieval regimes, utterly repressing the rights of women and girls. They act against any reasonable or defensible view of human rights in the modern world. Since 2021, Australia has provided more than $260 million in humanitarian and basic needs assistance to Afghanistan, with a strong focus on women and girls. Almost 27,000 visas have been granted to Afghan nationals under the offshore humanitarian program, many to locally engaged employees who have worked with Australia's defence, foreign affairs and aid staff in Afghanistan for 20 years. Fulfilling the promise—as best we possibly can in difficult circumstances—to bring them to safety comes in the year that we mark the one millionth humanitarian migrant Australia has welcomed since World War II, a bipartisan endeavour over decades.

I will always stand up, speak up and work with all parts of my community. Like any responsible leader in Australia, I've never sought and never will seek to weaponise ethnic or religious divisions. It's important that every political, religious and community leader sets a positive example of inclusion and working together for our young people. Let's hope that this friendship group allows us to recommit to working together here in Australia, in a spirit of trust, to build a positive future for the whole community and to do what we can with other nations to improve the lives of those still suffering outside our borders.

I'll finish with a note of thanks to my staff. The bulk of the work of my electorate office still relates to the ongoing trauma of the Taliban in the Afghan community. People flood the office every day seeking to bring their families to safety. We do as much as we humanly can, but a lot of that burden falls on the staff. They speak Pashto, Dari, Hazaragi and Farsi. They do the very best they can, and I thank them deeply for the trauma that they endure.