Luke Gosling (Solomon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On Sunday, I attended Mass at St Mary's Star of the Sea Cathedral. Our children were baptised there and had their first Holy Communion there. Our daughter Sally's godfather is an old Army mate of mine, Richard Halloway. I meant to give him a shout-out yesterday. It was his birthday. Happy birthday, Dicko! He's a Timor veteran. I am also a Timor veteran, along with two of my brothers. The member for Herbert is also a Timor veteran, as are tens of thousands of other Australians who served in Timor in the ADF or the AFP.

As I said yesterday in this place, I acknowledge the Timor-Leste President and Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao, who I caught up with on a recent visit with the Prime Minister. Timor-Leste has come a very, very long way, conducting a series of very successful and peaceful parliamentary and presidential elections since the restoration of their independence. On behalf of Timor veterans, I also want to thank President Jose Ramos-Horta for broadening the eligibility scope for the Timor Leste Solidarity Medal for ADF and AFP personnel. I know it's very much appreciated by Timor veterans, and we look forward to confirming the details for this Timor-Leste award.

Viva Timor-Leste.