Bob Carr (NSW, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Hansard source

Whether we send observers to a Malaysian election would be a matter for the Malaysian government. We would not have any way of initiating such a proposal; we would respond to a request from them for election observers. I understand that the Malaysian Election Commission itself may be seriously considering inviting international observers to monitor the election. I understand the Malaysian government has argued that the last election must have been fair—it lost its two-thirds majority in the parliament. Again, I have got to say that this is a matter for Malaysia. Our high commission will consider following reporting very carefully and speaking to participants on all sides of Malaysian politics so that the Australian government will have a sense— (Time expired)