Michaelia Cash (WA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) | Hansard source

I rise on behalf of the coalition to speak to the motion that is currently before the Senate. Today the Senate, I would hope, will send a strong message to all Australians in support of the motion. We need to say, 'Enough is enough.'

It is incredibly disturbing to hear that some individuals have defaced several war memorials in Canberra—including a memorial to soldiers who fought in the Korean and Vietnam wars—with slogans trying to promote a particular cause in the Middle East. The defacing of Australia's national monuments to those who fought for our great country and our fallen soldiers in an attempt to promote a particular cause is, quite frankly, disgusting.

I would hope that as we stand here today celebrating, as we do every single day, the freedoms that each and every one of us has as an Australian in 2024 because people before us gave their lives, we are all able to support this motion. These are, without a doubt, abhorrent acts. Whatever cause people are trying to promote, the desecration of our war memorials in an attempt to make a political point is disgraceful and it is abhorrent. In fact, there are few words to express the extreme anger we all feel on behalf of Australians for those who would try and trash the legacy of our great soldiers.

On behalf of the coalition, I would like to say to those serving in the Australian Defence Force, to our veterans and to the legacy of those who made the ultimate sacrifice: we honour everything you have done for our nation. Australia is the wonderful nation it is today because of you and the sacrifice that you made.

Australians value the right for people to protest. We value the right of free speech. We value the right for Australians to believe in whatever cause they wish. In fact, that is what our soldiers fought for over so many years. But vandalism and desecrating monuments to our fallen soldiers is not free speech. It is nothing more and nothing less than, in the most disgusting of terms, attacking those who served and attacking those who gave their lives for our great nation. In fact, I say to those who thought it was smart to undertake these actions: Australians are better than that, and they are better than you. Australians are more likely to oppose your cause if you try to promote it by trying to smear the legacy of our fallen soldiers. Australians value the legacy of our service men and women, current and former, and we especially value those who gave their lives and made the ultimate sacrifice.

The vandalism of these monuments is a slap in the face to the men and women in the Australian Defence Force, our honoured veterans and their families. And we in the coalition will not stand by silently. The wilful defacing of national monuments to our fallen soldiers needs to be emphatically condemned by all senators in this chamber, and we need to condemn it urgently. For those fallen soldiers who fought for our nation, fought for our freedom, fought for our peace, let's stand together today and show them that we recognise the sacrifices and, more than recognising them, we value and appreciate the sacrifices they made. Let us stand together today and honour them—not just on Anzac Day but each and every day that we wake up in the morning and we are free, as Australians, because of those who gave their lives and fought for our great country. Their sacrifice is a part of what makes Australia so great.

Our public memorials to our fallen soldiers are a vital link between the past sacrifices of numerous Australian soldiers and future generations. It is heartening to see each and every year growing crowds on Anzac Day honouring the sacrifices of many soldiers in numerous conflicts over the centuries. Australians from all walks of life are increasingly coming together to appreciate just what those soldiers have done for our great nation. All Australians should be proud of our fallen soldiers, our veterans from all conflicts and the men and women currently serving in the Australian Defence Force.

To the protesters who desecrated these memorials: you do not honour our fallen soldiers and you do not honour our great country. In fact, those who vandalised these memorials are expressing nothing but a deep contempt and a hatred for our country, which should be condemned in the fullest. No matter what your view on the conflict in the Middle East—and I acknowledge that there are a wide range of views in the community—defacing our war memorials to promote a particular ideology or a particular cause is showing nothing but contempt for our fallen soldiers. It shows nothing but contempt for members of the Australian Defence Force and nothing but contempt for the great country of Australia. This behaviour needs to be condemned in the strongest possible terms. Our Senate chamber needs to send a strong and united message to the vandals that we will not bow down to your abhorrent tactics. To the vandals who committed this disgusting act, let me make it very clear, on behalf of the coalition: no-one is going to adopt your cause because you defaced a memorial to our fallen soldiers. It completely undermines the message you are trying to portray and, quite frankly, only shows the types of individuals that you indeed are. I hope that the vandals who committed these acts will face the full force of the law.

The Senate has a good opportunity to send a very clear message today. We can show support for the men and women—our great men and women—in the Australian Defence Force, and we can support and honour our military veterans. We can stand united against those who seek to attack their legacy.