Penny Wong (SA, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Foreign Affairs) | Hansard source

I think—I hope—all of us would stand as one in condemning the hateful comments by the members of Hizb ut-Tahrir. There is no place in Australia for such disgraceful statements or the glorification of terrorism. In relation to the listing, the senator, having been a member—perhaps he still is a member; I'm sorry, I can't recall—of the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security, would understand the process by which advice is provided to government and to parliament through the statutory committee about whether to list organisations. I certainly wouldn't propose to speculate publicly about that process, nor would he expect it.

But it does take me to a broader point about social cohesion. We all know that the conflict in Gaza, whether from October 7—as Senator Cash said, the largest loss of Jewish life since the Holocaust—or from the tens of thousands, including tens of thousands of civilians, who have died since, has been horrific. It is deeply distressing for so many in the Australian community, and it is incumbent upon us all to try to ensure that conflict is not imported here, in word and deed and in how we speak about one another. So, all of us should join in condemning the words that Senator Paterson outlined, just as we should also ensure that we continue to advocate and press for peace in a region which has known so much loss of life and so much conflict.