Peter Lindsay (Herbert, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Defence) Share this | Hansard source

This is a story about a country, our country Australia, and what our values are and where we sit in the world. It is a story about the Australian Defence Force, its people and its families and the loyalty that they show to one another. It is a story about a garrison city, Townsville, where soldiers and their families live and work and relate to the ordinary citizens of that city. It is a story about a battalion, 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, the ‘Big Blue One’, and the ethics and the professionalism of the men and women who serve in that battalion. It is a story about a private, Ben Ranaudo, who served in the 1st Battalion, and his contribution to our country.

I have been very privileged in representing the garrison city for so many years now in the Australian parliament. And I have been very close to the Australian Defence Force and I think I understand their views and their ethics and how they work. When the news came through that Ben had lost his life in Afghanistan, my community was very visibly touched—not just ADF people but mums and dads, and kids going to high school. They all felt it. They genuinely felt the loss of this private. That is what the ADF and the families and the garrison city are about. People genuinely felt the sense of loss. Ben’s family can know and understand that that loss is felt in the community.

Recently—last week—there was a story about Ben’s battalion which came to my notice. A corporal who has been a corporal for as long as anyone can remember, Corporal Renahan, sent out this excited email across the network—and I am on the email list, because I know him quite well—saying: ‘Today, would you believe, I’ve been promoted to sergeant. I don’t believe it.’ Within a couple of hours, back came some emails. Yes, they came back from his mates in the battalion, but they also came back from General Mark Kelly and General John Caligari, senior leaders of the ADF who genuinely congratulated Reno for being promoted. But the point of the story is that that is the ADF family. You can be a person at this or that level of rank, but everybody respects each other and everybody shares in successes and of course in pain. That is our Australian Defence Force. Long may it continue.

Ben knew why he was in Afghanistan. He knew that Australia and the other nations that contribute to ISAF understand that if we do not face up to terrorism it will just get worse tomorrow and next year. He did not die in vain. His family should understand that, and I think that they do.

We have been very lucky, through the professionalism and training of our ADF members, that we have not lost more. Other defence forces have in fact had significantly higher casualty rates. One of the things that helps protect us is our wonderful Bushmasters. They have very much saved lives. The v-shaped design of the underneath of the vehicle deflects blasts. Because of that, you can have the front wheels blown off and ending up 100 metres away, but the people inside remain safer than they would otherwise remain. They have been a very good acquisition for the Australian Defence Force. As soon as we can get some more, they should be provided to other elements—the special operations task group, for example—who could well use Bushmasters where they have not used them previously.

The IEDs that we talk about are getting more insidious. We are now seeing these terrorists make these things out of materials that you cannot detect with magnetic detectors. They are being made out of materials that are virtually undetectable. That is a very insidious development. But it just reinforces Australia’s view that we have to defeat these people and that we have to help the people of Afghanistan. I heard a statistic last night about the number of girls going to school in Afghanistan now. Before we entered, most girls were illiterate. They were not allowed to go to school. There are now some five million girls going to school in Afghanistan, which is a wonderful outcome for the people of that country. Long may that continue.

Two weeks ago, Deputy Speaker Washer, you and I were in Mongolia. Mongolia is a relatively remote place, but you and I were there. We met the Prime Minister, who very proudly told us that the cabinet had just made a decision to send a battalion to Afghanistan to do their bit. Mongolia is a small country. It is only the size of Western Australia. It is relatively small. Its infrastructure is not good. But that country recognises its obligations to the world and is fulfilling those obligations. Their contribution is certainly very well and very gratefully accepted.

I can assure Ben’s family that the people of Townsville, the people of the 1st Battalion and the men and women of the ADF will not forget Ben. His contribution was not in vain. We thank him for his life and we thank him for what he has done for our country and the world in helping to produce a better and more secure outcome for the world. May he rest in peace.

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