Tony Zappia (Makin, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

The depth of community outrage over the cruel treatment of cattle in Indonesian abattoirs exposed on the Four Corners program on 30 May cannot be overstated. MPs have been flooded with letters, phone calls and emails. As well, hundreds of thousands of people have to date signed petitions or written to newspapers and other media outlets.

In my own electorate residents of the Tea Tree Gardens Retirement Village, in a spontaneous response to the film footage, organised their own petition calling for a stop to the cruelty and asked me to present it to this parliament. The petition was signed by 76 residents of the retirement village and would have been signed by more if there had been more time. These are decent, respons­ible adults with considerable life experience who were not prepared to turn a blind eye to what they saw or to remain indifferent. The petition does not meet the relevant require­ments of the House for petitions so I seek leave to table a copy of the document.

Leave granted.

I thank the House. The government made the correct decision in suspending the live cattle exports to Indonesia until we can be assured that cattle sent to Indonesia will not be treated cruelly and that a reliable tracking system is in place. I also welcome the decision by the minister to have an independent investigation into the Australian live animal export trade. It was the right thing to do; it was the responsible thing to do. Not surprisingly, the coalition and some within the industry have said the government has overreacted. Others have said that the government has not gone far enough. That suggests to me that the government has got it about right. The government has responsibility for all Australians, including the cattle growers, rural communities, transport operators and other livestock associated industries.

Our concern for animal welfare should not be confined solely to Australian-grown animals. It should be for all animals—home-grown or otherwise. It should therefore be our objective to change bad practices wherever they occur. It we do not, animals will continue to suffer because it is not only Australian livestock that is killed in Indonesia and in other markets of concern.

It is also clear that Meat and Livestock Australia and LiveCorp both have a major responsibility relating to this issue. They both have much to answer for and need to be held to account. It was a failure to ensure the cattle's welfare by both the MLA and LiveCorp that led to the government's intervention. It is now up to the Australian and Indonesian governments and the industry sectors in both countries to resolve the deadlock.

Both Australian and Indonesian liveli­hoods are at stake and families will suffer if the industry is immediately shut down. Indonesia is a developing country. Providing food and employment opportunities in Indonesia is important for that country, but no jobs in Australia or in Indonesia justify continuing to allow the cruelty we saw on the Four Corners program.

I want to quote my colleague the member for Wills, who is here in the chamber tonight, in what he said when he spoke on this matter on 20 June:

We should not seek to make a profit on the back of the torture, misery and suffering of powerless animals.

I think that quote sums it up perfectly. The priority, however, should be to resolve the immediate issues related to the Indonesian live cattle trade. The issues can be resolved without any party being adversely affected. It can be a win-win for all parties. Stunning cattle is possible and already occurs at some abattoirs in Indonesia. It is the standard in Australia and should be the standard elsewhere.

Tracking Australian cattle once exported is also possible. It was a coalition govern­ment that suspended that practice. In fact, I understand that tracking cattle was intro­duced by the coalition in around 2003 or 2004 and that it was in direct response to the current trade that they suspended that practice. Had tracking been in place it is very likely that cattle exports could have resumed to those abattoirs in Indonesia that currently carry out the stunning practice. I understand that there are several abattoirs in Indonesia that do that and that there are several abattoirs in Indonesia that would be ready to go if they had the clearance to receive the cattle. The issue is that exporting the cattle from Australia to Indonesia does not guarantee which abattoirs they will end up in until we have the tracking system in place.

The viability of establishing additional abattoirs in Northern Australia should also be assessed. I have heard people reject that but it should also be assessed, as should assisting Indonesia to establish additional commercial refrigeration facilities. (Time expired)

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