Alex Hawke (Mitchell, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise in support of the statement of the Prime Minister in relation to Japan and acknowledge her remarks and the remarks of the Leader of the Opposition, Tony Abbott, and those of the Leader of the Nationals, Mr Truss. I recently had the opportunity to lead a delegation of Australian MPs and young political leaders to Japan. In fact, we just returned from Japan on Saturday, preceding the one-year anniversary of the disasters. On the delegation were Jill Hennessy, the state member for Altona; Matthew Groom, the state member for Denison; and Ryan Batchelor, Chief of Staff to Minister Macklin.

The disaster is known as 3/11, representing an unprecedented challenge for Japan and its people. The main shock, at a magnitude of 9, was one of the highest ever recorded earthquakes in world history. However, many people do not know that there were over 96 aftershocks at levels 6 and 7, and at level 5 or greater, over 580 aftershocks. The earthquakes, which Japan of course was well prepared for, triggered a tsunami of a scale completely unimaginable to the human mind. Going there and seeing the 15-metre high watermarks that wiped away those buildings and towns is something that really does expand your mind in terms of belief. The tsunami led to the nuclear incident off Fukushima, which makes up the triple disasters of 11 March. There were devastating consequences from these disasters: 15,700 died, 4,500 are still missing and over 5,700 were injured. These were the immediate consequences of these awful disasters, with over 124,000 people having to be evacuated and temporarily resettled. Japan is still wrestling with the question of how to resettle those people unable to return or who have nothing to return to from this immense devastation.

It is really quite difficult to understand exactly how vast the nature of the devastation was until you see it in person. We saw the horrific scenes of devastation in every town that we visited, coastal and otherwise—and inland, quite substantially inland—that were devastated. All of us on the delegation were shocked. Boats were still on the top of buildings. Entire towns and places were completely devastated and removed. The difficulty and the challenges faced by those recovering, and their personal and deeply moving stories were sometimes unbelievable.

We visited the empty space that was once Minamisanriku. Standing in front of the skeletal remains of the disaster centre was a profoundly moving experience. The only structure left in this entire plain was the twisted metal of the disaster structure which was made of reinforced steel. On level 3, you could still see the machine that was used to warn the entire town that a tsunami was coming. We heard the story of a young 25-year-old Japanese girl, who made the announcement to warn her fellow citizens that a tsunami was coming. She was swept away an hour later—that certainly moved all of us on the delegation.

It was so appropriate that the Prime Minister visited and held a fundraising dinner soon after these disasters. In our opportunities seeing and visiting the recovery of Miyagi Prefecture and Fukushima Prefecture, I can record that the Japanese people are overwhelmingly grateful to Australia and its people for the support and the deep and profound assistance that we have provided to them. Everywhere we went, we were greeted warmly by the Japanese people, who were so grateful to Australia and keen to impress upon us that they are focused on recovery and working very hard to see their lives, businesses and culture rebuilt in these areas. Australia contributed a 72-person urban search and rescue team, a $10-million donation and the use of C17 aircraft for relief operation—Australia and the United States being the only two nations allowed to do this. There have been so many individual and business donations by Australians that they cannot be recorded here—money, in-kind goods, all of which is deeply appreciated in Japan today.

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to attend the Japanese embassy where His Excellency Mr Shigekazu Sato hosted a ceremony and we marked a minute silence for those who had passed away. It was a moving event well attended by embassies, people from around the world and members of this House.

The thing that impressed us so much about our tour of Fukushima and Miyagi Province was the fact that there was so much resilience and inspiration in the recovery that is going on there. In spite of the serious challenges in terms of the future energy generation and the future of how to rebuild places that have been completely wiped out, the resilience and improvisation of people, families and businesses in the face of adversity is a wonderful thing that we encountered. The quick recovery of key industries for the world, like car parts in areas of Fukushima and Miyagi Province, was amazing. The ability of businesses to improvise without the adequate supply of energy and still produce, and indeed innovate, so that they can meet their quotas and demands is very impressive.

Australia and Japan have been strong trading partners for some 50 years or more and our nations are firm friends. Our relationship is strong and our future together is also strong. From my own visit and the visit of this delegation, I can record for the House that out of the terrible tragedies of 11 March 2011, the people of Miyagi and Fukushima, and of Japan, are working hard to rebuild and planning for a better future. One year on from the triple 11 disasters, today our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Japan, those who lost their lives and the families who lost loved ones.

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