Luke Simpkins (Cowan, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) notes the increasing instances of Australian citizens taking up arms for foreign military and extremist causes including, but not limited to, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, representing a threat to good order in international affairs and the safety of Australian citizens;

(2) acknowledges:

(a) that by taking up arms or supporting such causes, those citizens have failed to comply with the pledge they made when they became an Australian citizen, to uphold the laws of Australia; and

(b) those who have taken up arms or supported such causes, and were born Australian citizens but have a second citizenship, have also repudiated their allegiance to Australia; and

(3) urges the Government to amend the Australian Citizenship Act 2007 to allow the revocation of the status of citizen for those who take up arms, or provide material and/or financial support for military/extremist causes, except where such action is at the direction of the Government.

We should remember the pledge that new citizens make:

From this time forward, under God,

I pledge my loyalty to Australia and its people,

whose democratic beliefs I share,

whose rights and liberties I respect, and

whose laws I will uphold and obey.

They say it themselves and I know that on almost every occasion the person that makes the oath remains true to it. Today I will speak on the need for a government to take firm action against those who have dual citizenship and who have betrayed their country when they fight and allied themselves with terrorist organisations. The action I speak of is to revoke citizenship of those who have turned against us. They show that they have broken faith with our country and they are putting another cause before Australia.

It is true that there are some 150 cases of Australian citizens taking up arms for foreign extremist causes. They have forsaken our country and, contrary to Australian law, taken up the cause of jihad with terrorist organisations. Once they break the law, they show their disregard for this nation and their clear opposition to this country. When they have done so, they can no longer be trusted to come back to Australia and not be a threat.

What I propose in this motion is to take firm action to remove the threat that these disloyal dual citizens pose to Australia. Put simply, there are some people that have left Australia and are now known to be fighting in such places as Syria and Iraq. In this case, we should not want them back here at all. Although we do not try people in absentia, the objective should remain that they not return to Australia to either pose a threat or act as some recruiter or encouragement for others. In this case, I propose that the minister be given the power to act on strong classified intelligence to make a decision to revoke citizenship. This would achieve the objective of keeping that particular threat out of Australia. I do not expect that this will sit well with some people, but I nevertheless advance it. The examples I speak of are where there is a photo of an Australian dual citizen jihadist holding a gun to the head of an unarmed person or other such clear information. Similarly, a person convicted of a terrorism offence overseas would also be liable to such action by the minister.

It is not, however, just those that take up arms and fight overseas that I propose the revocation of citizenship to affect. I also speak of those that remain in Australia and provide material support, financial support or recruiting, or who commit other terrorism crimes, including planning or carrying out such an act in Australia. In that case I believe that section 34 of the Australian Citizenship Act 2007 could be amended to also include section 102 of the Criminal Code Act and also crimes under sections 6, 7, 8 and 9 of the Crimes (Foreign Incursions and Recruitment) Act 1978. This would allow those dual citizens convicted of terrorism-related crimes, foreign incursions or inciting and supporting terrorism to have their citizenship revoked and, of course, be deported at the end of the sentence. So the courts can deal with those that recruit in the suburbs of Australia or raise funds for jihad or other extremist causes and then further action would take place, as I have already said.

This proposal is not about racism; it is about the safety of Australians. It is about removing a threat and dealing with those that have put other causes above the oath they made to this country. It is about holding those that betray Australia to account for the decisions they make. I recently spoke at an anti-ISIS rally in Perth. It was held by the Iraqi community consisting of Shiah, Sunni, Kurds and Christians, who all came from Iraq. When I spoke of this proposal they supported it very strongly. This proposal is, therefore, not about racism, it is not about a lack of tolerance and it is not about any of those moral trump card words so often used to stifle debate. It is about keeping the men, the women and the children of Australia safe from terrorism and extremists. It is not about religion or the vilification of anyone. It is about calling those who made the oath to account, and saying to them, 'What you said at your citizenship ceremony did actually mean something, it did count for something, and now this is the outcome of your lack of respect for that commitment you made.'

I thank the other speakers on this motion who support it. I know that many people throughout the country support my proposal as well. They support it because they value the rights and liberties that define this country. They support this proposal because they too know that with rights and liberties come duties and obligations. They know that they are not in isolation, but rather are hand in hand with each other. The oath or affirmation are not just words; they mean something. They are principles by which we live and a contract that we honour.

To conclude, I propose that the legislative and regulatory changes that I have identified be adopted by the government or that they are used to guide similar action to achieve the desired objective of safeguarding the lives and safety of Australians and others from the extremist threat.

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