Ken O'Dowd (Flynn, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

Along with other members here today, I pause to offer my condolences to the families of the victims of the Malaysia Airlines flight MH17. It is a tragedy that goes to the heart of all Australians. In this address, I speak for all the people of Flynn. There were 298 victims of this atrocity, including 38 Australian victims—innocent people caught up in an undeclared war they had nothing to do with. Why, why, why? These are the questions we all asked but they remain unanswered.

My heart goes out to one particular family. We heard the family mentioned here today by other members. Members of that family were Albert and Maree Rizk of Victoria. Like all victims of this tragedy, they had many family members and friends across Australia. But the link with my electorate is that Irene and George Burrows, who have lived in Biloela in my electorate for many, many years, are part of their extended family. Sadly, the Burrows family were still coming to terms with the death of their son and daughter-in-law in the previous disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, and we all know that that flight just disappeared out of the sky. They have had no closure from that tragic—well, we cannot call it an accident because we do not know what happened—but they had had no closure when this latest tragedy hit their family. We cannot understand or describe the grief attached to losing a son and a daughter-in-law on MH370 and then losing very close family in MH17. When they were hit with the news that their relatives had been killed in this tragedy, it was just total despair in their household and in their community of Biloela. This is one of the saddest stories that has come out of a very sad and shocking tragedy. We stand as Australians to help them as much as we can through their moment of need.

I would like to thank our Prime Minister, our Minister for Foreign Affairs, our Governor-General, Angus Houston and all of his men and women—about 500 in total—who went over to the Ukraine to help with the recovery of bodies and body parts.

The repatriation of bodies is so vital and so important for closure of this horrific incident, and our hearts ache with sadness for the people who are left behind. May the victims all rest in peace.

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