Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party, Assistant Minister to the Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

Like many Riverina people and others who were watching from around the globe, I was deeply touched, saddened and shocked when I saw the pictures coming out of Paris and Beirut, following the terrorist attacks on Friday 13 November. It was indeed a black Friday. I was heartened by the response of many of the local people in my electorate to Australia's role in condemning these evil and despicable acts and by the solidarity that we have shown towards the people, communities, families and friends of those who have lost their lives, their loved ones, in such a needless and callous way. I was heartened to see the world, including Parliament House, turn shades of red, white and blue, just as France did following the events of 11 September 2001. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and the Foreign Minister, Julie Bishop, expressed Australia's anger, justifiably, at these attacks and its support for those whom this reckless terrorism has touched. I know the opposition leader and all those opposite concur.

We will as a government, we will as a parliament and we will as a nation be resolute in fighting the perpetrators of these insidious acts. We will do our best to bring about the destruction of IS and Daesh. I am reluctant to call IS by its full title. Its acronym stands for Islamic state. As I have said before, a state builds things. A state protects people. A state promotes confidence and looks to the future. IS does nothing of the sort. IS does nothing but impose its will upon the world. IS wants to impose its destruction, its acts of evil, upon an innocent world.

I have not been to Paris. I have been to Calais in France but I have not been to the French capital, although my wife, Catherine, has. She says it is beautiful. Many people will feel an affinity with Paris, whether they have been there or not. It is so constant an image and idea in our travel, our culture and our conception of the world that we would have all felt something to see those horrible scenes coming through our televisions and through our social media on that Saturday morning, following those dreadful and despicable acts.

The focus of the international meetings attended by the Prime Minister and the Foreign Minister has rightly turned to how we can best counter insurgency and extremism as it grows online. It is dreadful to think that so many young Australians—more than 110 and many of them young people—have been radicalised by the false and fake hopes and ideologies that are coming from the leadership of the IS movement. Australia has role to play in bringing the spread of IS to an end—hopefully, an abrupt end.

I represent Kapooka, the Army Recruit Training Centre at Wagga Wagga. I represent the Royal Australian Air Force base at Forest Hill, just east of Wagga Wagga. I also represent an important strategic naval base, which is housed along with the RAAF base at Wagga Wagga. The men and women who train at these bases give of themselves. They want a better future not just for our nation, not just for our future generations but for others as well. They would sacrifice their lives if need be for that ideal. They would sacrifice their lives so that others may live free. The price of peace is eternal vigilance—we know that. We know how important it is to have an able and well-prepared defence force. I am so very proud and privileged to represent an electorate in which much of the training of our army is done. Indeed, every young recruit—and some not so young—do their basic training at Blamey Barracks, just south-west of Wagga Wagga. When I go to the march out parades I am always amazed to see the resilient determination and the patriotism in their eyes. I should not be amazed, because I have been there many times before.

Mr Deputy Speaker Mitchell, I know you have been with me to see the wonderful work that our troops do in overseas postings, particularly in Afghanistan. We went there together last year, along with the member for Batman and Senator Sean Edwards, and we saw the great work that they do there. We know that many of those people that we saw in Kandahar and Kabul would possibly now be on joint operations in the Middle East risking their life and limb over Syria or in northern Iraq. We pay homage to them. We certainly respect the efforts that they put in. I am joined in the chamber by the shadow parliamentary secretary who understands just how important is the role that these people play in protecting and safeguarding the future of our nation. These people whom we train and who wear our uniform proudly do not deserve to come up against other Australians—other citizens of this nation—when they are fighting IS, when they are fighting Daesh, when they are tackling terrorism. They do not deserve to have to fight those radicalised people who leave this country to go to fight for IS.

As a former journalist and a former newspaper editor, I think it is a shame to see how IS is sometimes portrayed in the wider media. We see them driving around in the newest cars, brandishing the newest rifles, waving that dreadful black flag. We see those images. What we should be seeing of IS is the depravity that they inflict upon the world—or the aftermath thereof. What we should be seeing is the squalor in which they live. What we should be seeing is the false hope that they provide. That is the image that should always be coming out in our media. But the trouble is we see them brandishing their arms, driving along in their new cars, and this offers some sort of sick hope to young people whom they coerce online to join their sick, depraved ideology.

Terrorist activity increased by 80 per cent in 2014 to be at its highest recorded level. The attack on Paris killed 130, at least 43 died in the accompanying suicide bombings in Beirut, the Bamako attacks killed at least 19 victims and an attack on the presidential guard force in Tunis killed at least 12—and that is just this month. The terrorist activity high recorded in 2014 was according to the Global Terrorism Index. What a sad state of affairs it is when we have people who spend their whole lives recording global terrorism. The largest ever year-on-year increase in deaths from terrorism was recorded in 2014. It rose that year to 32,685 from 18,111 the previous year—and I dare say that figure is even higher now. The number of people who have died from terrorist activity has increased ninefold since 2000. Terrorist activity is highly concentrated. Five countries account for more than 75 per cent—more than three-quarters—of deaths. Iraq, Nigeria, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Syria account for more than three-quarters of terrorism related deaths. How sad is that? Private citizens are increasingly the targets of terror attacks, and that is disturbing. That is very, very worrying. According to this GTI, or Global Terrorism Index—and how sad it is that we have to even have one—deaths of private citizens increased by 172 per cent between 2013 and 2014, compared to the total number of deaths, which rose by 80 per cent. Terrorist attacks on religious targets decreased by 11 per cent in 2014. So the mood is swinging from religious groups to private citizens. In Australia we have seen the dreadful death of a young man working for the New South Wales Police Force—an absolutely dreadful incident—and we hope and we pray that these sorts of attacks do not continue.

We hope and we pray for our brave soldiers, our sailors and our Air Force personnel who are going into harm's way. We hope and we pray that ISIL can be negated and wiped out. The damage that that movement is doing in Syria to many of humankind's most ancient cities which hold some of the most treasured artefacts, possessions and temples is beyond belief. Some of the artefacts, precious urns and other symbols of mankind which had been destroyed had lasted hundreds if not thousands of years and had been lovingly recovered and preserved by archaeologists and put on display. With no more than a cursory thought, they have been smashed by members of ISIS with sledgehammers. How dreadful is that?

But it is the deaths of people that is, of course, of far graver concern. It is the numbers of journalists and other freedom fighters who have had their throats slit and have had their lives taken—snuffed out just like that—by these people. And for what? People do not deserve to be treated in this way.

Australia stands united in solidarity with the people of Paris, as we should. IS has to be eradicated. I am pleased that the parliament and the nation recognise this. I am pleased that my electorate is doing its bit in prayers and support for those affected and by way of training our people who will go and fight this scourge. As I said, our thoughts and our prayers are with those people affected. Paris did not deserve this. The world does not deserve to have IS continue its deadly regime. The sooner IS can be snuffed out the better.

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