Ann Sudmalis (Gilmore, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

On 14 September, we celebrated the 70th anniversary of Australia's first peacekeeping mission in 1947. The Minister for Veterans' Affairs, Dan Tehan, along with current and former peacekeepers, their families and members of the public gathered together to honour Australian peacekeepers at a national service held at the new Australian Peacekeeping Memorial. The Australian Peacekeeping Memorial is a permanent reminder to pay tribute to those who served, those who were wounded and those who lost their lives. More than 70,000 Australians, military personnel, police and civilians have played important roles as part of peacekeeping and humanitarian operations since the beginning. They are well respected for their work, their relationship building and their dedication in places such as Indonesia and, recently, East Timor, Iraq and Afghanistan.

We should never lose sight of the fact that our brave and dedicated peacekeepers are often at the centre of dangerous conflicts and are exposed to the impacts of war. In addition, we recognise those currently serving in the Republic of South Sudan and we look forward to their safe return. Last year, the United Nations published a report, The challenge of sustaining peace: report of the Advisory Group of Experts: for the 2015 Review of the United Nations Peacebuilding Architecture. The report emphasised that sustaining peace required coherence, engagement and coordination, including the important role that effective and responsive leadership in country operations can play in bringing together a common strategy for sustaining peace. Importantly, women's leadership and participation was noted for their role in preventing and resolving conflict as well as building peace. The United Nations also called upon member states and United Nations organisations to increase meaningful and inclusive participation by young people in their peace-building efforts. These align closely with local community perceptions and to regional expectations.

In the last three weeks, I have been privileged to meet women parliamentarians from the Pacific region while visiting the Solomon Islands and then, in Sri Lanka, to chair the general assembly of the Asian Forum of Parliamentarians on Population Development and hear the same message of concern about world peace. The women attending the Pacific Women's Parliamentary Partnerships group believe we are not doing enough around the world to get more women engaged in the field of politics, nor are we managing to sustain those women who, once elected, then lose their seats. I might add that this applies to our own nation as well. Yet we are looked on as a political role model and a leader in our region. We have the responsibility of balancing the gender divide in Australia and our surrounding regions. The women from Papua New Guinea are determined to continue to encourage women into leadership and elected positions. I commend Julie Soso Akeke, Kessy Sawang, Loujaya Kouza and Rufina Peter as the frontrunners to gender empowerment in their country, as we collectively co-develop strategies to get women into parliament and keep them there.

In Sri Lanka, I was privileged to meet some dynamic young people who are demonstrating their willingness to take on a challenge, both in civil society and via the challenge of parliament. Anuradha Ekanayeke is a social services student in Colombo who will be working in the field of people with a disability. Sahinda Dulanja, who is a speaker of the Sri Lankan youth parliament, and Yashodha Gunathilake, who is the deputy minister for international youth affairs in the youth parliament, are both inspiring and passionate about developing a stable and peace-loving nation. Yashodha spoke of increasing the number of women entering the political world.

I am inspired to develop a youth parliament, even if we only begin in Gilmore. The world is developing programs and strategies to enhance peacekeeping through youth initiatives and women's empowerment. I wonder how we will celebrate our international peacekeeping contributions in another 70 years.

In the same way that we celebrate our efforts in world peacekeeping, we must absolutely stand by every woman and man in our Defence Force. Currently, we have around 58,000 Australians serving in the ADF. The average service time is 8½ years, and our annual loss of personnel is 5,200. Transitioning to civil life can be a challenge for some veterans, particularly the 1,400 or so who leave the ADF involuntarily. We have introduced the early management model to reduce claim-processing times and to allow more support to be provided for things like filling in forms, requesting mental health appointments or applying for a rental property. ADF members will no longer be discharged before their Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation and DVA claims are processed. All medical and training records will be released on retirement and immediately. An individual career coaching service and assessment during transition for up to 12 months will be provided.

Since the launch of the 'Defence Force experience desirable' flag on jobactive in September last year, more than 1,500 positions have been advertised and employment connections made. This is all part of honouring our veterans and making sure we look after them. I agree with Amanda: lest we forget.

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