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

I present the report of the Australian parliamentary delegation to the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste from 28 October to 1 November 2018, and I ask leave of the House to make a short statement in connection with this report.

Leave granted.

I'm pleased to present the report of the parliamentary delegation to the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste. Ms Sharon Claydon, the member for Newcastle—she is also in the House and will make a short statement when I finish—Senator Pat Dodson, Senator Rex Patrick and I visited Timor-Leste from 28 October to 1 November last year. We were able to pack a lot into our short visit, which was fascinating and very worthwhile. In addition to meetings in Dili, we had the opportunity to visit Balibo and some rural areas in the west of the country.

We met with a wide range of people in the parliament, the government and the non-government sectors. We heard many views on the current issues in Timor-Leste and what has already been done to further the relationship between the two countries, which continues to grow. We were pleased to visit soon after agreement was finally reached on a permanent maritime boundary between Australia and Timor-Leste. This was a turning point in our relations and has been welcomed by both governments.

As a young nation still emerging from conflict Timor-Leste faces many challenges. One of the biggest is to build and diversify its economy. This includes creating employment and other opportunities for its youth, as 74 per cent of the population is under 35 years of age. We were pleased to see the great benefits that well-targeted Australian support can have for Timor-Leste's people, including the highly successful Seasonal Workers Program, projects delivering clean water and roads to rural communities and measures to combat violence against women, which Sharon will talk about.

This year, 2019, marks the 20th anniversary of Timor-Leste's independence and, therefore, also the 20th anniversary of Australian-led military intervention there. Twenty years on, the bonds and spirit of friendship between the two countries remain very, very strong. We encourage Australia to continue focusing on supporting Timor-Leste at the government level and also through the extensive people-to-people links that we share.

On behalf of the delegation, I would like to extend a warm thanks to the many people we met and spoke to during the visit. I would also like to thank the ambassador, Peter Roberts; the second secretary, Carolyn Skorupa; and all the staff at the Australian Embassy in Timor-Leste for their excellent assistance to us. I commend the report to the House.

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