James Stevens (Sturt, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I second the motion, and commend the member for Leichardt for moving it. This year, 14 September marked National Peacekeeper and Peacemaker Day and 20 September, of course, marked the 20th anniversary of the deployment of the International Force East Timor, INTERFET, the peacekeeping force that went to Timor Leste to address the humanitarian and security crisis that was engulfing that place. It's wonderful to have the opportunity to talk about the outstanding contribution of Australians and all those who've served and continue to serve in international peacekeeping operations, as well as the families who support them. They are heroes as well.

It's very important that we recognise that approximately 65,000 servicemen and women have been involved in over 50 peacekeeping operations worldwide on behalf of our country since 1947. There are still some serving currently in UN peacekeeping operations. Since Australia has been involved, there are 70 years of service to the international community. Tragically, we've seen the loss of life and we've seen others come home, as the member for Leichhardt said, never to be the same again. Australian peacekeepers have served in some of the most challenging environments around the world, involving operations in places such as Kashmir, Cyprus, the Middle East, Timor Leste, Cambodia, Rwanda, Bougainville and others. Peacekeeping operations often involve, primarily, our Defence Force, but there are also Australians from various police forces around the country and civilians who are making contributions of a humanitarian and community development nature.

As I said, 20 September marked the 20th anniversary of INTERFET, a multinational peacekeeping task force mandated by the United Nations to address the humanitarian and security situation in Timor Leste, which had deteriorated—we recall the pictures we saw on TV. It was also the first time Australia led a major international coalition. Apart from the response of the Prime Minister, John Howard, to the Port Arthur tragedy, I thought that East Timor was probably close to one of the finest things he did as Prime Minister. I say that in a bipartisan way. I thought he did a tremendous job in that regard. I also want to commend Major General Peter Cosgrove of the Australian Army, who went on to become the Chief of the Defence Force and a distinguished Governor-General of this country.

I know there are a range of commemorative activities across the country, and in Dili there were government ministers—as well as, I understand, my opposition colleague the member for Solomon and Timor Leste veteran, Luke Gosling—who attended. On 21 September I attended a special Ipswich RSL Sub Branch INTERFET commemorative service at the Ipswich Memorial Gardens, beside the hall, in my electorate. I laid a wreath to honour all those who served in Timor Leste. It was a privilege to meet a number of local INTERFET and Timor veterans and to reflect on the outstanding contribution they made to Timor Leste's success today. It's an independent, democratic and economically sustainable nation, but I agree with the member for Leichhardt: there are challenges that that small country faces. The speeches in Ipswich reminded those present of the peacekeeping operations and the challenges—and even risks—that were there. It was the right thing to do at the time. It was deeply supported by the Australian public and deeply appreciated by the overwhelming majority of people in Timor Leste. In recent times, peacekeeping has been an important part of Australia's defence posture. Indeed, we still have a number of service personnel deployed in peacekeeping operations around the world, and the things we learned in Timor Leste have been applied. All of us were reminded of this at the recent event in Ipswich.

The Australian Peacekeeping Memorial on Anzac Parade here in Canberra was inaugurated in 2017 to commemorate the service and sacrifice of Australians who served in peacekeeping or peacekeeping missions around the world. I know that my colleague the member for Bean, Dave Smith, represented federal Labor—certainly on my behalf—here in Canberra on the Australian Peacekeeping Day commemoration held at the memorial.

This memorial and these events are an important chapter in our Anzac history and, sadly, some former Australian peacekeepers have felt they've been forgotten and their service has not been properly recognised. I hope today they don't feel that. In the national parliament we are showing our gratitude and our support to let them know they've made an invaluable contribution to our national security and the security of our country. We salute them. It's vital that they know we honour them, we understand the sacrifices they've made and we hope their sacrifice is getting the recognition it deserves. I thank the member for the motion and commend it to the chamber.

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