Peter Dutton (Dickson, Liberal Party, Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Hansard source

on indulgence—I want to join with the Prime Minister and congratulate the government on this outcome. Sean Turnell is somebody who went to Myanmar to try and provide assistance and a better way of life and future for the people of Myanmar. He worked very closely there with a number of Australian colleagues who were involved in that cause. Of course, we were all shocked when he was taken into custody, and the operation to release him commenced on that very day.

I want to acknowledge the work of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Department of Defence and many other departments that have been involved in this operation to lead to the point of his release. I want to say thank you very much for the perseverance, which the Prime Minister spoke of, of many of our near neighbours and friends within ASEAN with whom we'd had close conversations over a long period of time. Every angle of opportunity to bring pressure to bear to see him released has been underway for that 650-odd days.

I want to say thank you, personally, to the Prime Minister as well. It's right that he's been released. It was wrong that he was held for so long. I hope that it sends a message to the rest of the world that Australia will never tolerate our people being incarcerated in circumstances like that and we'll fight every day until they're released.

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