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

I too rise to speak to acknowledge the 20th anniversary of the tragic Bali bombings terrorist attack in October 2002. I start by reflecting on the wonderful contributions to this motion by both the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition in the House. At the end of that sitting week, as I recall, formal services were held around the country. Each year a particularly moving service is held in Sydney at Coogee Beach. In Adelaide we have one at Unley Oval, home of the Sturt Football Club. Like many sporting groups, members of the Sturt Football Club were on an end-of season-holiday in Bali—a part of the great camaraderie of being in a sporting team—and were victims of that attack. We will never forget in South Australia those victims, not just those who died but those who were injured and who have lifelong impacts after going through such a horrible experience.

It is so touching to remember the effort and response of the Australian government, led by Prime Minister Howard, Australian agencies, the embassy in Indonesia and the consulate in Bali and the unbelievable work of those at the Darwin Hospital. Professor Fiona Wood, one of the most high-profile clinicians, was on the front line of assisting so many of those victims. Too many came home in body bags. Those victims who were flown directly to Darwin and Perth were given spectacular medical care. I have heard the stories about the unbelievable surge of those being evacuated out of Bali into Darwin and about the work of all of those who were there at the time as well as those who were dramatically and rapidly called in to be part of the effort at the Darwin Hospital.

We acknowledge how, in tragedy and adversity, in this country we're so proud of the fundamental elements of the Australian character, and that includes how people will always rush to help their fellow Australians in absolutely any and every way that they can. Our Defence Force personnel, Federal Police and other federal agencies helped in the aftermath but also in the very important work of supporting Indonesian authorities in the investigation to make sure that those responsible were tracked down and that justice was served.

There were 202 victims, 88 of them Australian, and more than 200 people were injured. Those injuries are enduring for everyone, because the memory of going through that experience is something that will last for a lifetime. Then, of course, there are the families of those who died, those who were wounded and those who were there, and we see the families who attend the commemoration services that are held around Australia every year to mark the anniversary.

That period of heightened terrorism began with the attack on the World Trade Centre in New York, which unfortunately led to a number of other attacks led by Islamist terrorist organisations like the attack in Bali and the attacks in London, in other European centres and in other places around the world. I hope that period is behind us. I don't have any reason to say with any authority that it is, but that experience is one that I hope our nation doesn't have to endure again.

I was speaking last week at an event here for the Alannah & Madeline Foundation, which was established by Mr Walter Mikac, whose two beautiful daughters were killed at the Port Arthur massacre in 1996. Making those reflections last week at that event, and now, a week later, speaking about Bali has reminded me of two of the most horrendous memories from my childhood and adolescence—of massive tragedies that absolutely shocked and gripped the nation. If there's one thing we can take out of it, it's the memory of how much we need to cherish those that we love and how we must have an enduring commitment to the values and the freedoms of this great nation that we live in. We do have people who don't like our way of life, who don't like our values and what we stand for—freedom, democracy and treating everyone with equality of opportunity. It's fitting, having made those remarks last week and these this week, to conclude on that point—that, whilst as a nation we have these tragedies befall us, if nothing else it reminds us of how enduring the Australian character is, how lucky we are to be Australians and how vigilant we need to be to fight for our way of life at every opportunity into the future.

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