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

on indulgence—I want to join with the Prime Minister's fine words and welcome our two very special guests to the chamber today—and also their family and friends who are here to provide support. There was as much excitement up in the gallery as there was here on the floor of the chamber. I heard the Prime Minister speak yesterday, at our 34 Squadron Christmas drinks, about the story, Sean, of your request for the first meal, which I think was a pub meal—a pretty simple request facilitated by the Royal Australian Air Force and the fine work that they undertook.

I too want to congratulate all of those officials who have been involved in this fight for a long period of time. I want to say thank you to the Prime Minister and thank you to former prime minister Morrison. I acknowledge the work of Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong and her predecessor, Marise Payne. We spent many hours around the National Security Committee table, looking at every possible angle of how we could exert pressure, work with those neighbours and people in the region, across ASEAN—indeed, any influence from any partner across the world, covert and overt, in providing assistance to see the early release of Sean Turnell. It went on for way too long, and we were up against a very significant adversary.

In the end, your bravery has shone through. The demeanour and the grace with which you have carried yourself, Sean, is quite remarkable given what you have gone through and the passion that you have for the cause that you are fighting for: people less fortunate than yourself. All you desired was a better future for Myanmar and for that country to advance into the world and not to regress, and that is on display in every public appearance that you have as well. As you point out, for your long-suffering wife as well, we acknowledge what you as a family have gone through: the pain, the separation, the pressure that that puts on individuals and on a relationship, the anxiety that it creates. But now, of course, the life that you can share is shared by our nation with you, and we wish you every success into the future.

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