Peter Khalil (Wills, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I've supported the cause for Palestinian self-determination and statehood for decades—a goal, a vision, of a two-state solution within a just and enduring peace. My family has fought for that for decades. My father, my grandfather and my uncles fought in 1948, 1956, 1967 and 1973 in the Egyptian army. In my electorate of Wills I have assisted families to get their loved ones out of Gaza and here to Australia, and I've engaged with the Palestinian and Muslim communities in my electorate for years. During this conflict I've listened to their pain and their loss, and I've reflected that back in my work within the Labor Party, a party of government that can shape policies that can actually achieve material outcomes on the ground, working with the international community. That is why it is so disappointing, so disgusting, that there are elected representatives in the Greens political party that would use this tragedy, which has spanned more than seven decades, for base political purposes.

When they accuse the Labor government of being complicit in genocide, it is not only vile; it is false. What we are responsible for—to cut through all the misinformation and disinformation and the peddling of lies—is condemnation of the loss of all innocent civilian lies, the Israeli lives on 7 October and the Palestinian lives during the course of the war. What we are responsible for is taking a principled position to use our diplomatic efforts to end the war and return the hostages. What we are responsible for is voting for a ceasefire at the United Nations. What we are responsible for is increasing humanitarian aid, over $70 million to help alleviate human suffering. What we are responsible for and have done is work with the international community to end this conflict.

I have no doubt all of us in this place want this conflict to end. All of us here want an end to human suffering, an end to the almost endless cycle of violence that has spanned decades and decades. But to use this conflict and this tragedy for short-term political gain is below contempt. As a government, we have done and are doing the material work to end this conflict, to reach a two-state solution and a just and enduring peace. I, as a backbencher, have engaged with ambassadors whose countries are involved directly in the negotiation for a ceasefire. I've engaged with our Prime Minister, our foreign minister, our colleagues on the frontbench on the policies around Palestinian recognition and statehood. And I've advocated for a substantive and constructive contribution that Australia should make in support of Palestinian statehood and a two-state solution where Israelis and Palestinians can live in peace and security. That is real work. These are real outcomes. That is work that we do for peace, a world where Palestinians and Israelis can live side by side in peace and security.

That world doesn't come or cannot ever materialise from stunt motions by minor parties in the Senate. That doesn't come or cannot come from spreading misinformation in order to whip up anger, scorn and division based on lies. As elected representatives, we have an obligation to unite Australians and to protect the harmonious multicultural society we have built up here over decades. Australians don't want these conflicts and violence to be on our streets. Australians want a government that provides humanitarian support for those in need and that does its job on the international stage towards the goal of peace.

This motion that we have brought before the House clearly states our government's position—that we support the recognition of a state of Palestine as part of a two-state solution and a just and enduring peace process. That is our clear and principled position. It forms the basis for all the actual work that we do as members of parliament and as ministers to support that peace process. And we do that on the international stage because it is our responsibility and obligation as a good international citizen. That is a principled position that we can all stand firmly behind. It is the material work that we have done and that we will continue to do day after day.

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