Daniel Mulino (Fraser, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I preface my comments by saying that I am speaking here in the place of the member for Wills, who can't be here today, for family reasons. He very much wanted to put on the record his support for the Yazidi people both here and also in the Middle East. I just wanted to put on the record that he is a champion of human rights issues in that part of the world and more broadly. I'm sure that the comments I make today are broadly in alignment with what he would have said. I also acknowledge the mover of the motion, the member for Groom, and just say that it's important as local members that we bring to this chamber the issues that are important to groups in our community who have gone through very difficult times. In my community there are not a lot of people of Yazidi background, but there are people from the Chin community and the Tigrayan community who have been through very similar experiences. So I want to acknowledge the sentiment, and I very much support the fact that the Yazidi community in Australia and, in particular, in Toowoomba, which has the largest such community, deserves acknowledgement of all they've been through, as well as support.

My understanding is that there are around 700,000 Yazidis around the world. Most are living in northern Iraq, in and around Sinjar. I want to make the point that that is a region of the world where, at the moment, there is a great degree of polarisation, a great degree of conflict and, in many ways, a great degree of intolerance. It hasn't always been like that. The Yazidi people have an ancient religion, but one that differs from other religions celebrated in that part of the world, and that has led to tension of late. It is very unfortunate, it goes without saying, that we are going through a period not just in that part of the world but also in the rest of the world where intolerance is leading to the kinds of horrific incidents that we remember occurring 10 years ago. The slaughter of innocent people that occurred in August 2014, when the Daesh attacked the Yazidi people, is something we must do everything we can to prevent. And, of course, we need to provide as much support as we can to the people adversely affected by such acts.

Indeed, the Australian government has continued to support the rights of the Yazidi people to live in safety and security throughout Iraq and Syria. But it has also continued to support people seeking refuge in Australia—people with family connections and people seeking to avoid extremely dangerous situations in northern Iraq or Syria. As the previous speaker, the member for Durack, mentioned, we acknowledge the horrific experiences that people went through a decade ago. They would remain with the many Yazidi people here in Australia, who now live in a much more peaceful and secure environment. But some of those acts will haunt people forever. So it's critical that we continue to support people that have been through such horrific situations.

Australia continues to advocate for the rights of Yazidis in Iraq, and we do this at the highest level. For example, in August 2024, Australia's ambassador to Iraq attended a commemoration in Baghdad and issued a statement to mark the 10th anniversary of the Sinjar massacre. We continue to monitor the Iraqi government's efforts to achieve justice for the Yazidi government. We also continue to advocate, at the highest levels, the importance of preventing violence and hate speech against minorities.

We also continue to support the Yazidi community through our offshore humanitarian program. Between July 2014 and September 2024, over 7,200 offshore humanitarian visas were granted to Yazidis located in Iraq and Turkiye, focused particularly on Yazidi women—as well as their immediate families—who often endured appalling conditions in captivity under the Daesh.

I want to reiterate the acknowledgement of all that the Yazidi people have gone through, and this government and this parliament's continued support for them.

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