Steve Irons (Swan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak today about a meeting I had this week with the Governor of Bali, Governor Pastika, and also Lindsay Ross of the Bali Peace Park Association. The purpose of the meeting was to update Governor Pastika on the association’s activities and to thank him for his previous assistance and to seek further help from him.

The Bali Peace Park Association is a Western Australian group whose members are made up of survivors, families and supporters of the 2002 Bali bombings. The bombings, which took the lives of 202 people, including 88 Australians and 39 Indonesians, affected my home state of Western Australia in particular. Western Australians visit Bali in large numbers and it was therefore not surprising that the largest number of those killed or injured during the attacks were WA residents.

The attacks have left their mark on many members of the WA community. That is why the Bali Peace Park Association and its goals are so important. The central goal is to establish a memorial park on the land where the bombings took place, providing a physical place for reflection and encouragement for the families to remember the dead. The association was incorporated on 2 September and is an established not-for-profit organisation. Members might recall that I spoke in October last year in support of the Bali Peace Park Association’s effort to seek a special application for deductible gift recipient status. I am pleased now to say that that has been granted.

The group has now turned its attention towards negotiating the purchase of the former Sari Club site in Kuta where they want the peace park to be established. Official negotiations began on 25 February. The garden will look to build a future without fear by promoting tolerance, understanding and freedom for generations to come irrespective of nationality, culture, religious belief or race. I support the work and the mission that this organisation is committed to delivering in honour of those killed in the attacks. The purpose of the meeting I hosted on Tuesday was to discuss those ongoing negotiations with the governor. Lindsay Ross did an excellent job in representing the Bali Peace Park Association. I am pleased to be able to say that Governor Pastika was supportive of the project and even said that he would make a representation on behalf of the group to President Yudhoyono. I am sure the governor understands the significance the site will have to Australians and Indonesians and the role it will play in strengthening the relationship between our two countries.

Last year was the seventh anniversary of the bombings. Last year, on the date of the anniversary, I stood beside state Liberal Party parliamentary colleagues including the Premier of Western Australia Colin Barnett, the families, the friends, the survivors and supporters who were affected by the terrorist attacks on 12 October 2002 and also those affected by the bombings in 2005. As I stated last year, this annual gathering takes place on the anniversary at the specifically designed Bali memorial in Kings Park. Out of this tragedy the relationship between Australia and Indonesia has been strengthened. I would once again like to take the opportunity to acknowledge those who have taken part on the committee of the association. Phil Britten, the association’s spokesperson is one of the many injured in the bombings and suffered third-degree burns to about 60 per cent of his body. He also sadly lost many of his close friends in the attack. Gary Nash, vice chairman of the association suffered burns to 51 per cent of his body as well as suffering shrapnel wounds that will see him having to wear pressure garments on his legs for the rest of his life. His partner Sharon Kermac is also on the committee as treasurer.

I would also like to acknowledge one of the patrons of the Bali Peace Park Association, Dr Fiona Wood. Dr Wood is known as a burns specialist and heads up the Royal Perth Hospital Burns Unit and the Western Australian burns service. Fiona Wood was Australian of the Year in 2005. Dr Wood worked with many of the injured during the Bali bombings, leading a courageous and committed team. I recently visited the Burns Unit at RPH with the House of Representatives Health and Ageing Committee. They have fabulous staff and do wonderful work.

I would like to conclude by acknowledging that both President Yudhoyono and Governor Pastika have both had children attend Curtin University of Technology, which is in my electorate of Swan. It is a great credit to our local university that world leaders choose our local university for their children, and I understand from the university they both did very well. It is positive for the future of Western Australia’s relationship with the Republic of Indonesia. In finishing, I would like to give to Governor Pastika the same message that Tony Abbott gave to President Yudhoyono yesterday: we have been with you when you needed us and we are confident that you will be with us when we need you.