Laurie Ferguson (Werriwa, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—I move:

That this House notes that:

(1) March 2013 marked the 25th anniversary of the genocidal chemical attack by the regime of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein on Halabja in the Kurdish region of Iraq that took at least 4,000 lives within a few minutes and displaced many thousands more, and was part of Saddam’s brutal Anfal Campaign of the 1980s, targeting Kurdish and other minorities in Iraq;

(2) some 4,000 villages, 2,000 schools and 300 hospitals were destroyed, including through the use of chemical weapons across dozens of Kurdish villages;

(3) the Saddam regime was also responsible for the:

(a) deportation or forced relocation of tens of thousands of Faili Kurds on the basis that they were not considered Iraqi;

(b) abduction and execution of an estimated 8,000 Barzani Kurds who were subsequently buried in mass graves in southern Iraq; and

(c) arrest, execution and subsequent burial of up to 100,000 Iraqi Kurds in 1988, including women and children; and

(4) the former dictator Saddam Hussein and Ali Hassan al Majid, known as Chemical Ali, were subsequently prosecuted and convicted for these and other crimes.

I note the attendance here today of Haval A Syan, the Liverpool based representative of the government of the Kurdistan region in Australia.

Obviously, this attack in 1988 was, by any international standard—including by comparison with Bosnia, Rwanda or Syria—an extremely disturbing assault by the government of Iraq upon its own citizens. Before utilising chemical weapons the government of Iraq bombed the Kurdish village of Halabja for quite a while. It is thought they did this to make sure that the windows were open so that the gas would be more effective. The legacy of this was that in 1998 about 7,000 people were still being treated. The local areas—the water and land—were contaminated.

It was part of a broader thrust by the administration of Iraq—the Anfal assault on the Kurdish areas—leading to mass deportations, mass graves, forced relocations and the destruction of thousands of Turkish villages and households. John Simpson of the BBC was on the spot very shortly afterwards. Even though he had not been there at the time of the assault he spoke of his eyes prickling and of grave headaches for hours afterwards. He said:

I saw a woman whose body was twisted almost into a circle, the back of her head touching her feet. There was vomit and blood on her clothes, and her face was contorted in agony.

There were reports of burning and blistering and of people coughing up green vomit. There were very long-term impacts upon genetic diseases and the youth of that region. Cancers, respiratory problems, skin and eye debilities, reproductive and fertility issues were manifest.

In 2010, the Iraqi High Criminal Court tried President Hussein and the man known internationally as Chemical Ali, his close relative, for their participation in this activity. Memos have been discovered in the President's office which told of the provision of mustard gas and sarin. There were internal communiques, between the military and intelligence of the then Iraqi Ba'athist government, confirming approval of these actions. These are actions to be condemned internationally.

Let us talk today, also, about the current situation in Kurdistan. We must reflect on the gains that have been made. It is an area that has the sixth-largest known petrol reserve in the world. There have been significant negotiations with a number of companies, most particularly in Turkey. Today, 27 foreign and diplomatic representatives are situated in Erbil, including four of the five permanent United Nations Security Council members. By the end of this year, China will also have established its first diplomatic mission in the Kurdistan region.

There are, of course, some issues to be dealt with. It is a bit like Lebanon, which has not had a census since the 1930s because they do not want to discover the huge growth in the Shiite proportion of the population. Similarly, in Iraq they are not too keen on taking censuses because there is a livelihood to be had from the current deal, where Kurdistan receives 17 per cent of the oil revenue. Unfortunately, the revenue goes through the Iraqi administration in the first place and is slowly paid back in very paltry amounts over very significant periods of time. Despite that there is an estimate that the Kurds currently constitute a quarter of the population. Obviously, the question of a negotiation based on 17 per cent raises some questions about the ethical distribution.

On the other hand, there is also the issue that a very significant part of Iraq's revenue comes from this zone. So whether it is based on population or revenue, there are significant arguments for a renegotiation of this deal. I am pleased to see that a significant number of nations are dealing directly with the Kurdistan regional administration with regards to the future of these revenues.

The Kurds have been supressed for many centuries. We know about the plight of the Kurds in Turkey, Iran and Syria. They have had very little access to human rights. They have had very little right to language and to culture. They have very few broadcasting rights within those countries. But Kurdistan is making a very real example to the world and to the Kurdish people about their ability to conduct administrations, have their autonomy, and to fight for the preservation of their culture and their rights.

Chris Hayes (Fowler, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second the motion and congratulate my colleague for bringing this motion forward. March 16 this year marks the 25th anniversary of the Iraqi air force, on the orders of Saddam Hussein, dropping chemical weapons on the Kurdish town of Halabja.

Citizens were rushing for shelter in their cellars, realising the attack was different from the many attacks previously made and from the shelling that had already taken place in that town. The place was covered with a very smoky gas that hovered over the ground. Despite hiding in their shelters, people soon started feeling the horrendous effects on their bodies. Hundreds were feeling ill and then dying in the streets. Thousands of innocent civilians—men, women and children—were exposed to toxic chemical agents that led to their agonising and painful deaths and left many more permanently debilitated.

This cold-blooded attack was part of a deliberate campaign called al-Anfal, directed by the former leader of the Iraqi regime, the infamous Hassan al-Majid. It was designed to exterminate the Kurdish inhabitants. This attack occurred in the township of Halabja and was just one instance of many large-scale mass murders that happened between 1987 and 1988. Several thousand Kurdish villages were destroyed, approximately 100,000 Iraqi Kurds lost their lives and another 7,000 people were injured as a result of this genocide.

This was the first time in history that a government used weapons of mass destruction against its own people. Consequently, more than two decades after this brutal massacre, the aftermath of the atrocity is still apparent, with toxic gas causing long-term illness, birth defects, miscarriages, infertility, paralysis, neurological disorders and cancers among many of the surviving generation. The chemical attacks have also irreparably damaged the environment and soil and have contaminated water and food supplies.

The consequence is that the land remains useless for agriculture and breeding purposes and it is still very difficult for restocking animals. It is important to note, as the member for Werriwa did, that in 2010 the Supreme Iraqi Criminal Tribunal recognised that the events at Halabja were a crime against humankind. It was, I strongly submit, a genocide.

Australia has since become home to many of the Kurdish refugees, providing them with humanitarian services and support. In turn, the Kurds have contributed positively to Australia's multicultural community. Despite the overwhelming challenges, the community of Halabja have since taken steps to normalise their lives through a commitment to building a peaceful and inclusive region in Iraq. This is testament to the courage and determination of the Kurdish people. Since these shameful events, which are not just a plight on Iraq but a plight on the rest of the world, we have seen the reconsolidation of Iraq. The position of Kurdistan in the northern region has changed. It is now home to approximately 25 per cent of the Iraqi population and has played a disproportionate role in the economic development of the nation itself. Through the professional developments of its oilfields and the utilisation of the pipeline through to Turkey, and being able to export from the gulf, the Kurdistan region is now making a major contribution to the world's energy supplies and to the economic future of Iraq itself.

There have also been considerable inroads in supporting the health and education of its people. The Kurdistan Regional Government understands that to provide for the future of its people it must first make considerable investment in education of its youth. That is something the Kurdistan Regional Government should be commended on.

I would like to thank Mr Havan Syan—here with us today; the representative of the Kurdistan Regional Government—for keeping me abreast of the issues concerning this region and how vital they are for the stability of our globe. Finally, on the 25th anniversary, which falls on the 16th, I urge that we pause to remember—to commemorate—the innocent lives that were tragically lost as a result of this barbaric attack, and pray that such violence is never again inflicted by a state on its people.

Ian Goodenough (Moore, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The time allocated for this debate has expired. The debate is adjourned and the resumption of the debate will be made an order of the day for the next sitting.

Proceedings suspended from 13:35 to 15:59