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

As the representative of Werriwa, which had approximately 10,000 electors at the 2011 census identifying as Pacific Islanders, and having visited Fiji, Samoa and Tonga over the last two years, I at the outset express my solidarity with the Fijian people over the events surrounding Cyclone Winston. Currently, 29 people are dead and UNICEF estimates that 60,000 people, including 26,000 children, are living in the areas that experienced the worst effects. Also, there are a massive 400,000 people living in badly affected areas.

Obviously, I commend the Australian government's commitment of $5 million, and the reality of Australians on the spot assisting through a variety of NGOs. We need to keep monitoring that to understand the depth of the issues and be prepared to give further support.

I also join with the Chair's in commenting on the efforts of the secretariat, led by Jerome Brown, but more particularly Sonya Fladun and the research officers. The reality is that these reports often depend on the secretariat. The level of commitment, interest, knowledge and availability of members varies considerably and I have no doubt that with this particular report they put in a magnificent effort.

The background of this inquiry is the 18 June 2014 new aid directions statement, giving an emphasis to the empowerment of females in six priority areas. It was stated at the time that one of our performance benchmarks is that all of our aid investments must assist gender issues, with at least 80 per cent focused on supporting empowerment for women. Since then, the department itself, and the Ambassador for Women and Girls, former senator Natasha Stott Despoja, have certainly focused on that area. Whilst we might quibble and argue about the amount of money in the foreign aid program, we certainly do not argue about that priority. It is in line with comments by the United Nations University on 1 January 2013:

A key challenge for donors is to ensure that gender is, and remains, a development priority in an era of "priority overload" in development policy and globalization. Gender is often a cross-cutting theme in development programmes, to be mainstreamed among a range of others …. This can result in gender being "mainstreamed out".

The danger is that gender equality will be subsumed into wider discussions about inequality reduction in order to reduce priority overload, so negating the importance of gender issues …

Australia clearly recognises that.

The basic theme of this inquiry outcome was the reality that we have to be in this for the long haul. We have to understand that there might not be immediate short-term gains from investment of foreign aid. We have to assess very clearly the local impacts and understand cultural values. The need—and I think the Chair particularly stressed this as one of his constant maxims—for data collection, looking at outcomes and making sure that we know of the evidence that is necessary. Fundamentally, we have to understand the diversity of the region. Clearly, we have large populations in Indonesia and in the region, including in small island states such as Tuvalu. We should not be too judgemental about the way in which these societies operate. However, on a broader front, nearly 70 per cent of Pacific women reported sexual and physical abuse. Estimates are that 40 to 70 per cent have been assailed by family members.

The inquiry attracted significant public interest. Six national states made submissions through their embassies and a very broad coalition of NGOs made their points known: Oaktree, ACFID, Oxfam, CARE Australia, Gavi the Vaccine Alliance, Slavery Links Australia, the International Labour Organization (Pacific Office) et cetera. Of course, they would, given the seriousness of these problems. ActionAid Australia said:

… addressing [violence against women and girls] in humanitarian settings is crucial to ending the cycle of vulnerability, marginalisation, exclusion and poverty …

Papua New Guinea has a maternal mortality rate of 733 per 100,000, and it is also extremely high in the Solomons, Vanuatu, Kiribati and the Federated States of Micronesia. Only 55 per cent of women in Papua New Guinea have 'skilled birth attendance' at their births. Cambodia has a death rate of 206 per 100,000. Timor-Leste has similar figures.

The situation on a broader front, as Oxfam said, is that despite their very broad support for the Millennium Development Goals, this report is necessary because our region is particularly not going forward with the progress that the other parts of the world have. Oxfam said that the Pacific is falling behind in the global fight against poverty. It noted that almost one third of the Pacific's 2.7 million people live in poverty and made the comment that poverty is not just about having enough to eat; it is also about basic rights and opportunities for all and the prevention of unnecessary deaths.

With regard to the state of our region, we note that in PNG in 2009, whilst 53 per cent of males and 59 per cent of females were dependent on subsistence, the men actually earned twice as much. The recommendations are extremely broad. Perhaps the most important is that we lift the proportion of foreign aid specifically going to this sector from five per cent to eight per cent to 10 per cent over a five-year period. That, of course, is in line with the government's emphasis on this part of the aid budget. The outcome of the report is that we feel that, even though the government has focused on it and even though our DFAT people are in the job of making sure there is an emphasis, we need to put more money in. I have to say that, whilst we did not want to single out particular countries, during the course of the inquiries there were projects and issues that emerged in a single nation. One of them was to explore ways to extend programs addressing violence, such as those being run by the Fiji Women's Crisis Centre, which the next speaker and I were privileged to attend, and linking those programs to similar initiatives operating in Australia.

The report calls on us to encourage governments in the region which have not already done so to prioritise the approval of national plans for UN Security Council resolution 1325. Further, the committee recommends that the Australian government prioritise work with governments in the Indo-Pacific region, non-governmental organisations and the scientific research community for the development of effective low-cost assessable medicines to treat AIDS. The committee also recommends that the Australian aid program retains a focus on ensuring that clean water and access to satisfactory sanitation and hygiene is available, especially in schools. On that front, of course, we should focus on ensuring that all education programs are designed to keep girls in school and addressing the issue of sanitation facilities by providing facilities that can be adequately maintained and serviced locally.

On the question of political participation, the current status is pretty lamentable. Some of the countries—Papua New Guinea in particular—have taken a backward step over recent years. We can say that Samoa, perhaps, is commendable by regional standards, but in fact the overall status of women in leadership roles, being role models and being able to affect policy is dire in our region. The committee recommended that the Australian government prioritise girls' and women's leadership and political participation, and integrate these as a priority across the region. In line with that, there is the need to fund women's advocacy organisations throughout the region. It is clear that they often do not have a voice in society that has any effect upon government. It was the unanimous recommendation of the committee that we do fund those organisations. In the same vein, the Australian government needs to increase research and programs supporting leadership and female empowerment in agriculture and key employment sectors for women.

In conclusion, it was very reassuring that there was such a high number of submissions from a broad spectrum—governmental and non-government, both here and overseas. Clearly, the whole focus in our region is one in which we, whilst being a major aid donor and a major form of assistance, have to be mindful of our image of being too paternalistic and too judgemental. We have to make sure that we fully maximise the possibility of getting local on-the-site advice from women's organisations, liaising with them in situations where they are not otherwise represented and making sure that our staff have close continuing contact with those organisations.

Jane Prentice (Ryan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Since her appointment as foreign minister, the Hon. Julie Bishop has insisted that addressing gender inequality, particularly in our neighbouring region, be a priority for a government. The members of the Human Rights Subcommittee of the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs Defence and Trade welcomed the opportunity to advance this agenda, with an inquiry into empowering women and girls and into the human rights issues confronting women and girls in the Indian Ocean and Asia-Pacific region.

When you look at the nations this region includes, there is a great difference in size and character, but they all have their own challenges. To take just one example, we need to look no further than our nearest neighbour and friend, Papua New Guinea. Just look at some of the stark facts. Five women die every day in childbirth, the highest maternal mortality rate in the world. More than 90 per cent of women and girls have been victims of domestic violence. In Australia, we have one doctor for every 302 residents. In PNG, there is one doctor for every 17,068 people. In a country challenged by geography, challenged by more than 700 villages—85 per cent of the population lives outside Port Moresby—and challenged by more than 800 different languages, there are just 51 doctors outside the capital city. Five point five per cent of babies die before they are two years old. In Australia, we spend $6,600 per capita on health every year and there is always a call for a bigger spend; in Papua New Guinea, it is just $67.

So where to start for this inquiry? There are so many challenges, but, equally, there are a plethora of faith based, service, government and non-government organisations providing aid and support programs into these countries. Indeed, one of my ongoing frustrations is the lack of coordination between these many groups. While I appreciate the need for statistics and factual data, it is disappointing that many organisations operate in silos. We need better coordination and better cooperation and we need to share the information. We heard that some groups simply monitor other groups and then express strong views on how programs should be delivered, having never actually operated under the difficult conditions in these countries. To me, there seem to be fewer organisations actually delivering programs on the ground. So recommendation 32 attempts to resolve some of this by calling for improved data collection and reporting. Another frustration of mine is the amount of duplication and programs operating in parallel without collaboration or coordination. One of the successful organisations in the Pacific is the Fiji Women's Crisis Centre, who also provide support to neighbouring countries. They have established a variety of programs addressing key issues which can be adapted to other countries and social situations. They run courses for men in the community, including local football teams, and have established a 'male champion' program. Rather than reinvent the wheel, the Fiji Women's Crisis Centre is well positioned to deliver these programs into other parts of the region, as identified in recommendation 23.

As you can see from the size of this report, Madam Deputy Speaker, there is no one easy solution to these many challenges, but many of the recommendations make good, common sense. Recommendation 18 states:

The Committee recommends that Australian Government agencies working in the Indo-Pacific region take advantage of opportunities to partner with faith based networks where they play a major role in delivery of health care services and care support.

Many of our faith based organisations have been in these regions for decades. They know the local people, they often speak the local dialect and the local people have learnt to trust them, so surely we are better delivering programs through these existing networks and organisations than establishing a separate operation to do it in parallel at greater expense. We could get more value for our aid dollar by delivering through these faith based organisations. There are other practical solutions. Recommendation 5 states:

The Committee recommends that the Australian Government:

Once again, these are practical solutions, supporting women in leadership roles who can be mentors to other women in the community and protect their rights.

The next section, 'Violence against women and girls', recommends that the Australian government engage with governments in the Indo-Pacific region to highlight the extent of violence against women and girls and the persistence of the problem. So I was delighted to be a member of an all-party delegation, with then Minister Ciobo, at the end of last year. We went to Fiji, Tonga, Samoa and the Solomon Islands, and we looked at the problems there during the 16 Days of Activism Against Domestic Violence. Minister Ciobo led the way in highlighting the Australian government's desire to address these issues in those countries, and we had some very interesting meetings with governments in those places.

As the Minister for Foreign Affairs has observed, when women are able to actively participate in the economy and in community decision making, everybody benefits. Section 7 of the report refers to women in leadership. The Pacific Women's Parliamentary Partnerships Forum is a great initiative, but we still have a long way to go.

Disappointingly, no women were elected at the recent election in Vanuatu, despite so many good candidates. That was a very disappointing outcome.

I understand that not everyone supports a quota system for women to be elected to parliament, but there are other ways of achieving it. I congratulate the President of Samoa, who has decreed that, in the upcoming election, in 10 per cent of the seats there will be a woman elected—but not at the expense of the man. Say a woman does not get as high a vote as a male candidate. The 10 women who get the highest votes will be deemed elected. But the male candidate will also be elected. So the voters in that constituency will have two members for that term. The President is increasing the size of parliament to make sure that there are women represented in the parliament, which is a novel way of achieving it.

In Papua New Guinea, we were very disappointed when Dame Carol Kidu retired, and there was no quota system in place; we were concerned. But it was great that we had three strong women elected, and I pay particular tribute to Julie Soso Akeke, the first ever female governor to be elected. She is the Governor of Goroka in the highlands, a very difficult part of Papua New Guinea. Julie is doing an amazing job.

Significant improvements have been achieved through our aid program in 2014-15. A new gender equality fund and a revised strategic direction will increase progress towards meeting our gender equality target and empowering women and girls. This fund supports commitments to advance international efforts on critical gender equality issues, including ending violence against women and girls and promoting women's leadership. The government has set a target requiring that at least 80 per cent of investments, regardless of their objectives, will effectively address gender issues in their implementation. However, there is no doubt that additional funding in this area would be of incredible benefit and is sorely needed. Indeed, achieving many of our recommendations will require more budget allocation. I trust that this report will also value-add to that agenda and make a positive contribution.

I thank the member for Berowra for his always-professional chairmanship and his untiring commitment to human rights all around the world during his time in this place. His new role is most fitting.

I also thank my fellow committee members for their valuable contributions. It is particularly worth noting that these recommendations have bipartisan support, as we all share a genuine desire to remedy the plight of so many women and children in our region. I give my appreciation to the inquiry secretariat, Sonya Fladun and her team, who worked tirelessly to source appropriate witnesses and managed to pull together some very disparate evidence and submissions. I commend the report to the House.

Debate adjourned.

Ordered that the resumption of the debate be made an order of the day for the next sitting.

Federation Chamber adjourned at 11: 30