Joanne Ryan (Lalor, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I stand here as a proud Australian. There are lots of things about Australia that I am proud of. One of the things I am proudest of is that a country that was built as a supposed prison built a great democracy and embedded the rule of law in our great egalitarian society. I am incredibly proud to call myself an Australian, and I am incredibly proud of our multiculturalism. But I am saddened that this week a minister of the Crown has come into this place and sought to divide this country—sought to smear a whole community on the actions of so few.

One of the things about the rule of law in this country that I am so proud of is that we hold individuals accountable for their actions. We do not hold the entire Catholic community responsible for the sexual assault against children that happened in our history. If that were the case, all of us in this chamber would be ashamed. We do not smear a whole community on the back of the actions of a few. We have rule of law in this country. I am ashamed that a minister of the Crown would come into this place and try to divide and smear communities. But he has had practice. In the last week they have also been trying to smear every unionist in the country for the actions of a few.