Jerome Laxale (Bennelong, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Like the member for Bruce, I rise today to acknowledge the ongoing hard work of the Afghan members of my community in Bennelong who support and advocate on behalf of Afghan refugees seeking asylum here in Australia and also across the world.

Recently I met with the Afghan Women's Wellbeing Group and Resolution Community Services to discuss the ongoing and tireless efforts they make to provide support to members of the Afghan community who have had to flee their home in the face of ongoing turmoil and persecution. The people of Afghanistan are faced with Taliban-incited violence. There are thousands of Afghan Australians in our community who have family members facing grave risk. Family homes are being targeted; family members are disappearing.

In Bennelong, members of the Afghan community have banded together to provide support to these refugees. Since the rise in turmoil in Afghanistan, they've worked tirelessly to provide administrative, financial and emotional support to their community. The Afghan Women's Wellbeing Group and Resolution Community Services have become the voice in Bennelong for the Afghan community. They have made themselves available 24 hours a day to provide support to those who are seeking to flee Afghanistan. They've worked together to sponsor visas for hundreds of citizens, dedicating countless hours of their time to fundraising so that they can cover application fees, provide support in seeking passports and ensure that these citizens have the paperwork they need.

One of the first meetings I held in my office when I became the member for Bennelong was with one of these groups. They told me of the deeply sad and traumatic experiences of the people of Afghanistan and also their families who are here in Australia. Their groups attempted to work with the previous government and the former member to provide support to their community and were faced with a series of closed doors, unreturned calls and unanswered emails. It wasn't until the government changed that they were welcomed back into offices across the country to discuss these issues. They've had opportunities to meet with MPs in and around Bennelong and with ministers and to work closely with members of the department to advocate on behalf of Afghan refugees. They thank the government for the commitment of thousands of existing places to accommodate desperate Afghan civilians. They urge us, as a rich and prosperous country, to continue to provide the support and advocacy for those in Afghanistan who are in undeniable and immediate need. The Taliban continue to demonstrate their contempt for the rights, the freedoms and the welfare of Afghan people, particularly women and girls, as well as their disinterest in normal relations with the international community.

I'll continue to work alongside these important organisations in my community and alongside the government to provide support to the Afghan Australian community.