Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Brown for his question. The government is continuing to monitor the situation closely. The situation is calmer but remains uncertain. Our priority remains the wellbeing of Australians. We remain deeply concerned by intimidation of journalists and opposition activists. We deplore the loss of life. We welcome efforts of the army to protect peaceful protestors from violent attacks and intimidation. Mr Rudd has spoken to the Egyptian foreign minister about the need for political reform and for the process to begin, and he has informed him that the attacks on protestors and journalists were unacceptable. Egypt has been the focus of Mr Rudd’s discussions with world leaders, including Mr Netanyahu and Mr Blair. We are concerned about the stability of Egypt, as it is vital to the Middle East region.

Who leads Egypt must be for the Egyptian people to decide. The Australian government urges a quick and orderly transition involving broad representation of opposition groups to address the demands of Egyptians for political, social and economic reform. Australia has long supported democratic transformation in the Middle East and other parts of the world.

In terms of your question on some of the allegations about some activities of the services in Egypt, we are aware of some allegations. It is not appropriate for us to speculate on the operations of another country’s intelligence service in this setting. We note that Vice-President Suleiman is well known in the region and to foreign leaders for his role in the Middle East peace process. Ultimately, as I have said already, who leads Egypt must be for the Egyptian people to decide. (Time expired)