Sarah Hanson-Young (SA, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That standing orders be suspended.

I would like to be able to move the amendment to this motion because we know that the motion put forward by Senator Abetz is pure hypocrisy. We know that the government has a bad plan when it comes to dumping vulnerable people in Malaysia. We know it contravenes the 1951 Refugee Convention. We also know that the opposition's plan of dumping vulnerable people in Nauru would contravene the 1951 convention.

It is time that both the government and the opposition recognise that the Australian people are fed up with the hypocrisy and with the dirty arguments that not just put the lives of vulnerable people in harm's way but trash Australia's international obligations. We know it is time we had a proper process for dealing with these issues. Why do we drag out the lives of some of the world's most vulnerable people just because there is a political standoff, a squabble, between the government and the opposition? Neither side is standing up for our obligations. Neither side is doing what they should be doing, which is to ensure that our domestic laws concur with our international obligations.

It is absolutely paramount that we do what it is we have signed up to do: assess the claims of asylum seekers here on the Australian mainland. It is what the majority of Australians want; it is the cheapest option; it is the most humane one; and, above all else, it is legal. We should just get on with it. There is absolute rank hypocrisy in this motion, as put forward by Senator Abetz. It does not do anything to add any substance or standard to the level of debate we are seeing not just in this place but in the other place as well. How about the Leader of the Opposition and the Leader of the House actually stand up for what Australia signed up for 60 years: protecting the rights of vulnerable people when they arrive on our doorstep, doing what it is that we should be doing. Stop trashing Australia's international obligations just because of the politics of the day.

We know that onshore processing would be a much simpler option. It would be cheaper, it would be more humane and it is popular. We know that the government does not support Nauru. We know that the opposition does not support Malaysia. We know that offshore processing is bad policy: it is morally wrong; it is illegal; and it is expensive. So just give it up.

There is one thing that is actually right in this debate. It is that both sides are right about the rank hypocrisy of the other. Both sides have sold out. Both sides are participating in a debate based on hypocrisy and backflips. There is absolutely no substance to the issues that go to the heart of the needs of asylum seekers. We should be doing what it is we said we would do under the convention we signed 60 years ago. The question and the amendment that I am putting to the Senate is: will we stand by the convention we signed 60 years ago? Under the government's plan we will not. Under the opposition's plan we will not. Is it that both sides are prepared to shred our international reputation, shred Australia's value of a fair go and throw away 60 years of commitment to the refugee convention? That is exactly what both sides want. That is the effect of both proposals—Malaysia and Nauru.

What a sad point we have got to in this debate when we are being forced to choose between dumping children in Malaysia and dumping children in Nauru. There is a much better solution; it is an Australian option. It means assessing the claims of asylum seekers onshore here on the mainland, as most Australians would like us to do. It is cheaper, more humane and it is legal. That is what this amendment is about: asking both the coalition and the government to do exactly what we have already signed up to do, which is to abide by our obligations under the 1951 refugee convention. If you are not interested in that, why not just say so? Stop playing with the lives of vulnerable people. Stop pretending that you care when clearly you do not. All you care about is the political points you are trying to make on the way through. And thank heavens the Australian people are wise enough to see through the hypocrisy and the sell-outs and ensure a better solution. (Time expired)