Mark Furner (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Particularly as a Queensland senator and as Chair of the Defence Subcommittee of the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade, I extend my deepest condolences to the families of Captain Bryce Duffy, Corporal Ashley Birt and Lance Corporal Luke Gavin, who were killed in operations last Saturday. I also express to the seven other soldiers injured in this terrible incident, involving open fire with an automatic weapon, my best wishes for a speedy recovery.

In May of this year I was proud to be part of a delegation as Chair of the Defence Subcommittee that visited Afghanistan and see the good work our troops are doing in that country. What you see at first glance and through the briefings is an appreciation of what our troops are doing—how competent, how proud and how committed they are to seeing that country change. That is the task in Afghanistan that is making a difference. Quite regularly when doing my Building the Education Revolution openings I explain the importance of education. Ten years ago under the Taliban rule there were one million students attending school in Afghanistan—and none of them were girls. The education of girls was prohibited in that country. However, 10 years on, after our involvement and the involvement of the coalition forces in Afghanistan, we have seen that figure turn. We now see six million students attending school and two million of that six million are girls. I never cease to be surprised by the number of parents who come up after I mention that at these education revolution openings and express their appreciation for that information. When the media report on these unfortunate deaths they fail to contribute this sort of information.

That is not the only statistic that is recognised as a result of our involvement in Afghanistan. There are health sector issues such as the lack of basic health cover. Under the Taliban, less than 10 per cent of the population had access to basic health services. Today that figure has increased to about 85 per cent. Furthermore, 39,000 community based infrastructure projects have been identified, including wells, clinics and roads. Almost 10,000 kilometres of roads have been constructed. These projects not only provide the Afghanistan public and communities with new infrastructure but also are sources of employment. We were advised of opportunities where Afghanis are being provided with basic building capabilities so they can assist with the construction of these infrastructure facilities or can assist in the construction of simple buildings. Also, 10 million people can now access telecommunications—500 times more than the 20,000 in 2001.

We recognise in this chamber these three deaths, bringing the total now to 32 of our brave defence personnel who have given their lives in Afghanistan. We appreciate what they have so proudly done in Afghanistan but we must also put on record our appreciation for their families. The grieving they must go through when these announcements are made is beyond comprehension. We owe it those who have fallen and have been injured to continue this mission in Afghanistan. We must finish what we set out to do. We must do that so that their sacrifices are not in vain. Quite often as I visit military bases around our country men and women approach me and the committee and explain their commitment to ensuring that their losses are not in vain. In fact, many defence personnel approach me eagerly wishing to travel to Afghanistan to contribute alongside their mates to make sure that we bring an end to this safe haven for the training of terrorists. To those who are currently serving in Afghanistan, thank you—you are making a huge difference to the lives of those who are not yet able to help themselves. Your contribution will ensure that innocent men and women and children are able to enjoy democratic rights as we do and ensure that Afghanistan can stand on its own two feet. Please know that you have the confidence of the Australian people behind you when we raise these matters in the Australian parliament.