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

I rise today to contribute to this important debate on the issue of Australia's contribution to the efforts to defeat Ebola in West Africa and of course to deal with it as a global issue, not simply left to those nations currently struggling with the epidemic. As the Greens spokesperson for immigration I am extremely concerned at the approach and attitude of the government's Minister for Immigration and Border Protection, Scott Morrison, in relation to this issue.

On Monday, the Abbott government made an extraordinary announcement. On the ABC's AM program, the immigration minister announced that he was effectively shutting Australia's borders to people from Western Africa, that anyone who did not already have a visa would be locked out and that the humanitarian program has been suspended—just like that, slam! The Australian government has locked the front door and shuttered up the windows while the house is burning. The message is clear from the Australia immigration minister and his government: 'No refugees and no people who are seeking to leave West Africa are welcome here; sorry, but we're just not interested in your suffering.' How mean, cruel and incredibly selfish this government is.

Not only are we refusing to carry our weight in responding to the Ebola crisis, as previously outlined by my colleague Senator Di Natale, but also to send such an irrational, fearmongering message not just to our own domestic community but to the rest of the world is devastating for those who are actively trying to do their best to control the Ebola epidemic.

The United Nations has said that measures such as suspending these types of visa programs and closing the door on those fleeing from West Africa could discourage the vital relief work, making it harder to stop the spread of the deadly virus. So well done, Scott Morrison! Well done, immigration minister! There is no doubt that slamming the door in the face of people from West Africa is dispiriting to those who are struggling to fight the outbreak on the ground. Liberia's president has urged Australia to reconsider its travel ban, saying:

Anytime there's stigmatisation, there's quarantine, there's exclusion of people … we get very sad.

Sierra Leone's information minister, Alpha Kanu, said Australia's move is discriminatory in that it is not going after Ebola but, rather, is against the 24 million citizens of Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea. He added:

Certainly, it is not the right way to go.

Mr Kanu, I could not agree with you more. US President, Barack Obama, said his country's response would be guided by science and not by fear. And, yet, here we have our Australian ministers whipping up fear, fearmongering and creating hysteria. The fact of the matter is that announcements like this one, banning refugees from the region and cancelling visa requests, create fear in both Australia and the communities that are actually struggling to deal with the crisis.

The World Health Organisation has said that any type of travel bans would deter aid workers, which is the last possible thing that we should be doing at this time. A senior Ugandan government spokesperson said, 'With moves like this, Western countries are creating a culture of fear.' Again, well done, Minister Morrison, for being such a wonderful diplomat on the international stage! The Ugandan government spokesperson said, and I quote:

If they create mass panic ... this fear will eventually spread beyond ordinary people to health workers or people who transport the sick and then what will happen? Entire populations will be wiped out.

These are the words of the very people who are asking Australia for help. Other Ugandan officials have said that they are worried that Africa will be cut off from the world. 'We don't want anybody to think that this is an African problem,' they said. 'It is a global problem that we must handle together.'

Why is Australia so insistent on isolating itself from the rest of the world? Ebola is certainly a global problem, and it is only by working together that we will overcome it. Australia's selfish response to this crisis, with MPs trying to score domestic political points while the government drags its heels, has been extremely disappointing, and it is starting to bite in terms of our international reputation. In the past, Australia has been at the forefront of responding to international catastrophes. There were inspiring scenes during a surge of national pride when we came together and worked with other nations in response to the tragic Boxing Day tsunami in 2004. Last year, when the massive earthquake struck the Philippines, Australian men and women came together and worked with the government to help those who were suffering. These were great achievements that helped build our national character. But when it comes to the global response to Ebola, Australia is severely lacking. In fact, apart from a deafening silence, the Abbott government's only response has been to ban West African refugees from coming to Australia. That is a shameful announcement—