Sean Edwards (SA, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I withdraw the word 'ignorance' and would perhaps insert the words 'lack of knowledge'.

What an extraordinary outburst. I am on the record and, indeed, have written about this subject. Obviously I was disappointed when the government decided not to proceed with these changes but I know that, in a good government and a pragmatic government, you get on with the big priorities and that is the way in which the leadership of the government saw it.

Senator Moore, you remind us today just how much the Labor Party has become a party of impressions. You see, they are very good on the other side over there, in Labor, of creating the impression that they stand for things, but they are not very good at following through with principled policymaking. They create the impression they support workers, but driving down economic growth hardly creates jobs. They create the impression that they support Defence, but cutting 10 per cent from its budget is hardly consistent with that. And they create the impression they support free speech, but alas—the evidence is they do no such thing.

Labor projected all of the rhetoric which created the impression they supported Charlie Hebdo and its murdered staff in the cause of free speech, but in practice they support the very legislation that would prevent that magazine from being published. On this side of the chamber our rhetoric matches our actions. We appreciate that free speech is a serious issue and one that requires a serious response; and where free speech overlaps with national security imperatives it is even more serious.

These are matters we would prefer to tackle on a bipartisan basis, if that is not beyond the Labor Party. When our enemies weaponise words and information to use against us, there is no place for playing politics. The facts are that there are people in our community who are preaching hatred and violence. They do so aiming to influence our young men and women to travel overseas to fight with or support terrorist groups who are in battle with this nation's armed forces, and they do so with the aim of influencing them to commit violence here in Australia too. To this end the Prime Minister and senior ministers regularly condemn hate preachers with their words and their actions.

The government introduced the foreign fighters bill last year, which included strong prohibitions against the advocacy of terrorism. The Attorney-General announced not two weeks ago that the government will provide nearly $18 million in funding to combat the lies and the propaganda that terrorist groups and their advocates circulate online. This will empower the government and community members themselves to directly challenge propaganda with the full force of the law at their side. The Combating Terrorist Propaganda Online initiative will limit the impact of extremist narratives on domestic audiences by reducing the support that terrorist groups garner on the internet and via social media.

We will establish a social media monitoring and analysis capability in order to better understand extremist narratives and how they influence Australians. The measures will also help reduce access to extremist material online through the recently launched 'report online extremism' tool. And we will work the with the Australian Communications and Media Authority, the private sector and international partners to take down or otherwise address extremist content.

So the government is taking a dynamic approach to its communications to better contest the online environment. This will include promoting material online that challenges the claims of terrorists and shares the benefits of Australia's diversity, inclusion, democracy and social values. This is not work that governments can do alone. As the Prime Minister said recently:

The terrorist threat is rising at home and abroad – and it’s becoming harder to combat.

… … …

By any measure, the threat to Australia is worsening.

… … …

The number of foreign fighters is up.

The number of known sympathisers and supporters of extremism is up.

The number of potential home grown terrorists is rising.

… … …

There is no grievance here that can be addressed; there is no cause here that can be satisfied; it is the demand to submit - or die.

And so the government and communities are already working to help susceptible individuals reject terrorist propaganda, by questioning the assertions, inconsistencies and false allegations and by bringing to light the brutality of extremist groups. There will also be stronger prohibitions on vilifying, intimidating or inciting hatred. These changes will empower us to directly challenge terrorist propaganda.

The government is deeply committed to its freedom agenda, which includes advancing measures to protect freedom of speech, freedom of religion and other traditional rights and liberties. The government is working closely with the community to combat radicalisation and extremism through the promotion of acceptance and tolerance.

We believe in an Australia where everybody is free to speak their mind. We believe in an Australia in which rights are accompanied by responsibilities. We believe in an Australia in which there is absolutely no place for racism, and all of our citizens live in a harmonious and mutually respectful society. Unlike those opposite, not only do we tell you what we believe in—all of this—but we are acting to see that it happens.

I hope that the contributions to the rest of this debate can be a little more balanced and less prejudicial than the last contribution we had from Labor, from Senator Singh. Thank you.