Nita Green (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on this condolence motion and to pay my respects to the father of Papua New Guinea, Grand Chief Sir Michael Somare. In doing so, I want to associate myself with the remarks of Senator Wong and, in contributing to this important motion, recognise the close relationship between Papua New Guinea and Queensland and the very close and customary relationship between the sovereign peoples of the Torres Strait and PNG.

In his time as chief minister and then as Prime Minister, Sir Michael in his important role in the independence of PNG always understood and valued the relationship between Papua New Guinea and Queensland. The state of Queensland and Papua New Guinea share more than an international border. Sir Michael remarked in 2008 that the connection extended to his own education. He was educated by Queensland teachers under the Queensland curriculum. It extended even to the sugar crop in Queensland, which he was reliably told originally came from Papua New Guinea.

Sir Michael lived a life of service to his people and to a nation. As vice-president of the Public Service Association, he spoke up on local wages and the working conditions of local workers. He helped launch the school of broadcasting in Port Moresby. But it was independence and the transformation of Papua New Guinea into the youthful, modern and proud nation that it is today that was Sir Michael's life's work, bringing people together and uniting a nation against the odds.

In 2008, Sir Michael delivered an historic address at a sitting of the Queensland parliament in Cairns. It was the first time an invitation of that kind had been offered to the Papua New Guinean Prime Minister and, as he remarked at the time, was an occasion:

… fitting recognition of the importance we both attach to our relationship and to the long and extensive links that have prevailed between our two peoples.

Sir Michael told the parliament:

Relations between Papua New Guinea and Queensland are indeed the most extensive of all relations with other Australian states. … The challenge for us is to ensure that the reservoir of goodwill that exists between our peoples is exploited to the fullest to deepen our relationship and grow our respective economies.

These challenges remain today. Right now, we face the challenge of responding to the coronavirus pandemic together. In the future, we will face many more challenges. The way we face those challenges will always be informed by the deep affection and reverence our nation has, and the Far North Queensland community has, for the 'father of PNG'.

The Torres Straight Islands and PNG share more than an international border. They share customs and kinship. The Torres Strait Treaty, signed by Sir Michael and Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser in 1978, is recognised as one of the most creative solutions in international law. It uniquely aims to maintain the lives and livelihoods, the traditions and family life between the people living within the Torres Strait protected zone. Families live across these islands, and you can reach out and almost touch the villages from the shore of another. Because of this closeness, and the treaty which Sir Michael authored, we are not two countries or two people; we are family. And so we grieve with the nation of Papua New Guinea for the loss of your Grand Chief, not as simply a partner in the Pacific but as family.

As a sign of the close connection between not only our two countries but also between the regions of Papua New Guinea and Far North Queensland, of the four memorials for Sir Michael being held in Australia, one of those memorials will be held in Cairns later this week. That memorial service will be held this Thursday, 18 March, at Saint Monica's Cathedral on Abbott Street in Cairns. On that occasion, the many people from Papua New Guinea living in Cairns, and the people connected to the Torres Strait, will have the opportunity to grieve and commemorate a great life. I extend my condolences to Lady Veronica and to the entire Somare family.