Larissa Waters (Queensland, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

[by video link] It is a terrifying time to be a woman in Afghanistan. The Taliban's history of oppression, violence and threats against women makes it hard to believe the new government's reassurances that it will respect women's rights to study, work and participate in government. There are clear and immediate risks for the freedom, education, employment, safety, political engagement and bodily autonomy of Afghan women and gender-diverse people. The situation is chaotic, and I commend all those in government, electorate offices, community groups and civil society groups who have been working tirelessly since Kabul fell to help those on the ground and their families here. Afghan women who can are standing up, and Australia has a moral obligation to support them.

The Australian government must offer permanent protection to at least 20,000 Afghans in addition to Australia's current humanitarian intake, and we must give immediate protection to Afghan citizens currently on temporary protection visas here in Australia. The Australian government must allow women to apply for women-at-risk protection visas from within Afghanistan rather than requiring them to risk their lives crossing the border just to apply. We must also facilitate their evacuation. More must be done to protect the millions of people, including women, in Afghanistan. Australia must provide immediate and increased aid to support women, girls and gender-diverse people, delivered through partnerships with civil society and aid organisations working on the ground. This is essential to ensure that aid is targeted to those most in need. Consistent with Australia's National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security, Australia must call on the international community to ensure that Afghanistan's women leaders are included in these peace talks and represented in the Afghanistan National Assembly and public office. This is a crisis, decades in the making, that Australia has contributed to. We now have an obligation to do everything we can to secure the safety and freedoms of people in Afghanistan.