Anne Ruston (SA, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Health and Aged Care) Share this | Hansard source

I stand to support this suspension motion because of the importance of the issue currently being sought to be put before this chamber. It is extraordinarily disappointing to be standing here today with those opposite politicising something that could not be more important to humanity—not just to Australia and not just to this place but to humanity itself. To come in here and accuse us of pulling a stunt, as has just been done by those opposite, demeans them and absolutely shows their lack of understanding of the importance of this issue. I say to you: shame on you.

Shame on you across the chamber for not understanding how unbelievably painful this must be for so many Jews around the world—to think that you would suggest that this is a stunt. I say to you: this is a matter of urgency. It is absolutely a matter of urgency. There is absolutely no place in Australia, in our community—there should be no place in the world—for Nazi symbols. Without doubt, they are directly linked to the worst crimes committed against humanity in any of our living history. This salute, and these symbols, represents absolute evil. It represents terror. It represents the attempted destruction of a group of people in our population. We must all condemn any form of Nazism, and that goes to their symbols and their salutes. Shame on those opposite for not supporting this very important issue.