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

[by video link] I join the Senate to speak on the critical situation in Afghanistan, where the Taliban have taken control of Kabul, and Australian citizens, visa holders and others seeking refuge wait to be rescued and taken to safety. I want to acknowledge the members of the Australian Defence Force who are currently undertaking this mission, in particular the ADF personnel from Townsville's first and third battalions who are contributing to the deployment. We thank them all for their service and their bravery. We also understand that this is a particularly difficult time for veterans across our country. Please know that there is support there if you need it. I join in calling on the government to increase support to these organisations offering support to our veterans during this very difficult time.

Finally, to the Afghan families in Australia who are waiting to hear from loved ones, to the people who have waited for many years to be joined by their family, to those who served alongside our soldiers and to the soldiers themselves who have been advocating on their behalf for so many years, we want you to know that you are not forgotten. Like many other MPs and senators, my office is assisting a number of families in this situation, and it is incredibly heartbreaking. We should be doing everything in our power to play our part in accepting visa holders and refugees. We have a moral obligation to do this. We can't simply say that we wish things were different. It is too late for that. As Jason Scanes, a veteran from Maryborough in Queensland who has been trying to get his own Afghan interpreter to safety since 2013, said last week, 'We don't leave our mates behind and we don't give up on them either.' Let's hope that that is true.