First speech as a parliamentarian

By Dinusha Soo

With the 2022 elections held recently, have you ever considered what changes you might enact if you were elected? As the emerging leaders of tomorrow I think it’s important to consider the changes we might advocate for. The following is a piece of creative writing where I use my fictional position as a newly elected member of parliament to advocate for changes to refugee rights.

As I give my first speech in this house today, I would like to acknowledge the Ngunnawal and Ngambri people, the Owners of the land where we gather today and pay my respects to Elders past and present. I recognise their connection to Country and role in caring for and maintaining Country over thousands of years. I would also like to acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the lands across my electorate of Flynn – the Gureng Gureng, Wuli Wuli, Yiman, Wadjigu, Ngur, Bidjara, Gangulu and Darambal peoples.

It is an incredible honour to stand before Parliament today as a representative of the people of Flynn. I am only the third person to do so, and the only woman of colour. I would like to pay tribute to those who represented Flynn before me, namely Chris Trevor and Ken O’Dowd. I thank you for your years of service to this community.

Today is truly a historic day. This electorate has not been held by Labor since 2007. I thank my talented team, who helped campaign so tenaciously – this win would not have been possible without you. To my family and friends: thank you for your resilience and support over the past few months.

Like many regional areas, Flynn has been overlooked in the past, but today, this has changed. When the Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese asked me whether I would be the Minister for Home Affairs, I was deeply honoured. Not since 1982 has a minister for Home Affairs come from an electorate representing regional Australia. The time for change has come and I could not be prouder to be part of it. But whether I am home in my electorate or Canberra, I can assure you that I am fighting for the people of Flynn; this will always be my first priority.

Flynn is a diverse electorate, which extends west from Gladstone and Gayndah and includes Mount Morgan, Monto, Biloela, Moura, Blackwater and Emerald. The town of Biloela has also been my home for the last 35 years.

My parents migrated to Biloela from Sri Lanka in 1986. My Dad worked in the local coal mine, and my mum worked as a teacher at the local Catholic school. Biloela has a strong migrant history; Greek immigrants settled in the town in 1930, started businesses and began to farm the land. Russian immigrants followed shortly after, working mainly as cotton pickers.

Flynn is a welcoming and diverse community. In 2010, 500 refugees from Afghanistan and Syria arrived and benefited from the strong volunteer networks in the area. These organisations were pivotal in securing local employment for these refugees.

Therefore, it did not surprise me when I saw the enormous local support for the Murugappan family, a family fleeing persecution in Sri Lanka. Priya and Nades are well-loved in Biloela. Priya has a strong connection to the community, holding craft classes and volunteering, whilst Nades worked at the local abattoir.

Yet under the draconian regulations imposed by the former Coalition Government, the Murugappan family were removed from their family home in Biloela, transported to Christmas Island, and then to community detention in Perth, which cost the Federal Government more than $2 million.

This did not quell the determination of the people of Flynn to see the Murugappan set free. The local community held vigils, gained media attention, and raised funds. The compassion and tenacity of my community embody the spirit of regional Australia.

My colleague, the Hon. Jim Chalmers, in one of his first acts as Interim Home Affairs Minister, allowed the family to return to their home in Biloela whilst their immigration status was being resolved.

Today, in my capacity as Home Affairs Minister, I want to go one step further. I will be granting the Murugappan family permanent visas to remain in Australia. I will bring back the dignity and respect to a family that has needlessly suffered and deliver an outcome that my local community can truly celebrate.

Today, I also want the process of healing to begin. We have to start with acknowledging that as a Parliament, we could have done better. Under the previous government, Australian Border Force was directed to call those seeking asylum “illegals”. This rhetoric is not only dehumanising but dangerous, inciting unnecessary fear among the community. Today, I ask all colleagues, from all sides of politics, as well as the media, to use the words contained in the 1951 United Nations Refugee Convention – asylum seekers and refugees. Let us empower rather than disenfranchise this group of people.

Today, I pledge to work alongside subject matter experts to gradually transition 20,000 refugees currently in Australia on temporary visas to permanent visas. Some of these refugees have already been in the country for over ten years and are actively contributing to Australia’s economy and society. Like the Murugappan family, these refugees deserve the chance to move forward with certainty and security. By providing permanent visas, we can encourage sustainable economic growth in geographical areas where these people choose to settle down.

To conclude, I want to say to my fellow parliamentarians that this 47th Parliament allows us to write a new chapter in Australia’s history. Just as the Hon. Gough Whitlam once said: “I was profoundly embarrassed by it (the White Australia Policy) and I did all I could to change it.”

Let us meet a similar challenge and re-write the way Australia regards those seeking protection asylum. Let us empower all people irrespective of creed, race, or colour and be the welcoming country that I know we can be.