Lebanese Australians

Mr HAWKE (Mitchell) (13:48): It was an honour this week to host hundreds of Maronite community leaders, who came to Canberra at the behest of the Parliamentary Friends of Lebanon, which I was happy to host with my co-chair, the member for Parramatta. I want to thank the Speaker of the House Milton Dick for his generosity in inviting the Maronite community to come to Parliament House annually and host us for a reception.

It was fantastic to have both the Foreign Minister and the shadow foreign minister in attendance to hear the concerns of the Australian Lebanese community and the Maronite leadership at the moment, particularly in relation to the ongoing situation with Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Northern Lebanon and the implications that will have on many Australian connected family members who reside in Lebanon.

What strikes me about the Maronite community is that they have been fantastic migrants to Australia, integrated very well into our country, but maintain strong ties with Lebanon and their original home country. I call upon the government, as the opposition does, to make sure we have in place robust measures ahead of time given how many Australian connected people are in Lebanon at any one time and the deterioration of the situation in the region. I do call upon the government, as the opposition does, to make sure we have in place robust measures ahead of time, given how many people with connections to Australia are in Lebanon at any one time and the deterioration of the situation in the region.

But this was about the businesspeople, the politicians, the educators, the public servants, the diplomats, the ambassador and the faith leaders who were there yesterday to speak about their community issues. I want to thank in particular Bishop Tarabay for the spiritual leadership of the Maronite community. This is a fantastic community in Western Sydney and I welcome them to the House.