Say farewell to one of the few remaining rational voices on the asylum seeker issue as we brace ourselves for a very ugly election campaign.
This morning we were treated to the bizarre spectacle of Malcolm Turnbull and Tony Abbott sitting next to each other in the House of Reps, directly behind departing Liberal MP Petro Georgiou as he delivered his valedictory speech to parliament.
Georgiou’s name has been back in the news of late, cited as one of the few motivating factors that kept former prime minister Malcolm Fraser (and now ex-member of the Liberal Party) from tossing in his membership when the Coalition first began to use asylum seekers as a political football, way back when Pauline Hanson first reared her ginger head.
This morning, as the likes of Browyn Bishop, Christopher Pyne, Joe Hockey and Kevin Andrews listened on, Georgiou shared his last word on the politics of asylum seekers:
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nsMlkLKPPDI[/youtube]
Georgiou said:
I believe we have a fundamental obligation as a nation. That obligation is to not further harm those who bring themselves into our orbit of responsibility seeking safe haven.
We should not, as Australians, compound the persecution of genuine refugees, delaying their processing, locking them up in unnamed third countries or keeping them in permanent insecurity on temporary protection visas.
I once said to journalist Michael Gordon that “in life there are many things that you’d like to walk past and not notice. Lots. But sometimes you do notice and when you notice, you have to do something”. Well I have noticed some things, and I have tried not to walk past.
A tip of the hat to you Petro — you didn’t walk past, and for that we thank you.
Thankyou Petro for your skills and commitment in bringing the dogs to heel.
Sadly they have been let loose once more to wreak havoc in the name of popularity.
You will be missed.
2005 – all kids out of detention
2010- 427 kids in detention
The Evil of Two Lessors prevails.
Thank you Petro for your decency, compassion and courage; and your commitment to all three during your time in the Parliament. It must have been very difficult to stand up to Howard with your too few colleagues, but you have proved to present and future Australians, particularly the young, and of course the very vulnerable(asylum seekers) that staunch opposition, including insults and segregation shouldn’t deter you when you know the cause is just and right! Your presence will be sorely missed! I hope that you continue to speak out against human rights abuses, always!
I wish you and your loved ones every happiness for the future!
I am sorry that he’s leaving. There are too few people of his calibre in parliament on either side of the chamber, or in the Senate, for that matter. We always seem to lose the good and decent far too regularly and need to make do with the two-bob lairs who remain.
He’s had a rough time of it in the Liberal Party but he always stood firm for his principles, something that the bulk of ‘the rest’ could well emulate.
I wish him every future success and happiness. A truly admirable man.
Good riddance!
He never belonged in The Liberal Party just like his mate Fraser.
Cenatiempo – The now Liberal Party that is trying so hard to be like the Nazis – that party? Your displays of humanity and decency are overwhelming! No doubt you’d put yourself forward to pull the trigger many times? Turn the boats around – out to sea? Perhaps even drill holes in the bottom like was done by ????in Indonesia!
You make me feel so proud to be living in the same country – NOT! Never mind, you’ll never be like him, if you had another lifetime after this one – and then another, and then??