Wednesday, 27 November 2024

Middle East conflict

Gabrielle DE VIETRI (Richmond) (14:36): My question is for the Premier. Ranem Abu Izneid is a 20-year-old Australian dentistry student. She was studying in her university dormitory when the Israeli military fired through the window into her dormitory, leaving her permanently blind in one eye and with shrapnel in her chest, neck and skull. Ranem is now home in Victoria with her family, but her dream of becoming a dentist may never become a reality. Through the ICV Ranem and her family have reached out to the Premier requesting a meeting, support and advocacy. Premier, will you respond to Ranem’s request and meet with her family?

Jacinta ALLAN (Bendigo East – Premier) (14:37): I thank the member for Richmond for her question. The experience that this young woman had in the conflict in the Middle East and being badly injured in the way she has been is deeply distressing for her, her family and her loved ones, which is why we have offered support through the local Palestinian community to this woman. As I am sure the member for Richmond could appreciate, I am not going to go into those personal details in the house.

In terms of the wider issues, this is why the war needs to end. It is why I have called for the war to end, because there are too many innocent people, as the member for Richmond has said, who want to pursue their dreams, their passions and their aspirations by travelling and working overseas, and they should be able to do so freely and safely. Not only is the ongoing conflict in the Middle East preventing that for so many, it is also causing a large and tragic loss of life. It is causing huge injury, and it is also causing deep distress to people around the globe, but particularly people in our local community who have family, friends and loved ones who are in the Middle East who are directly impacted by the conflict. That is why my focus has been and will continue to be working with our local communities to provide them with the support they need. That will include meeting with organisations who represent those affected communities, be they Islamic, Jewish or any other cultural group who wish to reach out in the spirit of keeping Victoria united. That is what is important here: working with local communities here to keep Victoria united and not let that that conflict a long way away that is deeply distressing to us all bring conflict here. That is why we have reached out to provide that support through the local community here, and we will continue to take that approach, because that is the approach that we must all take to show love and care, regardless of race, religion, gender or any other characteristic. We should provide love and care and support for anyone who has been injured, hurt or impacted by this conflict.

Gabrielle DE VIETRI (Richmond) (14:39): I thank the Premier for her consideration and sensitivity, but I should let her know that I spoke with Ranem’s father just 2 hours ago and they have not heard from anyone from the government, so it may need following up. The Premier would know that Ranem is not the first Australian victim of Israeli weapons. Her father told me that he hopes that she is the last. This is on top of the hundreds of thousands of people dead and dying in Palestine and Lebanon. I join the Premier in her desire for this to end. In light of that and to that end, will the Premier end the Victorian Labor government’s partnership with Elbit, Israel’s largest weapons manufacturer, whose drones, whose butterfly bullets, whose white phosphorus and whose cluster munitions have hurt and killed so many?

The SPEAKER: There is quite a lack of connection between the first question and the second question, member for Richmond.

Ellen Sandell interjected.

The SPEAKER: I will allow it, member for Melbourne. I will allow the question, but I remind members that the substantive question and the supplementary question must be closely connected.

Jacinta ALLAN (Bendigo East – Premier) (14:41): To assist, the thing that connects my answers to the substantive and supplementary questions is my determination and desire to do everything I can to keep Victoria united and to not cause division for base political purposes. On the question of the MOU that the member referred to, this is an MOU that has expired, and the government has already indicated that it will not be continued.

Ellen Sandell: On a point of order, Speaker, on relevance, the Premier is referring to the MOU when the question actually referred to the partnership with Elbit Systems. They are two separate things, and I ask you to draw the Premier back to answering that substantive question on the Elbit Systems contracts.

The SPEAKER: The Premier was being relevant to the question. I remind the Premier of the question.

Jacinta ALLAN: I reiterate that what we should all be doing in this place is using this place as a platform. I remind the member for Richmond that we should be using this place as a platform to keep our community united, not to drive hatred, not to drive division and not to drive conflict – to keep Victoria united, because that is what our community should demand from representatives in this place. If we have the privilege to sit in this place, we should respect the community that put us here.