DARWIN - 24 August 2021
LIZ TREVASKIS, HOST: And while it can in many instances feel like there is nothing we can do in Australia, the wheels are turning behind the scenes to evacuate Australians and Afghans. And your messages of concern are being heard by the Australian Government machine. Luke Gosling, the Federal Member for Solomon, he's a veteran. And while he didn't serve in Afghanistan, he did spend time there observing elections. He's with us this afternoon. Luke, can you tell me about the messages that you've been receiving from constituents? What are the sentiments that people are expressing and what are they asking you as a local member to do?
LUKE GOSLING, MEMBER FOR SOLOMON: G’day Liz. Yeah, essentially, it's to help in some way, shape or form, whether it be a family member of theirs, whether it be an interpreter that they worked with on the ground in Afghanistan or just a want to see the Australian Government commit to a larger humanitarian intake. At this stage the Federal Government said that they'll be giving visas to 3,000 Afghans, but that is a floor, not a ceiling. So they're thinking that it will increase. So far, I think about 1,300 or so Afghans have been – or people who have been repatriated, I should say, that includes Australian nationals citizens who were in Afghanistan working. But there's obviously still a lot more people that want to get out because they're very, very worried, obviously, with the Taliban taking over the country again.
TREVASKIS: You're getting messages from constituents. You have personal experience and connection to Afghanistan as a member of the opposition. Is there anything that you personally can do to. Is there anything that you can do?
GOSLING: Yeah, I've been working with the Minister for Foreign Affairs or Citizenship and also the Minister for Defence’s office to pass on information that I'm receiving, but also highlighting individuals that are at serious risk in Kabul. And we've managed to get some people, some Afghan nationals, some visas. We've been able to increase the awareness of people on the ground about the experiences that the Afghans and the Australians are having trying to get to the airport, for example, which is a dangerous route and a dangerous undertaking. The Australian Defence Force is doing an awesome job getting the planes in, the soldiers on the ground – obviously, it's a very difficult situation. So there's a lot that I've been able to do. I spoke in parliament today about it, not only commending our ADF people, but encouraging the Federal Government – after being so slow to start getting these people out that work with Australians – to make sure that we can safely get out as many of those loyal Afghans who worked at our embassy, for example, as possible.
TREVASKIS: Last week, the Defence Minister Peter Dutton justified the pace of Government's aid efforts by saying that such security checks needed to be carried out and that some of those Afghans who were former Australian embassy guards, for example, may have changed allegiances. What do you make of that suggestion?
GOSLING: Well, it's a fact that advocates had compiled lists with in particular the contracting companies of individuals with their credentials, with their letters of reference. So there was very much a lot of planning that went into the presentation of people for consideration for visas. And I'll take my hat off to those advocates who have been working tirelessly day and night to try and save those Afghans. And they're really passionate about that, because, for instance, at the embassy, you've got a situation where Afghans that were known by the Taliban, they're protecting the Australian embassy. You know, they're checking people for car bombs, for bombs attached to people. They're taking rifle fire, sniper fire, in some cases, actually taking bullets to protect Australian diplomats. So obviously, Australians are going to feel very passionate about helping people in that situation. So the Defence Minister obviously is flagging a concern. But that's what a vetting process is for, is for putting people through scrutiny to ensure that they are who they say they are, and that they are wanting to repatriate to Australia or apply for asylum for honest reasons. So that vetting process looks at the background checks, and also the references that they've had from Australian or coalition forces.
TREVASKIS: Luke, you have suggested publicly that Bladin Point, that that facility could be used to take refugees. Can you just explain that proposal? Is this something that's been taken seriously or that you're pushing forward with?
GOSLING: Obviously, Howard Springs is at capacity taking returning Australians from overseas, including from Afghanistan. And planeloads of Australians and Afghans with visas have been landing in Australia. Obviously, they have to undergo quarantine. All I was suggesting is that it's best to do that at a dedicated quarantine facility like Bladin. We know that Howard Springs has had an impeccable record. We know, however, in different states and territories, hotel quarantine keeps leaking COVID, and recently, as we saw, shut down Darwin again. But obviously, New South Wales is in a mess because of leaks out of hotel quarantine. So dedicated quarantining like Bladin is a no brainer. And whether the Federal Government takes that situation up or not is obviously a matter for them. But my job down here is to make sure that the Federal Government knows the Territory has always and will do its share.
TREVASKIS: Luke Gosling is the Member for Solomon, he's been inundated with correspondence from constituents over this past week, flagging their concerns about what's happening in Afghanistan. Luke, you are a former member of the ADF. You didn't serve in Afghanistan, but you did work there for a period of observing elections, a critical role in working towards democracy at that point for that country. What's this last week been like for you, having had that particular experience in Afghanistan?
GOSLING: Yeah and Liz, I hasten to add that I did a lot more than just observing elections. Down in southern Afghanistan in a place called Kandahar, which is the heart of the Taliban, I was working for months providing security. So I have an understanding of not only how dangerous that country and those environments can be, but also how it would feel to be someone who worked for the Australians outside of Kabul, who might be now trapped there and might never get the opportunity to get back to Kabul now and to be considered for evacuation. I'm not politicizing this issue at all, but it is fair to say that when we shut the embassy on the 28th of May, it'd been months, and in fact there was probably a period of 10 weeks before the Taliban took Kabul, in which we could have made more concerted efforts to get more of those loyal interpreters and so forth out that had been security checked, that had been vouched for by Australians. So I think there was a missed opportunity there, I think it has dinted our reputation a bit. But I don't want to take anything away from the work of the Australian ADF and the personnel that are on the ground right now in a difficult situation in Kabul, who are doing their very best to get Australians out and to get the loyal Afghans who have been given, in some cases, visas to be assessed for coming to Australia.
TREVASKIS: Well, Luke, we're going to leave it there this afternoon. There's a bit of work going on behind the scenes in relation to visas at the moment that we can't yet speak about. I'm hopeful that down the track we've got some more stories to share. Luke Gosling, the Member for Solomon, reflecting on some of the correspondence that he's had from you, his constituents, over this week – calls for him to encourage the Government to do more in relation to Afghanistan, and some personal reflections as well.
ENDS
