Senate Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Legislation Committee, , 3:10:24 to 3:20:46
Representatives from Australian Baptist Ministries and the CRPH Support Group highlight the critical role of faith-based networks in delivering aid. They emphasize the desperate situation of displaced persons and the importance of diaspora engagement.
Topics: Human rights, Social services
Speakers: Patrick Cho, Speaker 19, Hon Sarah Henderson, Unknown Speaker, Jessica Collins, James Thet, Min Zin
and just in relation to the document tabled by the Miami Research Center just indicating that the committee is h happy to table that document. So, thank you very much for that. Uh, I'd now like to welcome representatives from CRPH, NUG Support Group Australia and Australian Baptist Ministries, Baptist World Aid and Baptist Mission Australia. If you could come to the table, thank I understand that information on parliamentary privilege and the protection of witness witnesses giving evidence to Senate committees has been provided to you. For the record, I'm conscious you're still taking your seats. Uh for the record, could you please each state your full name and the capacity in which you appear today? starting with the uh CIP and UG support
>> So my name is Patrick Ch from Queensland.
>> My name is James Thd. Thank you.
>> Thanks Mr. T.
>> My name is Deborah Kimote. I'm a member of Australia AKO Australia current organization under CIP annuities.
>> Reverend Mike Bartlett representing uh
Australian Baptist Ministries and in particular our two international agencies.
>> Apologies. I I thought you're you're with Australian Baptist Ministries. Thank you so much, Mr. Bartlett and uh u Mr. Momo.
>> Thank you.
>> Thank you so much. Firstly to the CRPH nug support group. Do you have an opening a brief opening statement?
>> Sorry. Yes.
>> Do you have a brief opening statement? Bearing in mind we just would like to keep your opening statement fairly brief due to the time issues we have.
>> Yeah. Uh chair then senator. Thank you. for the opportunity to speak today. My name is Patrick Ch. I am speaking on behalf of CIPH and this program Australians. We present Australia my community to work with the civil society partner and affected the community in Myamma to support a human right and federal democratic future for Myar. Five year after 2021 military code my democrats call it complete lead in idiot under military control. The coupe was illegal under the militaryowned 2008 constitution. Political priv has been eliminated. Prior expression association assembly are criminalized. More than 30,000 civilians and journalists activist has been arrested under debate and punitive law. Political arrests are trying in military crime unit or seclo prison code. Judicial independence no longer exists. The codes are another another tools used by military repress opposition. At the same time, the fundamentally different political future is emerging in area outside military control where the bordon as transition toward fer democracy is already underwait. Ethnic organization, civil society groups and local administr administration aligned with the national unity government are providing essential services and clinics, school code and lua governor. This is an this are not theoretically alternated. It is light reality for million of people. The only survival process forwards inclusive federal democracies grounded the civilians control of the military ethnic equality and respect of human right. Today we c and dispers request the Australian parliament and Australian government. We welcome Australian reestion of the military to sh election. However, n reconnection alone is insufficient. Australia should adapt a clear policies at different exclusions individuals appointed elected or and elevate through the fugulent process should face immediate and permanence visa bended targeted sanctioned on the military linked revenue sources. Increase a cross borders humanitarian assistant through the trusted local partner. engage with the democratic state order including nation unity government and ethnic organization for the engaging state region ethnics and local government structure in areas liberated from military control these are the fundamental on which we can be future federal democracy take a coordinated regional action against the transnational crime based in my democracy is not only under threat of MMA but also best lighting in our Indop region. Mimma is located right at the heart of the our Indop region. It is the connected between India, India Ocean, China and Saudi Asia. Myma population is twice the size of Australia. When the Mimmas is hold the free and fair election, Democratic parties always win the landslike victory. If we in if if we if we in Australia want to free and open Indopate then so we must step as a sport for democracy in Myanmar. Thank you. We welcome to your question.
>> Thank you so much Mr. Bartlett. Do you have an opening statement?
>> Yeah, just a brief one. Thank you.
>> Thank you. Yeah, we'll need to keep it pretty brief.
>> Thanks for the invitation to to give evidence and thank you also to the members who met with members of our uh delegation late last year. The Baptist community in Australia has a special relationship with the diaspora from Myanmar. There's more than 10,000 people who are part of the Baptist church in Australia uh coming from various uh ethnic communities in the country. This we've heard from Tom Andrews the special raptor uh uh for human rights in Myanmar talk about the situation as as as the direest of the most um of those around the world at the moment in terms of human rights and ongoing violence and displacement. Uh Reverend Tim Costello recently just returned from the border re region between uh Thailand and Myanmar and was talking about the situation that is ongoing as a result not just of the violence but because of u the natural disasters that have occurred and with the cutting of USAD um there are places where effectively the church uh the ch combined churches are functioning as the only um nos's in some we do note that there uh there has been $370 million slated for Myanmar and Bangladesh over the next 3 years. Um but uh Baptist World Aid, our aid and development arm of the Australian Baptist Church um among others haven't have not had indicated to them exactly how that's going to be spent uh by whom um nor been consulted in a design process for that. So we have some concerns about that. But noting what others have said to this point as well, um the government's preference has been in Myanmar to operate their humanitarian assistance uh through multilaterals and the largest of the NOS's and uh what we would what we have submitted essentially is that there um are civil society such as church networks who are functioning through agencies such as Baptist World Aid Australia, who is a fully accredited member of the ANCP um that have the existing relationships and networks uh and capability to achieve a far greater level of proportionality for the delivery of humanitarian aid where it is really most desperately needed. and and that is what we're hearing from our Diaspora members week after week that in a country such as Myanmar that is enormous geographically that has 50 million people spread um rurally uh largely still as an agrarian country there's significant uh portions of the country that are receiving absolutely no humanitarian assistance at all. Um I'd like to reassert our support for the recommendations of the due diligence inquiry conducted by uh the last parliament. Uh but we certainly have concerns that the Australian government didn't support those recommendations and their interest in taking uh even this this type of inquiry seriously for improving humanitarian assistance. This is a time when the Australian government could be displaying uh significant global leadership in addressing this crisis. um affected peoples are giving time and commitment to speaking to these inquiries including diaspora members from Myanmar and we do hope that the recommendations that come from this inquiry are taken seriously. Thank you very much