Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has urged countries to show strength as well as compassion to deal the global refugee crisis in his first address to the United Nations General Assembly.Mr Turnbull pressed the need for strong border protection to combat people smuggling and terrorism while addressing world leaders in New York.’We believe that in order to secure and maintain public support for immigration, multiculturalism and a generous humanitarian program, the public need to know that it is their government which controls their borders,’ Mr Turnbull said.He said Australia’s response to the refugee crisis is based on three ‘inherently interlinked pillars’ of strong border control, a compassionate humanitarian policy and effective international and regional cooperation.
‘We need compassion to assist those less fortunate than ourselves and to help rebuild communities that have been devastated by war or natural disasters, and now, more than ever, we need to work together towards common solutions,’ he said.He said the three pillars could not work in isolation.’Without policies to ensure that we can control who enters Australia, it would not have been possible for our government to maintain the world’s third largest permanent refugee resettlement program,’ he said.
Mr Turnbull said Australia was one of the most successful multicultural societies in the world because of the government’s commitment to settlement services.’We are both as old as the oldest continuous human culture of our first Australians, and as young as the child in the arms of her migrant parents. We are not defined by race, religion or culture but by shared political values of democracy, the rule of law and equality of opportunity, a fair go,’ Mr Turnbull said.’We are indeed an immigration nation and our immigrants are as diverse as the society that they have joined.’
He drew on the story of Sydney Swans player Aliir Aliir, whose family fled the bloody civil war in Sudan, as an example of ‘successful integration’.’Aliir is one of the first Sudanese immigrants to play AFL and has become a role model in our multicultural nation,’ Mr Turnbull said.He said Aliir’s story was not unique, with refugees and immigrants becoming leaders in government, business, science and the arts in Australia.’Australia would not be the country it is today without their contribution. Their stories are our stories. Their successes are our successes,’ he said.Mr Turnbull also called out North Korea for recently launching ballistic missiles and conducting what’s believed to be its largest nuclear test to date, saying Australia will work with the UN Security Council to support extra sanctions. The prime minister also made the case for Australia to be elected to the Human Rights Council.skynews
