ADJOURNMENT
Senator DEAN SMITH (Western Australia) (20:24): Tonight I rise to acknowledge a significant milestone in the life of Western Australia's Filipino community: the 40th anniversary of the Filipino Australian Club of Perth. For four decades, the club has served as a cornerstone of community life, bringing together generations of Filipino Australians, while strengthening the cultural, social and economic bonds between Australia and the Philippines.
Established in 1986, the Perth Filipino Australian club was founded on a simple but enduring vision: to provide a place where Filipino migrants and their families could gather, celebrate their heritage, support one another and build a strong future in their adopted home. Forty years later, that vision continues to thrive. The club has played a vital role in preserving and promoting Filipino culture, through community events, festivals, language, music, dance and the celebration of important national and cultural occasions.
It has helped new arrivals settle into life in Australia, fostered lifelong friendships and provided a welcoming environment for countless families. Importantly, the club has also contributed to the broader Western Australian community by encouraging cultural understanding, inclusion and community participation. The Filipino community is one of the fastest-growing and most vibrant of the multicultural communities in Australia and in Western Australia.
Across WA, Filipino Australians make an enormous contribution in fields as diverse as health care, education, small business, mining, hospitality, aged care and public service. Their contribution extends well beyond the workplace. Filipino Australians enrich our communities through their strong commitment to family, faith, volunteerism, civic engagement and those Australian values that unite us.
Milestones such as this provide an opportunity not only to celebrate an organisation's achievements, but also to recognise the people whose dedication made them possible. Generations of volunteers, community members, community leaders and supporters have invested countless hours to ensure the club's success and longevity. I'd like to acknowledge one particular supporter of the Filipino community in Western Australia, and that is one Western Australian icon known to every Western Australian.
His name is Mr John Hughes, and he and his wife have been tireless supporters of the Filipino community across Western Australia. For those of us from Western Australia, you'll understand what I'm about to say: just over the Causeway, on Shepperton Road, Victoria Park. Senator Brockman: Hear, hear!
Senator DEAN SMITH: Thank you, Senator Brockman. On behalf of the Senate, I congratulate the Perth Filipino Australian club on reaching its 40th anniversary. I wish the club, its members and the wider Filipino Australian community every success for the future and thank them for their outstanding contribution to the social, cultural and economic fabric of a wonderful state.
Of course, that state is the state of Western Australia—a wonderful place to live, to grow up and to raise your family, and an important contributor to our national success. Tonight I rise also to acknowledge a significant event that I was honoured to attend recently in Perth: the 61st anniversary of the founding of the Republic of Vietnam armed forces. As a Western Australian senator and as the son of a Vietnam veteran, it was a privilege to join members of the Republic of Vietnam veterans association of Western Australia and the Vietnamese Services RSL Sub-branch for a commemorative dinner, recognising the service and sacrifice of those who fought to defend South Vietnam, and, importantly, to express gratitude to the allied forces who stood alongside them.
The evening was a powerful reminder of the deep and enduring ties between Australia and the Vietnamese Australian community. It honoured the men and women of the Republic of Vietnam armed forces who fought for freedom, national sovereignty and self-determination. Importantly, it also recognised the service of more than 60,000 Australians who served in Vietnam between 1962 and 1973.
One of them was my father. More than 5,000 Australians lost their lives, and thousands more returned home wounded, both physically and emotionally. Sadly, many Vietnam veterans returned to a nation that did not fully understand their sacrifice or their service.
Unlike previous generations of service men and women, they were met with indifference and, in some cases, hostility. They often found themselves excluded from the recognition and support afforded to earlier veterans. That experience was shared by many former members of the Republic of Vietnam Military Forces who later chose to make Australia their home and who have indeed made a significant and enduring contribution to their new home, Australia.
The establishment of the Vietnamese Services RSL Sub-Branch provided a long-overdue home within Western Australia's veteran community for former South Vietnamese service men and women and their families, ensuring their service and their sacrifices would be recognised and preserved for future generations. The sub-branch, together with the Republic of Vietnam Veterans Association of Western Australia, performs invaluable work preserving the history of those who fought alongside Australian forces and strengthening the bonds between veterans of both nations.
Importantly, the evening also celebrated the remarkable contribution Vietnamese Australians have made to Western Australia and our nation for over 50 years. Many arrived as refugees seeking freedom and opportunity and fleeing repression. Through hard work, resilience and determination, they have built thriving communities and enriched every aspect of Australian life.
I'm proud to be an Australian who honours that contribution and is happy to make sure that Australia is a safe place for other people fleeing persecution throughout the world. I commend all those involved in organising this important event and thank them for ensuring that the stories of service, sacrifice and freedom continue to be passed on to future generations.
Lest we forget.