E&OE.............
JONES:
Well, the Prime Minister climbed on top of a tankard armoured personnel
carrier yesterday and thanked the troops in the border town of Maliana on
behalf of the Australian people. He is now in Darwin and he's on the line.
Prime Minister, good morning.
PRIME MINISTER:
Good morning Alan.
JONES:
Prime Minister, what a place to go, Maliana, that is absolutely destroyed
isn't it?
PRIME MINISTER:
Oh yes. Large areas of the whole territory, of course, have been destroyed.
JONES:
How bad is it?
PRIME MINISTER:
Oh, it's very, very bad in many areas and there is just a clear impunitive
burning and destruction took place. The good thing is that the locals are
back in so many areas although there is still tens of thousands of refugees,
displaced people in West Timor apparently suffering some intimidation in
trying to get back. And the spirit of the local people is booming. They
don't look scared any more, they see quite naturally the INTERFET forces
including the Australians as being friends and protectors and helpers and
there is a very positive spirit. But the destruction is very widespread.
That's been said before but when you actually see it with the naked eye
it's starker and obviously in some parts of Dili it was quite discriminatory
as you fly over in a helicopter you see some areas completely untouched
and you see other areas almost totally torched and blackened and destroyed.
JONES:
How do you rehabilitate that?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, it takes a lot of time. I think the first thing you have got to do
is give people a sense of physical security which our forces have done.
You then provide basic medical assistance and over time you generate private
sector interest. There has to be a certain amount of infrastructure restored
before that private sector interest will materialise but as in all of these
things the involvement of business and the private sector and reconstruction
and rehabilitation is absolutely critical.
JONES:
You met with the UN leader didn't you, Sergio de Mello?
PRIME MINISTER:
Yes. He gave me a very detailed briefing of his plans for the transition.
They are.
JONES:
And when will that begin?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, I can't put a date on it beyond saying I expect it to be in the early
part of next year. It involves a number of decisions yet to be taken by
the United Nations and Australia will, of course, have a different contribution.
It will be a blue helmet operation. The troops we'll contribute will be
in the area of 1500 to 2000 which is down from the.in the order of 5000
plus that we now have. However, it's going to be nonetheless an operation
that will last for some time but the security situation is about as good
as you are going to get it now. It might improve a little but General Cosgrove
told me that he felt that the mandate, that part of the mandate that required
the restoration of peace and stability by and large has been achieved.
JONES:
But of course your troops, our Australian troops to whom you have spoken
and congratulated and all that would have been wanting one thing from the
Prime Minister, I'd say, the date for return. You were unable to give them
that.
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, I couldn't because I don't control that. The exact date of the hand-over
will be determined by the United Nations and the United Nations to put the
peacekeeping group together. Quite a lot of the men and women did ask me
that. They understand. Their morale is very good. I think they're showing
tremendous cheerfulness and very good spirit. Naturally as Christmas approaches
they'll miss their families like any of us would if we were away at Christmas
time and it's all the more reason why there should be a renewed focus on
them and a renewed interest in them which has always been very high in Australia
as we approach Christmas.
JONES:
And what level of Indonesian support is there for both rehabilitation and
the maintenance of peace in East Timor?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, the best contribution that Indonesia can make obviously is to facilitate
the easy return of displaced people from West Timor.
JONES:
And is that happening?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, it's mixed. There is some evidence still quite a bit of evidence that
the militia are still harassing them. Now, that's not, of course, the problem
everywhere but there is certainly some evidence from what I was told by
the non-government organisations such as CARE and Catholic Relief yesterday,
and the Red Cross, that that is still happening. So that's certainly something
that they can do to help. That's a very important element of it.
JONES:
You are coming back to Canberra for a busy round of engagements, amongst
them Richard Branson who, as you know, announced yesterday that he is going
to start a third airline here next year. Can Australia sustain three airlines?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, that'll be a matter for the public. These things are determined ultimately
in the market place. I welcome his commitment as competition is a good thing.
We support it and we welcome it in the airline industry as elsewhere. Obviously
we will have to meet foreign investment and safety requirements. Both of
those are essential particularly safety. The others are essential too but
one thing we don't want is any suggestion of corner cutting when it comes
to safety with airlines. Any of them, whether it's a new one or the existing
ones. We have an enviable record of safety in this country and we want to
keep it exactly as it is. But can I make it clear, Alan, that we always
welcome competition and nobody can ever raise an objection to a new player
if that new player offers a good product and offers people a better deal
and provided that new player abides by the rules.
JONES:
And you did announce in June that you would allow foreigners to own up to
100 per cent of Australian domestic airlines unless it was against the national
interest. And this plainly would be regarded as being in the national interest
if it can get up and go?
PRIME MINISTER:
If it can get up and go then it.I don't want to pre-empt the proper processes.
JONES:
Most of the public would say how would you get access to airport terminals?
Our airport terminals are already crowded as they are, would another player,
is there room in those terminals for another player given that long-term
leases seem to be held there by the existing players?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well, there obviously needs to be a lot of negotiation. And, I mean, the
existing operators have their legal rights but there are also requirements
in our laws to prevent the unreasonable exercise of the dominance that an
existing market share gives you. So there are a number of things to be put
in balance by the authorities. What John Anderson has said, and I repeat,
we welcome more competition and we welcome the commitment of Virgin. It
must go through our foreign investment policy procedures, get an assessment
by the Foreign Investment Review Board and it must, of course, comply with
all of the safety requirements that apply to the other airlines.
JONES:
It helps that he seems to have deeper pockets than other starters, at least
that's a big start isn't it?
PRIME MINISTER:
Oh, well, it is. But, I mean, this is the nature of commercial operation
and, I mean, nobody can deny that the other two haven't had a very strong
go and if somebody else can come in and provide some competition and give
more variety well, isn't that something the Australian public would welcome?
JONES:
Absolutely. Good to talk to you and thank you for your time.
PRIME MINISTER:
Bye.
[ends]