PRIME MINISTER:
Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for being here.
I regard it as a great honour to be here with Daw Aung San Suu Kyi on her first visit to Australia as a Guest of Government.
Daw Suu is an icon of democracy; she’s suffered for her country, she’s suffered for her beliefs in democratic freedoms, she has been acknowledged around the world as someone who has stood up for what I would like to think are the universal decencies and the universal aspiration to democratic freedom, and that’s been recognised with a Nobel Prize. So, it’s very good, Daw Suu, to have you here in our country for this visit. I know you’re here to talk about many things of concern to all of us, such as the need to combat disease, such as the need for appropriate developmental aid in countries that need it.
It’s certainly good to have you here as now someone who is able to travel and to be in your Parliament.
I was an Opposition Leader myself for four years; I know that that position has some exhilarations and some frustrations and let’s hope as time goes by, for you in your country, the exhilarations are greater and the frustrations are lesser.
DAW AUNG SAN SUU KYI:
It’s a great pleasure for me to be here, south of the equator for the first time and to experience the hospitality and warmth of the people of Australia.
There are of course many Burmese here – Burmese Australians – and I’m glad to see that they all seem to feel quite at home and this, I think, is a compliment to your country, as well as to the adaptability of our people.
I think these days all of us have to learn to be adaptable and we have to learn to understand each other’s different cultures. But, I think that the aspirations of human beings remain the same: we all want peace, we want security, we want freedom.
I’ve always said that what we hope to get for democracy in Burma is a healthy balance between freedom and security. We do not want the kind of freedom that makes all of us insecure, where everybody can do everything they like without regard to the needs of others. On the other hand, we don’t want the kind of security that is provided in prisons, where you are perfectly secure and not at all free. So, we need a balance and this is what we have been fighting for in our country; the right balance between freedom and security for all our peoples, because we never forget that Burma is nation of many peoples.
Actually, the main reason for my presence here is World AIDS Day. My visit to Australia was arranged around World AIDS Day. The reason why I put such emphasis on the fight of HIV-AIDS is not just because it’s a physical disease, but because it entails a lot of social discrimination and this also we have to fight against. I was very honoured to be appointed the Ambassador for Zero Discrimination Against HIV-AIDS in my country.
We need to make people understand that those who are different from us are not necessarily wrong or evil and that they do not have to be fought or opposed, but that they need to be understood, because our nation is a nation of many different peoples with different aspirations.
It is that much more important for us to understand that differences can be a strength and not a weakness, provided we know how to handle them and that we look upon differences as a way of understanding one another and of expanding out horizons.
Australia is one of the few countries in the world where you have built a nation out of many different peoples, out of many different cultures and you will be able to understand the problems that we have to face in Burma, which is just starting out on the road to democracy.
I need to emphasise this that we are just starting out on the road to democracy. We are not there yet as some people seem to assume we are. There is a lot that still needs to be done, not the least of which is amendments to the constitution. Without amendments to the constitution, we can never become a truly democratic society. We cannot establish a democratic system of politics and government.
So, this is a burning issue of the day for my country and for my people, but there are other issues – economic, social, which have to be addressed as soon as possible.
Is that a bird?
PRIME MINISTER:
It is.
DAW AUNG SAN SUU KYI:
What kind of a bird is that?
PRIME MINISTER:
It sounded like a crow.
DAW AUNG SAN SUU KYI:
Well, Australian crows are louder than Burmese ones!
Sorry, I got a little bit distracted, but I’m very pleased to be in this country where I have discovered very many things including the fact that not very many Australians seem to know what trees they grow in their own country. Now I think it’s probably the same in my country, too. I’ve seen a lot of new greenery around that I’ve never seen before in my life and I’m sure I will see many more things here that will be new for me and that will be valuable, because it means that I shall be learning and for me travel should be a learning process. In fact, I think life should be a learning process and I would like to thank all of you who have made it possible for me to learn more and more as I travel along the political path that our country is trying to choose for itself.
PRIME MINISTER:
Thank you, Daw Suu, for those gracious words. I understand that the protocol is that the first question at these events goes to our visitor.
QUESTION:
Daw Suu, Myanmar is hosting ASEAN events next year. There are calls from some countries and human rights groups to boycott some of those events. What’s your message to people who say, don’t go to Myanmar until they sort themselves out?
DAW AUNG SAN SUU KYI:
I don’t quite know which event you’re talking about. If you’re talking about the ASEAN games, is that taking place now, I mean next month, but if you’re talking about the Chairmanship of ASEAN, that of course, is decided some time ago. We as the Opposition then questioned whether it was right for Burma to be given the chairmanship of ASEAN, but that was a decision made by the other members of ASEAN and whether or not, and these of course are government-to-government engagements and whether or not these are boycotted or not depends very much on the members of the governments of ASEAN. Now, I would like to say that we still have time before 2014 to decide whether or not Burma should be supported as a true champion of democracy and that, of course, is linked to whether or not the legislature will be able to come up with meaningful recommendations with regard to amendments to the constitution and whether the legislature will actually then be able to push through the amendments. If Burma brings about necessary amendments to the constitution, I think we can say that it is stepping out in the right direction.
QUESTION:
And if it doesn’t?
DAW AUNG SAN SUU KYI:
And if it doesn’t, it’s certainly not stepping out in the right direction and you’d better support our party rather than the Government.
QUESTION:
Daw Suu, can you tell us a little bit about the nature of your discussions with the Prime Minister today?
DAW AUNG SAN SUU KYI:
I usually never talk about my private discussions.
PRIME MINISTER:
Well said.
QUESTION:
Prime Minister, just a question on Indonesia. I’m just wondering whether you’ve had a chance to fully consider SBY’s response and whether you’ve decided on who will be Australia’s envoy and when you think Australia might be able to resume full cooperation with Indonesia?
PRIME MINISTER:
I would like us to resume full cooperation with Indonesia as quickly as possible. I’m confident that we will be able to use the experiences of the last week or so ultimately for the long-term good of the relationship. Yes, it’s been a difficult week or so in this very, very important relationship for both our countries, but I want to bring something positive out of it. I’m still discussing President Yudhoyono’s statement of the other day with my colleagues and we’ll be responding quite soon but I think it’s important to properly digest the statement so that we can ensure that things go forward on the best possible basis.
I think if there’s another question for Daw Suu, I think that’s the protocol.
QUESTION:
Would you like Australia to play more of a role in encouraging Burma to undergo constitutional reform or you think that’s sort of above our station?
DAW AUNG SAN SUU KYI:
I think every country in the world that believes in democracy should try to play a bigger role in bringing about constitutional amendments in my country, including Australia.
QUESTION:
Prime Minister, has Australia overstepped the mark in calling in the Chinese Ambassador to complain about its declaration of an air defence zone off the coast of China?
PRIME MINISTER:
No, I think it’s important for Australia to stand up for its values. We have to be reasonable and proportionate about these things and have to treat other countries and their leaders with respect and with courtesy but where we think Australia’s values and interests have been compromised I think it’s important to speak our mind and we believe in freedom of navigation – navigation of the seas, navigation of the air – and I think there is a significant issue here, and that’s why it was important to call in the Chinese Ambassador and put a point of view to him.
QUESTION:
Daw Suu, you say that all countries who are interested in democracy should play a role. What sort of role would you envisage for a country like Australia to play?
DAW AUNG SAN SUU KYI:
First of all, to emphasise the need for amendments to the constitution – if the so-called reform process in Burma is to be taken seriously. We also want freedom of navigation; navigation of the political waters.
QUESTION:
Will you take up that invitation, Prime Minister, and have a more active role in bringing about constitutional change?
PRIME MINISTER:
I was lucky enough to meet with the President earlier in the year and he obviously explained to me the changes that had taken place and I indicated at a time when I was the Opposition Leader that I was pleased to see that Burma had made significant progress. The fact that Daw Suu is here, the fact that Daw Suu is free, is a very big advance on the many, many years of house arrest; the many, many years of persecution that Daw Suu and her followers have suffered, but obviously there is a way to go yet and I think that the Government of Burma understands our position and certainly we think that there should be free and fair elections in Burma and they should be conducted on the proverbial level-playing field.
QUESTION:
There’s been some Rohinyga people come to Australia by boat, trying to get to Australia by boat. As you know, Australia sends them offshore. Do you think Australia owes them our protection?
DAW AUNG SAN SUU KYI:
I think this depends very much on the laws of the country. I have always said I believe in the rule of law. I was asked a question similar to that yesterday and I said that if there is rule of law in Australia then you must work within the framework of your law but I do believe that justice should always be tempered by mercy.
QUESTION:
Prime Minister, are you concerned about China’s reaction? Do you think it could damage our trade with that country?
PRIME MINISTER:
China trades with us because it is in China’s interest to trade with us. We have good products, we have good reliability as a supplier, we can supply at competitive prices and I hope that is always the case. I expect China to be a strong and valuable economic partner of ours because it is in China’s interest to be a strong and valuable economic partner of ours. I think China fully understands that on some issues we are going to take a different position to them. We are a strong ally of the United States, we are a strong ally of Japan, we have a very strong view that international disputes should be settled peacefully and in accordance with the rule of law and where we think that is not happening, or it is not happening appropriately, we will speak our mind.
QUESTION:
Daw Suu, do you envisage any international cooperation in terms of the elections in Burma, as in election observers? Would you foresee people coming from Australia to help in that regard?
DAW AUNG SAN SUU KYI:
I think foreign observers always indicate that there is nothing to hide. So, it is a good thing if the Government would welcome foreign observers to the elections in 2015. But before we get to the elections we have got to get through the constitutional amendments first because without amendments the elections are not going to be fair because there will not be a level-playing field. So, while the elections may be free – in the sense that on the day of polling itself people will not be held at gunpoint and they will be able to cast their votes freely – the run-up to the election can be fair only if the constitution is amended.
QUESTION:
Just wondering whether you think that Qantas should remain a majority Australian owned airline? If that is the case what other support would the Government be willing to consider for Qantas?
PRIME MINISTER:
I want Qantas to remain an Australian icon, a successful Australian icon. I want Qantas to be as successful as it possibly can be in domestic and international markets and I know that the management of Qantas is concerned that in some respects it is competing with one hand tied behind its back, so to speak. So, let’s see what the management of Qantas think is the appropriate way forward. Let’s see what the people of Australia think on this issue. As I said, my view is that Qantas should remain an Australian icon and I am happy to look at a range of measures that will help ensure that that happens but certainly at this point in time I am not being prescriptive about any particular change.
Thank you so much.
[ends]