2 September 1990
E & O E - PROOF ONLY
JOURNALIST: Mr Hawke, what's your reaction to the....allowed to leave Iraq?
PM: I'm thrilled and I hope that before long all the women and children at least will be able to be evacuated.
JOURNALIST: Papua New Guinea. Are you worried about the security?
PM: I have confidence in the arrangements that are made in these things. I never give it a second thought. I don't tend to convey some recklessness about that. But if you allowed yourself to worry about these things you wouldn't do your job.
JOURNALIST: inaudible
PM: I saw the..... Well I understand the..... It's not an area that we talk about in these security matters.
JOURNALIST: inaudible
PM: Well it's a reaction of this dictated to almost universal condemnation of the holding of hostages. I'm glad that the women and children are going to be released, so should the men because to hold anyone as human shields in that sort of situation as, as I've said before, contrary to all norms of civilised behaviour.
JOURNALIST: inaudible
PM: I can't answer that but there is no reason to believe on the behaviour of the Iraq leadership up until now that we can have a lot of confidence on that score.
JOURNALIST: inaudible
PM: That particular source has a tendency to want to paint these things in the light they want to see it. Everything that I've said about this has been accurate.
JOURNALIST: inaudible
PM: There is nothing new about that. What Rabble was saying is what we've agreed and which has publicly been stated before; that it's in the interests of both countries gradually to down the aid relationship so that the time will come when Papua New Guinea is going to be able to be totally reliant on its own resources. It's been appropriate in these early years of independence that Australia should give this substantial assistance. It's something that we've been glad to do and it's something for which they have been thankful. But we both understand that the purpose of this aid should be to build up to a situation where they are able totally to stand on their resources.
JOURNALIST: inaudible
PM: I don't know whether it will dominate but obviously the question of internal law and order in the capacity of Papua New Guinea to handle those things will be one of the items that we'll discuss.
ends