Senator Whish-Wilson attempts to debate a motion on the human rights abuses in Yemen
Labor and Liberal Party’s denied leave to even have this motion debated:
The Senate:
(a) Notes the Advanced Edited Version of the United Nations (UN) High Commissioner for Human Rights Group of Experts report on the Situation of human rights in Yemen, including violations and abuses since September 2014 will be considered by the UN Human Rights Council’s 39th session commencing this week;
(b) Notes that the former Member for Fremantle, Melissa Parke, is a member of the Group of Experts;
(c) Notes that the Group of Exports report found, inter alia, that:
(i) Coalition air strikes have caused most of the documented civilian casualties. In the past three years, such air strikes have hit residential areas, markets, funerals, weddings, detention facilities, civilian boats and even medical facilities; and
(ii) There are reasonable grounds to believe that the Governments of Yemen, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Saudi Arabia are responsible for human rights violations, including unlawful deprivation of the right to life, arbitrary detention, rape, torture, ill-treatment, enforced disappearance and child recruitment, and serious violations of freedom of expression and economic, social and cultural rights, in particular the right to an adequate standard of living and the right to health;
(d) Notes that between 1 January 2016 and 31 December 2017 the Australian Government granted sixteen military licences for the export of military equipment to Saudi Arabia;
(e) Notes that in May 2018 the Foreign Minister of the UAE met with Australian Government ministers in parliament house to discuss potential arms sales;
(f) Notes that, to varying degrees, Canada, Finland, Germany, Norway and Spain have either suspended or given a commitment to suspend arms sales to either Saudi Arabia and/or the UAE on the basis of their participation in the war in Yemen; and
(g) Calls upon the government to immediately suspend arms sales to Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
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