Private Members' Statement
Mr ANOULACK CHANTHIVONG (Macquarie Fields) (19:13): — It is great to be back in the Chamber. A lot has changed in recent months, as Members opposite know only too well.
On reflecting on the past few months, I can say that accountability matters, trust matters and a fair go matters.
I am incredibly proud of my community's overwhelming response to get vaccinated, achieving a double dose vaccination rate of more than 70 per cent and a single dose vaccination rate greater than 90 per cent by early October. That is a remarkable achievement on an international comparative scale.
However, like other parts of South-West and Western Sydney, my local community bore the brunt of the Liberal Government's unfair and harsh lockdown measures.
There was no respect for my community's efforts and no recognition for the hardship we had to endure whilst other areas had limited restrictions.
Data shows that unfair bias. Suburbs in Liberal electorates with higher case numbers and fewer vaccinations had no extra restrictions. For example, on 29 August the suburb of Penrith had over 100 active cases but no extra restrictions. Caddens and Cambridge Gardens had more than 200 active cases and still no extra restrictions. The suburbs of Camden had well over 100 cases but no extra restrictions.
Contrast that with the suburbs of Ingleburn, Minto and Glenfield in my electorate of Macquarie Fields, which is a Labor seat. They had fewer than 100 cases but were subject to the State's harshest restrictions.
Residents in Liberal suburbs deserved to have their greater freedom of movement but so did people in my local community. It was gerrymandering at its worst. Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen would have blushed at such a drawing of lines that punished people for all the wrong reasons.
I have two words for this targeted treatment: unfair and unacceptable. The policies were unfair from an uncaring Liberal-Nationals Government, which treated people in my community as second-class citizens. It fuelled unnecessary prejudices and created social divisions despite saying very clearly and repeatedly that “we are all in it together”.
The citizens of the Macquarie Fields electorate copped the harshest restrictions in New South Wales, including a curfew and one hour of outdoor exercise.
The Health Minister publicly stated that “fresh air we know is the safest place”. If that is the case then why did the Government impose a one-hour limit on outdoor exercise in South-West and Western Sydney? It does not make sense.
I remind the House that even former Deputy Premier John Barilaro said curfews do not work. He said:
“Curfews don't work. Let's be honest, guys. The reality that we went down the curfew model for south-western and western Sydney is because in one way there was a lot of media push.”
How much more cynical can you get?
A public health crisis has been managed purely through political messaging with total disregard for the harmful impact on communities.
To add further insult, my community of Macquarie Fields looked on in utter disbelief and outrage at the images of people flocking to Bondi Beach in their thousands with scant concern for masks and social distancing. The contrast could not have been more blatant.
The Delta variant does not recognise or respect local government boundaries, yet this Government's decisions only exacerbated the State's social, economic and geographic inequities.
The workers permits were designed to target my local community and noncompliance of them carried a significant fine. Workers from areas that provided the bulk of essential skills were asked to bear additional administrative tasks just to earn a living and pay their bills.
Many workplaces had one worker from a local government area having to jump through administrative hoops to be at work alongside another from a neighbouring local government area separated by about eight metres of asphalt and concrete just turning up. Essential workers should not have been burdened with those administrative tasks just to make an honest living. On top of that, 40 hours before the permit system was due to come into effect the website was not yet up and running.
South-West and Western Sydney residents in their hundreds of thousands did the right thing, but the Liberal‑Nationals Government let them down and locked them up.
People in my electorate were partners in the solution, but the Government brandished them as part of the problem with little regard to the harmful social consequences.
Rather than accepting responsibility, it could not wait to cynically apportion blame for the Delta variant outbreak on the people who were not to blame for their own mistakes.
Newly minted Premier Perrottet made unfair decisions at Crisis Cabinet, inflicting unnecessary pain on and encouraging prejudice towards south‑west and western Sydney communities.
The Liberals may say that south-west and western Sydney will be the battleground for the State election in 2023; I say bring it on.
