All people have the right to peace and security, and our job is to make sure those rights are valued equally for all.
This month Benjamin Netanyahu's military flattened buildings in Gaza that were homes and media offices and damaged key infrastructure. In 10 days 232 Palestinians were killed.
At the same time, rockets fired from Gaza also stole the lives of 12 Israelis. We grieve each death. We also acknowledge that Palestinian losses are 20-fold those in Israel. The Greens were relieved by the ceasefire, which will remove the immediate risks of harm. But a ceasefire alone will not pave the way for Palestinians and Israelis to live in security and enjoy a stable, lasting and just peace.
Every day Palestinians live under Israeli government control. Just as Israelis are entitled to their own state and to live in peace and security, so too are Palestinians. But for 73 years Palestinians have waited for the international community to deliver on their promise, and Australia is not pushing for peace.
We are making the conflict worse by a muted response to Benjamin Netanyahu's blatant disregard for the rule of law and by our military contracts with his government. We must seize on this ceasefire to resolve the underlying issues, not just watch while a just peace is undermined by the next round of evictions, demolitions, settlements and violence.
We must push to end the occupation and recognise Palestine, because only then will Israelis and Palestinians both be able to live in peace and security.
