Interview with Mala Darmadi – ABC Pacific Beat

MALA DARMADI:

Power is slowly being restored in Tonga’s capital, while the Tongan navy is also sending boats out to the outlying islands for assessment. The Tongan High Commission in Australia’s Deputy Head of Mission says there’s been no fatalities reported so far. Australia’s Minister for International Development and the Pacific Zed Seselja says that Australia stands ready with humanitarian aid for Tonga. A surveillance flight left from Brisbane this morning to help assess the damage, and I spoke with Minister Seselja earlier on Australia’s support to Tonga.

MINISTER SESELJA:

We expect in the next few hours that there would be the opportunity to have some better assessment of the damage to those outlying areas. Obviously that remains a concern. We have a better understanding of what has happened on the main island, and obviously there’s some pretty significant property damage in some of those low-lying areas on the main island. But we’re very keen to get an understanding of the outlying areas, how they have fared given the very significant communication outages that have occurred on those islands.

MALA DARMADI:

And with the surveillance flight, is it just a fly around to assess the situation or will there be Australian personnel arriving in Tonga?

MINISTER SESELJA:

No, they won’t be arriving on these flights, these are surveillance flights. So what we are separately working on, we have a C-130 that is being loaded up with humanitarian supplies, and what we need for those humanitarian supplies to go to Tonga is obviously formal confirmation from the Tongan government, and obviously it needs to be safe to fly given the conditions with the ash cloud.

So as soon as it is safe to fly and there is that approval from the Tongan Government, we will be ready to deliver those humanitarian supplies but in the meantime we have pre-positioned humanitarian supplies through the Red Cross in Tonga. So those supplies are already on the ground and they are being distributed if not immediately then very, very soon. So they are the most immediate response and support. In addition we’ve got that C-130 being prepared and even in another development which is also significant HMAS Adelaide is being prepared and will be ready to go. It’s deploying out of Sydney today with a view to deploying out of Brisbane with more significant supplies that are able to be delivered.

MALA DARMADI:

And, Minister Seselja, what kind of supplies are we talking about? You know, speaking to Tonga’s Australian diaspora they’re saying the immediate need is food and water. So are those some of the supplies that Australia will be providing, and what else is in those contingency plans?

MINISTER SESELJA:

Yeah, obviously things like food and water, shelter. So things like tarpaulins and water purification kits would be part of it. So that would be on some of the initial support that would be likely coming either pre-positioned with the NGOs or the C-130 flight that would be coming out of Brisbane subject to those conditions.

The other anticipated need will be fuel supplies. And so the HMAS Adelaide, obviously being a naval ship, has much greater capacity for something that obviously has a lot more weight to it, and so that’s being worked on as we speak.

MALA DARMADI:

Of course, Tonga has had a relatively low if not Covid-free status for most of the pandemic. Of course, Australia and New Zealand will adhere to Covid-safe protocols when bringing on personnel and these humanitarian supplies. But can you explain to me exactly what steps are being taken by the Australian, you know, aid workers and suppliers who will be able to come into the country to provide this aid?

MINISTER SESELJA:

Well, that’ll obviously be subject to discussions with the Tongan Government, and we’ll comply with whatever requirements the Tongan Government has for anyone entering the country. We absolutely respect the need and the desire for the Tongan people to make sure that they don’t have Covid come into the country, even if it’s through humanitarian flights.

So obviously we have our own protocols with testing and the like. But there are ways that these supplies can be delivered where there is zero or minimal contact. And obviously that’s one way of doing it because, at the moment, Tonga has very strict quarantine requirements for anyone coming into the country. So it would obviously be very difficult if Australians were to come into the country. I think at the moment it’s 21 days. So, you know, obviously that would provide a hurdle, but there are ways around that where the supplies can be delivered without in any way potentially bringing Covid into the country.

MALA DARMADI:

Well, the eruption itself has broken the undersea cable cutting off communication with the outside world. It’s meant to be out for some two week. Will Australia be able to provide assistance to get this fixed in a timely manner, and, you know, will Australia then provide assurances that, you know, if something like this were to happen again that they would be able to help assess the situation given how important communication is during a natural disaster?

MINISTER SESELJA:

Well, we certainly stand ready to assist in whatever way we reasonably can, and we’ll do that in conjunction with our partners like New Zealand but also other like-minded partners in the region such as France and the United States. When it comes to the undersea cable, obviously we need to get a better assessment of exactly the extent of that damage and what’s going to be needed in order to fix that. So we can’t make –specific commitments as to how we will support that, but, of course, we stand ready. We have a lot of expertise within the country in terms of undersea cables and communications networks. We will provide whatever support we reasonably can, but at the moment we just have get a better assessment and a better understanding from the Tongan government as to exactly what their needs are.

MALA DARMADI:

And speaking of communications, New Zealand telecommunications services, some of them are waiving fees to call into Tonga once that connection is established. Look, it may not be in your remit, but is this something communications providers here in Australia should consider so that those in the Tongan diaspora are able to make contact with their families?

MINISTER SESELJA:

Yeah, well, look, I think that would be a nice gesture. And I’m sure that – I’m sure that Australian telecommunication providers will see what’s occurred in New Zealand and hopefully look to follow suit. But I know that there are – and I’ve spoken to members of the diaspora here in Australia today and obviously a lot of them are very concerned, and one of the big concerns is that they just simply can’t contact people and so I know that’s causing a lot of distress. We are seeking to get as much information as we can despite those communication outages and as we get that information, we’ll share it as widely as we can with the Australian community.

I think one of the things, though, in terms of those earlier reports from the main island has been there are no reports of any significant casualties, so I think that that is a positive thing. But obviously it’s understandable that people would be very concerned, and that’s why it’s important we get as much information as we can.

MALA DARMADI:

Of course. Minister Seselja, my last question to you: on social media there has been a little bit of criticism put towards Prime Minister Scott Morrison. I know that he has spoken to Australian local radio about the situation in Tonga but potentially hasn’t put out a more widespread statement about the situation that’s unfolding. What is your response to the criticism of Prime Minister Scott Morrison.

MINISTER SESELJA:

Yeah, look, I mean, I would reject that. I mean, I think the Prime Minister, as he always is, is very engaged in issues in the Pacific and in support for our Pacific family, and he’s had significant words to say about that. He’s obviously tasked myself and the Foreign Minister to work with the New Zealand Government and DFAT officials to make our response is as rapid as it can be. We’re deploying our Defence Force. We are making sure that all of the resources we can possibly put towards supporting the people of Tonga are delivered. So, no, I’d absolutely reject that.

MALA DARMADI:

That was Minister for the Pacific Zed Seselja speaking.

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