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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2023-11-02 Daily Xml
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Members

Member, New

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Attorney-General, Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector) (15:22): By leave of the council, I move:

That this council welcomes the Hon. Mira El Dannawi, elected by an Assembly of Members of both houses on 17 October 2023 to replace the Hon. Irene Pnevmatikos, resigned.

Leave granted.

The PRESIDENT: I am going to call on the Hon. Ms El Dannawi, but I remind members that we should show the same courtesy to the member's maiden speech as was afforded to us. I call the Hon. Ms El Dannawi.

The Hon. M. EL DANNAWI (15:22): I would like to start by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land on which I speak today. I pay my respects to the Kaurna people, the traditional custodians of the Adelaide Plains. I acknowledge that this is an especially difficult time for many Aboriginal people following the devastating result of the referendum. I would like to affirm my commitment to working with Aboriginal people to improve the lives and conditions of Aboriginal communities in this state. This always was and always will be Aboriginal land.

Before I go any further, I would like to recognise the selfless work of the Hon. Irene Pnevmatikos, who served in my place for more than five years. I wish her all the best in her retirement, as I am sure all other members present do as well. Her achievements in this place are a testament to her values and what she stands for. I feel honoured and proud to follow in her footsteps.

It is my great honour to stand here today as South Australia's newest member of parliament and as the state's first Muslim MP. This is a mark of the wonderful, tolerant state that I am lucky enough to call home.

In 2007, I arrived in Australia as a 23-year-old migrant woman with limited English. I had little knowledge about what my life would look like in a completely new country. There was no way I could have anticipated that I would be standing here just 16 years later.

I was born and raised in the city of Tripoli in the north of Lebanon, a country that is known for its natural wealth and beauty, its history, the friendly people and, not to forget, the delicious cuisine. I come from a family of six: my mother, my father, my two sisters and a brother. My second youngest sister is a mum to beautiful twins, Mira and Adam. They inspire me every day and make me want to be a better person. I hope that I have inspired them to reach their full potential, no matter what the challenges may be. To them, I would like to say: 'Visez la lune meme si vous la manquez vous atterrirez parmi les etoiles.'

My father was a shoemaker and worked in our family business alongside my grandfather and other family members. In fact, he designed all my shoes when I was young to match my outfits. Unfortunately, due to the economic problems, political instability and the civil war in Lebanon, the business could not be sustained and my father became unemployed. For many years, he was in and out of jobs and my family endured financial instability. However, he continued to work hard to provide for the family and sought every employment opportunity available. This taught me how to be strong and resilient in the face of adversity.

My mother was a stay-at-home mum, but she had the position of treasurer of the household. She knew exactly how to stretch a small family income to cover the many bills, food and school fees. She taught me how to push beyond gender norms and how from struggle comes inner strength. To both my parents, I would like to say, 'Merci. La kelchi amaltouli yeh!'

Despite all the challenges, whether they were issues of safety or economic security, my parents had one thing in mind when we were growing up, and that was our education. They invested everything they could to get us the best education possible in the hope that this would give us a better future. I was French educated and after finishing high school I went on to study French literature at the Lebanese University. I was aiming to become a French teacher, but opportunity came and I was able to leave Lebanon and make my way to Australia in 2007. I have called Australia home since.

As I stop to reflect on my life journey, and given the recent events in the Middle East, I draw on my own experience as a child. Having witnessed and survived war and conflict, I strongly believe all nations must work actively to end the ongoing conflict around the world. A safe, fair and just world is not only a wish or a goal, it is a right, and we are lucky to live in a country where these rights are a priority, especially when so many people in the world are still fighting and dying for those rights. That is why I made the decision to start again in Australia, but the journey was not easy.

As a migrant woman with no family support in Australia, I can relate to the struggles that migrants face when they first arrive, the feeling of isolation, the dreams you have for the future and the untapped potential you have inside. I understand how the language barrier becomes a confidence barrier that some people never break free from. I understand the vulnerability and I also understand the incredible strength that many hold within.

Migrants have a lot to offer to this country. In return, we must make sure they have the opportunity to reach their full potential and that language barriers and discrimination never stand in the way of this. The Lebanese-American writer Kahlil Gibran said:

Your living is determined not so much by what life brings to you as by the attitude you bring to life; not so much by what happens to you as by the way your mind looks at what happens.

This is the sentiment that guided me through my transition from Lebanon to Australia. Soon after arriving, I began investigating career opportunities open to me as a new migrant. Early childhood education and care was exactly where I found myself thriving. I completed a certificate II in English language, followed by a Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care. My strong passion for education and care saw me completing my diploma soon after and working in the ECEC sector for nearly 15 years.

After completing my certificate III, I began working at the Modbury Community Children's Centre. Over the years, I aspired to reach new and higher goals by working hard and seeking every opportunity to learn and grow as a professional. I eventually became the acting director of the centre in 2022, leading a team of 23 staff members and supporting more than 100 families from the north and north-eastern suburbs of Adelaide.

The families I engaged with came from all walks of life: teachers, nurses, labourers, public servants, factory workers, migrant workers, and families from different cultural backgrounds, including families from a background of migration and trauma. Each brought with them a story of opportunity and struggle.

I must say, working in early childhood education and care was a rewarding experience, but it also came at a cost. Many early childhood educators, including myself, struggled to make ends meet. I have seen firsthand educators leaving the sector simply because they cannot afford to live off the sector wage. The sector continues to struggle with staffing and burnout.

Early childhood is a life stage of great importance. It is a time of great advances in physical, cognitive, social and emotional development. As early childhood educators, we know that children vary in their success in achieving developmental outcomes and goals, depending in part on the environment and on the socialisation provided by the adults in their life. This is not just in reference to parents, relatives or educators but also to decision-makers when it comes to policies that affect their life successes.

Providing a safe and secure environment, combined with a curriculum delivered by a group of passionate and competent educators, can see children thrive in the first five years of their life—which, by the way, is the period when 90 per cent of their brain develops. The critical importance of this sector and the struggles that it is facing is why I joined my union and started actively campaigning alongside many fellow educators.

One of the first things I learnt when I began work in this country was the importance of solidarity. For nearly my entire career I represented my team of educators as their union delegate and as a campaign leader. I represented them at a state and federal level in the fight for better recognition, pay and conditions, and this is a fight that continues to this day.

I will continue to represent their interests in this place because a strong early childcare sector has a ripple effect that reaches all corners of society. But the struggle does not belong only to the early childcare sector. Many other workers across the nation have fought hard for their respective industries, whether it is in relation to pay and conditions, work health and safety, or job security.

I strongly believe in social and economic justice and a fair go for all, and I am honoured to join this parliament as a member of the Labor Party. The Labor Party, at its core, represents the aspirations of all Australians for a life of economic security and dignity for themselves and for their families. The fight of any worker struggling against exploitation and for better working conditions is my fight too.

Having grown out of the union movement, the Labor Party's values of liberty, equality, democracy and social justice remain strong, and I am proud to be a part of this South Australian Labor government. To my union comrades, I echo Irene's words in her farewell speech and I pledge that I will stand for what is fair, even when it is hard.

My journey in Australia has been fuelled by my courage and determination to make a life for myself, no matter what the obstacles are. In this place, in this role, I will use that same determination and courage to represent the voices of the vulnerable, the workers, the children, the elderly, the migrants, and the many other groups within our community who are not often heard.

Finally, I would like to thank some of those who have not only supported me on this journey but also believed in me and empowered me. I was lucky to have a positive experience with my workplace of love and acceptance, where I established strong relationships with colleagues who became my family. I was lucky to find another family in the union movement, who embraced me and played such a huge role in shaping who I am today. To my family, my partner, Adrian, my wonderful work family at Modbury, my UWU comrades, the Labor Party and, most importantly, Irene, thank you so much.

I am looking forward to working with everyone in this chamber to achieve better life outcomes for South Australians, starting with early childhood as the first step towards a healthy and prosperous future for our state.

Honourable members: Hear, hear!

Motion carried.

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