Speech
3 June 2009
Speech at the Presentation of Vehicles Ceremony to the Tongan Police Force Commander and Senior Officers.
Deputy Prime Minister, Police Force Commander, I thank you very much for your warm welcome. I'm very pleased to be here on my first visit to Tonga. My visit to Tonga reflects the warmth and the strength of the relationship between Australia and Tonga. As the Deputy Prime Minister said a moment ago, I met with the Prime Minister, and then met with the Cabinet.
One of the great things about the relationship between Australia and Tonga is the strength of the partnership that we have in the development assistance area. One of the things that Australia has always looked to is to help build Tonga's capacity: whether it's healthcare, whether it's education, whether it's reconstruction, or whether it's law and justice administration. We've always been very keen to work with Tonga to build Tonga's capacities in these vital areas. And the Police Development Program is one of these areas.
In addition to having a warm and friendly and long-standing partnership with Tonga, Australia of course works closely with New Zealand. With the Police Development Program, of course, we have a tripartite arrangement - a partnership between New Zealand, Tonga and Australia to help build the capacity of the Tongan Police Force.
It's evidenced by nine, flash, shiny white cars! It's not just white cars that we're hoping to build. With any police force, you need a range of things. Of course you need the equipment, and vehicles is one of those things. But you also need the skills, the modern police training skills to deal with the people in the community on a one to one and on a person to person basis. And so the program also envisages, and it involves, helping the Commander and his officers train the Tongan Police Force.
A third important characteristic and feature of a police force is of course its capacity to work with and in the local community. And here the training of any modern police service envisages the capacity of the police force to work closely, cooperatively, and calmly with its local community.
So Deputy Prime Minister this is a great project, a great project which sees three friends and partners: Australia, New Zealand, and Tonga, working closely together to build Tonga's capacity in a vital area.
This is just one of the number of both productive and enjoyable things I'll do in the course of the day. So Commander I'm very pleased to be here, it underpins and underlines one of the contributions that Australia together with New Zealand is very happy to make. We hope that the additional vehicles will add to your fleet. I understand the fleet itself will be replenished after a period of time, which also underlines the training and capacity it brings to the members of your force.
Thank you for your warm greeting and your wishes and together with the High Commissioner we are very pleased to be associated with the handing over of the vehicles, but more importantly, to mark Australia's commitment to the Police Development Program in an ongoing way.