Maria Vamvakinou bids farewell to federal parliament after 23 years of service
Source: NEOS KOSMOS
Maria Vamvakinou, Member for Calwell, announced her retirement last year and delivered her valedictory speech in parliament yesterday. She said February 10 marked “23 years to the day when I rose in this very Chamber to make my first parliamentary speech.”
Vamvakinou was “proud to be the first Greek-born woman to enter Australia’s federal parliament.” She joined Labor in 1982, but her “first foray” into politics was in 1975 as an “enthusiastic Year 11 student of Politics at Princes Hill High School.”
The Whitlam Government’s dismissal that year led her to the Victorian Trades Hall Council and the Migrant Workers Committee. She called Whitlam’s multiculturalism reforms “one of the greatest in Modern Australian history” and credited left-wing migrant rights activists like “George Zangalis, Christos Tsirkas, Theo Sidiropoulos, Giovanni Sgro” as mentors.
Meeting Germaine Greer at 16, she recalled, “I was in awe of her.”
After completing a Bachelor of Arts and a Diploma of Education at Melbourne University, she taught at Thornbury High before becoming an electorate officer for Andrew Theophanous in 1987. Labor’s Affirmative Action quotas in 1994 gave her the “opportunity to stand for preselection.” Though initially hesitant, she said, “At that stage, I had two young children, Stavros and Stella, and the thought of coming to Canberra weighed heavily on me.”
Her electorate, over 25 per cent Muslim, has long been home to diverse migrant communities. She recalled the impact of 9/11 and the Tampa Affair, noting that Muslims suffered “because of external events beyond their control” but “have risen to the occasion, and they have succeeded.”
She paid tribute to Arthur Calwell, “Australia’s first immigration minister,” calling him “the father of multicultural Australia.” She lauded the Whitlam government for introducing the policy of multiculturalism
On the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks, she referenced “the terrible events” while highlighting “Israeli assaults on Gaza and Lebanon.” She positioned Australia as a “middle moderate power” with a tradition of “peacemakers, problem solvers, and conflict resolution internationalists,” adding, “But people shouting at each other in the street is not what multiculturalism is about.”
Vamvakinou championed Cyprus reunification, referencing “two Australian men: one of Turkish Cypriot background, Yalcin Adal, and the other of Greek Cypriot background, Stavros Protz, who together walked across Cyprus for 16 days in 2018.” She was “the first Australian MP to cross the border into the North of Cyprus in 2002, to visit my husband’s home, Ayios Epiktitos.”
She honoured her husband, Dr Michális S. Michael, for his work at La Trobe University’s Centre for Dialogue. “By partnering with Greek and Turkish Cypriot counterparts, we established an ongoing collaboration where civil society took a lead… a fine example of Australia’s citizen diplomacy.”
Reflecting on Palestinian statehood and peace for Israel, she recalled her childhood in Carlton, where her mother befriended Rosa, “a Polish Jew who had survived Auschwitz.” Vamvakinou translated for them: “Rosa carried photographs of family members who had perished in the death camps… she carried ‘the mark,’ a numerical tattoo on her forearm.”
She emphasised that multiculturalism ensures “social inclusion and equal access to services.” She and Steve Georganas tabled a petition of “22,105 signatures supporting the inclusion of the Modern Greek Language on the National School Curriculum.” The Greek community, she said, is an example of successful integration: “My generation was encouraged to retain culture, language, faith, and traditions whilst simultaneously proudly owning and bringing this inheritance along with us.”
In parliament, she worked extensively on multicultural policy, breast cancer support, and women’s representation. “When I entered, there were far fewer female MPs,” and Parliament was not family-friendly. “Children were not accommodated for in these halls.” Now, with more women and cultural diversity, “the culture has changed for the better.”
She thanked many colleagues and, in particular, “the wonderful women of Calwell.”
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