During the first sitting week of the 45th Parliament, Tim Wilson, the new Member for Goldstein and former Human Rights Commissioner at the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) acknowledged his Armenian heritage when he delivered his maiden speech in the House of Representatives, the Armenian National Committee of Australia reports.
Wilson rose to political fame in Australia as an outspoken believer of true liberalism and has advocated for maximum “freedoms” as a think tank director and as Human Rights Commissioner in the past, and he pledged to do the same in Federal Parliament.
Wilson’s wide-ranging maiden speech touched on his upbringing and family tree, as these speeches often tend to do. He referred to the bloodied past of his mother’s father, who had to endure and survive the Armenian Genocide, which was a source of inspiration for Wilson.
He said: “My maternal Grandpa left behind the genocide of his people. I never met him. He died before I was born. But I still see him everyday when I look into the mirror and into his dark and recessed Armenian eyes.”
Armenian National Committee of Australia (ANC Australia) Executive Administrator, Arin Markarian said: “We congratulate Mr. Wilson on his fantastic maiden speech as he enters public office. It is also encouraging to see Mr. Wilson seek inspiration from his family’s history, mentioning his grandfather who survived the Armenian Genocide.”
Mr. Wilson was elected to his seat, taking over from former Minister for Trade and Investment, the Hon. Andrew Robb.