❓ Minister addresses mistaken identity case involving Mr. Thang Le, denouncing accusations made by a member of parliament and calling for her removal as opposition spokesperson on multicultural interests.
AnsweredQoN 463Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
MR THANG LE — MEMBER FOR GIRRAWHEEN'S
COMMENTS
463. Mr P.T. MILES to the
Minister for Citizenship and Multicultural Interests:
Can the minister update the house on the mistaken case of
identity regarding Mr Thang Le that has resulted in subsequent confusion and
consternation and the denigration of his standing within the Vietnamese
community?
COMMENTS
463. Mr P.T. MILES to the
Minister for Citizenship and Multicultural Interests:
Can the minister update the house on the mistaken case of
identity regarding Mr Thang Le that has resulted in subsequent confusion and
consternation and the denigration of his standing within the Vietnamese
community?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for the question. This is a serious issue.
The member for Girrawheen made an accusation in this chamber about a prominent
member of the Vietnamese community, Mr Thang Le, whereby she accused him of
being involved in illegal criminal behaviour and the —
Dr A.D. Buti interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Armadale, I call you to order for the second time. I do not want to
hear any more shouting out.
Dr
M.D. NAHAN : She accused Mr Thang Le, a prominent member of the Vietnamese
community, of being involved in the illegal employment and exploitation of
workers and in criminal behaviour. Those statements are categorically false and
she should have known better. It was not only a mistake of identity; she also accused him of being deceased. Mr
Thang Le is alive. He is a prominent member of the Vietnamese community; he is
president of the Vietnamese Farmers Association and has been very active in
various Vietnamese groups. He is very active in the Vietnamese Veterans
Association and he is a prominent member at the Anzac marches and he is
appalled, as is the Vietnamese community. I think she read in the paper that
the sons of Mr Thang Van Le, who died in 2007, have been arrested and are under
investigation for the alleged employment of illegal aliens and criminal
behaviour. Mr Thang Van Le passed away a number of years ago. The picture the
member for Girrawheen flashed around and referred to as Mr Thang Le was taken
in 2010, which was two to three years after Mr Thang Van Le passed away. The
names may be unusual to some members, but t here is a difference between Thang Van Le and Thang Le. I might
add, as the paper indicated, the member for Girrawheen has met Mr Thang Le a
number of times, including at her electorate office. Maybe she has a memory
problem. She did not make those accusations only in this house; she went
outside and made them in the general public. An article in the Wanneroo
Weekender referred to the accusations about my colleagues the member for
Wanneroo and the member for Bunbury being involved with Mr Thang Le, who was
again accused of hiring illegal workers and criminal behaviour. Mr Le is a
well-known market gardener; he hires a large number of people. Accusing him of
hiring illegal workers goes to his reputation and business.
Several members interjected.
Dr
M.D. NAHAN : The Wanneroo Weekender did the right thing; it issued a full apology to Mr Thang Le and —
Ms
R. Saffioti : She apologised.
Dr
M.D. NAHAN : She apologised after some goading from this side.
Several members interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Members!
Dr
M.D. NAHAN : She apologised in this house, but the accusations she made were
not limited to this house; they were also made in front of the general public.
She is not only a member of this house, but also the opposition spokesperson on
multicultural interests. She has form. Last year, after ridiculing the Speaker's
accent, she was required to apologise. She has form and it is incumbent upon
the Leader of the Opposition to show leadership and sack her as opposition
spokesman on multicultural interests. It is unacceptable.
The member for Girrawheen made an accusation in this chamber about a prominent
member of the Vietnamese community, Mr Thang Le, whereby she accused him of
being involved in illegal criminal behaviour and the —
Dr A.D. Buti interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for Armadale, I call you to order for the second time. I do not want to
hear any more shouting out.
Dr
M.D. NAHAN : She accused Mr Thang Le, a prominent member of the Vietnamese
community, of being involved in the illegal employment and exploitation of
workers and in criminal behaviour. Those statements are categorically false and
she should have known better. It was not only a mistake of identity; she also accused him of being deceased. Mr
Thang Le is alive. He is a prominent member of the Vietnamese community; he is
president of the Vietnamese Farmers Association and has been very active in
various Vietnamese groups. He is very active in the Vietnamese Veterans
Association and he is a prominent member at the Anzac marches and he is
appalled, as is the Vietnamese community. I think she read in the paper that
the sons of Mr Thang Van Le, who died in 2007, have been arrested and are under
investigation for the alleged employment of illegal aliens and criminal
behaviour. Mr Thang Van Le passed away a number of years ago. The picture the
member for Girrawheen flashed around and referred to as Mr Thang Le was taken
in 2010, which was two to three years after Mr Thang Van Le passed away. The
names may be unusual to some members, but t here is a difference between Thang Van Le and Thang Le. I might
add, as the paper indicated, the member for Girrawheen has met Mr Thang Le a
number of times, including at her electorate office. Maybe she has a memory
problem. She did not make those accusations only in this house; she went
outside and made them in the general public. An article in the Wanneroo
Weekender referred to the accusations about my colleagues the member for
Wanneroo and the member for Bunbury being involved with Mr Thang Le, who was
again accused of hiring illegal workers and criminal behaviour. Mr Le is a
well-known market gardener; he hires a large number of people. Accusing him of
hiring illegal workers goes to his reputation and business.
Several members interjected.
Dr
M.D. NAHAN : The Wanneroo Weekender did the right thing; it issued a full apology to Mr Thang Le and —
Ms
R. Saffioti : She apologised.
Dr
M.D. NAHAN : She apologised after some goading from this side.
Several members interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Members!
Dr
M.D. NAHAN : She apologised in this house, but the accusations she made were
not limited to this house; they were also made in front of the general public.
She is not only a member of this house, but also the opposition spokesperson on
multicultural interests. She has form. Last year, after ridiculing the Speaker's
accent, she was required to apologise. She has form and it is incumbent upon
the Leader of the Opposition to show leadership and sack her as opposition
spokesman on multicultural interests. It is unacceptable.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.