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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 4 Hansard (7 May) . . Page.. 1031 ..

MR STEFANIAK: I will include the Labor Party in this, too, because they have done a lot in terms of ensuring that this country remains a multicultural, very tolerant and decent society. Let us go back to the referendum in 1967, instituted by the then Liberal-Country Party Government, which gave our native Australians the vote - something that should have happened decades earlier. That was a Liberal-Country Party government. Let us look at fine representatives in parliament like Senator Neville Bonner. What party was he from? There have been a number of other ethnic politicians in various State and Federal parliaments, of all political persuasions. The Calwell immigration scheme, continued by Sir Robert Menzies, brought so much diversity and richness to our society.

I want to get back to the motion, Mr Speaker. Having had a quick flip through a photocopy of this book which Mr Moore provided me with, I see on page 18, and going on to page 20, a number of comments Ms Hanson makes about a truly multicultural country. She really seems to be completely off the air with these comments. Mr Wood's motion, which is to reject the views expressed in Pauline Hanson's publication, is very apt. Just listen to this, Mr Speaker. She states:

A truly multicultural country can never be strong or united, as continual friction and conflict is created by rivalry between people with ethnic and religious differences.

That is absolute nonsense. I think one of the richnesses of Australian society, one of the richnesses of the society in the United States, one of the richnesses of societies in a number of countries in the world, especially democracies, Mr Speaker, which are truly multicultural, is that these countries can indeed be strong and united.

Consider the very diversity of countries like Australia and the United States, especially, which does some things which probably frustrate a lot of us around the world at times. People are constantly saying that the United States is in danger of breaking up or going off on a different path, but it has that inner strength to do some remarkably good things for the world. I think we have seen that constantly since World War II. The Americans have played a larger role. I think that is directly a result of the United States being such a diverse melting pot of humanity. Just when you think there are real problems there and that that country is going downhill, it will do something which lifts it back up out of the pack. I think sensible commentators have attributed that in no small way to it being a melting pot of humanity and to its multicultural nature - the strength derived from a diverse lot of people coming to make a life in a new land.

What about Australia? In the last 40 to 50 years Australia has seen significant immigration from Europe, other than just the British Isles, and from other parts of the world. I think our culture has been enriched as a result of that. I think our strength as a people has been enriched as a result of that. So, I am sorry; Ms Hanson's comment that a truly multicultural country can never be strong or united is absolute nonsense. She goes on to say, on page 20:

Multiculturalism or the `melting pot' has been a dismal failure all over the world and the record of disasters fill the alphabet.

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