Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .
Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2003 Week 3 Hansard (23 October) . . Page.. 4041 ..
MR PRATT
(continuing):sound advice-of course, without becoming politically involved; we cannot do that as MLAs-it might have gone some way to bringing back the harmony that was missing.
What is being done by this government about the multicultural centre? Zero. Plans for a multicultural centre have clearly been placed in the too-hard basket. Coming into government, the Labor Party said that they were going to run a study to identify where to put a multicultural centre and identify its scope and its cost. That study does not seem to have gone anywhere. That is a reflection of the indecisiveness of the government. As far as a lot of people in the multicultural community can see, they are being let down by the government on that issue alone, if nothing else.
The multicultural community of Canberra, particularly at this time of disharmony and uncertainty, needs a government that can support it and a minister that is culturally aware. The minister needs to talk up harmony and remind the entire Canberra community that Canberra is successful at being harmonious. That is a fact.
Reports from the multicultural community, the Muslim community in particular, indicate that attacks on them or moves to marginalise them have been few and far between. The Canberra mosque has never been attacked, according to the imam there. For the Chief Minister to stand up in this place today and claim the contrary is outrageous.
Over the past few integral months, the government has not shown support for the multicultural community. It has not shown awareness, sensitivity or diplomacy. In these challenging times, the broader ACT community looks to a viable ACT Multicultural Council to guide the rest of us. The ACT community looks to a fair dinkum minister who will encourage and not neglect the community. The multicultural community of Canberra deserves a responsible and supportive government. This is obviously not a job for the Labor government.
MR HARGREAVES
(4.31): I could not agree more with Mr Pratt when he says that the multicultural community deserves a responsible and supportive government, because they have got one. I thank him very much for letting us know about that.We have here a thinly veiled attack on the Chief Minister and an amateurish attempt to turn multiculturalism into a football and make this member look good. There have been veiled references to the troubles that the Multicultural Council have been experiencing in recent times. I pay the point Mr Pratt made about the attempts that Mrs Cross has made to resolve a lot of these issues and give public acknowledgment of that.
We have to understand the history of it. If Mr Pratt had been around this town for more than the period of a blow-in, he would know the history of the Multicultural Council, when it was the Ethnic Communities Council. He would know that it has never been a forum of plain sailing. These things occur from time to time, and they are resolved within it because the dynamic that keeps it together is greater than the dynamic that blows it apart. The assistance of Mr Pratt in blowing it apart is not appreciated by the communities with whom I associate.
When it comes to credentials for supporting the multicultural community, Mr Pratt does not deserve to stand in the Chief Minister's shadow. What he is saying about this is absolutely appalling.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .