Page 138 - Week 01 - Wednesday, 13 February 2008
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On about 23 February, or thereabouts, it is mother language day. For those people really committed to this sort of thing, the Bangladeshi High Commission is worth a visit. They talk about mother languages.
The ACT government has been very keen to promote the notion of a multicultural society, but we need to start sharing a definition. It is a fact that “multiculturalism” is a much-maligned word around the country. It is actually used and abused by people who really have no understanding of what it actually means. What we should be doing in this country is what we do in the ACT very significantly—that is, to promote the notion of dual cultures. We should be saying to people that you are a “something” Australian. For example, Mrs Burke would be an English-Australian. Ms MacDonald, because of her ancestry, could claim to be Scottish-Australian if she wished to, as is the same for Ms Porter if she wished. If she does not, that is fine, too. She could do any number of things. I am not sure what Dr Foskey could claim. Quite frankly, the mind actually boggles at this point.
Mr Speaker, when I spoke to a lot of people at the multicultural festival, that is exactly what happened. When you see the queues of people looking for the sausage that Mrs Dunne denigrates so profusely, you see Greeks, Italians, Asians, people from the Arabian states, everybody, and they are something-Australian. Here comes the definition, Mr Deputy Speaker, and you have heard me say this before: the definition of multiculturalism is the aggregation of those dual cultures. That is the significance. We cannot support that if we do not support the preservation of the original culture, and the most obvious expression of that culture is language. I am sure you, Mr Deputy Speaker, have at your own home another language spoken quite frequently. How golden is that?
MR DEPUTY SPEAKER: Some of it blue, minister.
MR HARGREAVES: I am talking about the language of your beloved spouse, Mr Deputy Speaker; I know it to be absolutely with melody. Your own language is another conversation we will have at some other stage. I have to say that it is a joy to go into a household where English is not the only language spoken, because that means that a particular culture is being preserved. We are blessed with the kaleidoscope and the mosaic of cultures which make up Australia. That is what this motion is saying: what is the role of languages in this International Year of Languages?
I also wanted to say something about Mrs Dunne’s position. While she may have a modicum of a point—and Mr Barr will address that later—I do note with some disappointment that Mrs Dunne does not acknowledge the role of private schools in the provision of languages, and she should have done so in her speech. She does not acknowledge, or did not acknowledge particularly well, the role that the Ethnic Schools Association plays, remembering that the Ethnic Schools Association—Dr Foskey did refer to them with 43 organisations here—has 1,150 students, give or take a couple, in the system. We teach not only the biggies but, mainly, and this is the interesting part, the smaller languages, for example the Mon language and Finnish. I have been to the mosque and seen a number of Arabian languages being taught, which I think is fantastic. We teach Korean, Polish and Tongan, and the Tongan community needs to be congratulated about this.
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