Page 1799 - Week 06 - Wednesday, 8 June 2016
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numbers to ensure that housing and services can meet the incoming demand. At its core, the way to successfully accept refugees is to include them, not to accept people and then demonise them for political gain.
I am proud to be part of a Barr Labor government that understands the critical importance of social inclusion and continues to invest in it. As outlined in the budget’s social inclusion statement, our government is continuing to foster an inclusive and supportive environment for recently arrived refugees and asylum seekers, working together with service providers and community groups. As a progressive government, fairness, social inclusion and equality are our core values. We work to ensure that our refugee and multicultural policies contribute to a broad social inclusion agenda aimed at giving all Canberrans the chance to belong, to contribute and to be valued.
On this side of the Assembly, we value and celebrate our cultural diversity and the achievements of refugees and asylum seekers, be they recent or from 50 years ago. The ACT was the first jurisdiction to declare a refugee welcome zone last year, and since 2007 it has accepted nearly 2,000 humanitarian placements. Canberra today comes from nearly 200 different nationalities, with almost a quarter of Canberra’s total population born overseas.
But the Barr Labor government does not just talk the talk; we actively support social inclusion and multiculturalism. Since 2011, approximately 3,000 projects have been funded through our multicultural grants program, to support local multicultural communities and groups, to help build our harmonious and inclusive society.
Late last year, the Barr government released the first action plan of the 2015-20 ACT multicultural framework. The framework has three broad themes: accessibility and responsive services; citizenship, participation and cohesion; and capitalising on cultural diversity. Some actions to be progressed under the framework include supporting young people through leadership and recognition initiatives, enhancing access to information for refugees, and more investment in social cohesion initiatives.
One specific employment-focused initiative worth highlighting is a targeted program to assist new arrivals to gain meaningful employment. This builds on the success of programs like the work experience and support program. Our government is committed to doing all it can to support the social inclusion of new arrivals and refugees.
It is not just the ACT government that is doing great work in integrating and welcoming refugees into Canberra. There are numerous non-government organisations working in Canberra to support refugees and help them to become part of the community. One such NGO in my electorate of Ginninderra is Companion House. Companion House assists people who have suffered from torture and trauma by providing medical treatment, counselling, complementary therapy, community development, training and professional development, policy advice and awareness raising, and migration advice—all of this done free of charge. Services like this show the commitment that the Canberra community has to make sure that refugees have culturally appropriate care and have access to services that help them live happy and fulfilling lives in Canberra.
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