Page 82 - Week 01 - Tuesday, 12 February 2019
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MR RATTENBURY (Kurrajong) (4.00): I am pleased to stand today to discuss the importance of supporting Canberra’s multicultural community. All people, regardless of their ethnicity, culture, religion, language or place of birth, have equal rights in our society. Our diversity is a source of our strength and a key part of what makes the ACT such a terrific and vibrant place to live. The annual Multicultural Festival is a great example—and of course the one that people tend to focus on—of what I have just described about Canberra, and I look forward to celebrating with the community this coming weekend.
The ACT Greens will always support our multicultural communities to connect with their language and culture and to build relationships with each other and the broader Canberra community. Recent public attacks on religious and ethnic groups, including by some in federal parliament, have shown that there is still a need to continue to educate our community about diversity and the rights of all people to live without being discriminated against or vilified on the basis of their faith, race or ethnicity.
Multicultural communities are supported by small voluntary groups and organisations who work tirelessly to advocate for the needs of their diverse communities. The ACT Greens are pleased to secure a commitment through the parliamentary agreement to establish the multicultural advisory board and convene the first multicultural summit to ensure that those communities have a voice to government and can contribute to decision-making.
This topic is particularly timely, given that the Multicultural Festival is happening this weekend. This celebration of Canberra’s and Australia’s cultural and linguistic diversity is one of the biggest annual events in Canberra. At the weekend we will see more than 200,000 people flock to Civic for the festival. There will be food from every corner of the world, with over 300 stalls. There will be live music, dancing and cultural performances across six stages. The National Multicultural Festival actively involves more than 350 community groups, using scores of different languages, up to 70 diplomatic missions and dozens of national and local businesses through participation and sponsorship.
I am personally looking forward to the festival, as I do every year, to sample, taste and experience Canberra’s wonderful multicultural community. I, like others, encourage all members and all Canberrans to visit the festival this weekend. I am not sure if there is anybody in Canberra who has never been to it. I would like to think there is not, but if there is, this is your chance. The weather is going to be perfect, and it will be a great weekend.
The ACT Greens believe that the ACT should be a safe and welcoming place for asylum seekers, refugees and migrants, and that those people should be supported through housing, education, life skills and social connections when they settle in Canberra. We are proud that Canberra is the only state or territory to be declared a refugee welcome zone, and this reflects the openness and generosity of the Canberra community.
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