WELCOME HOME!
Citizenship ceremonies are always wonderful occasions, but it is extra special for you to take your pledge of commitment today on Australian Citizenship Day. Congratulations!
Thank you to Colin Hunter Junior for your welcome to country, and I acknowledge and pay respects to the Wurundjeri people, the traditional custodians of the land we are on today.
Most importantly I acknowledge those here to take the pledge of commitment today, our newest Australian citizens.
And in doing so – I want to talk about our past, our present – and our future.
For thousands of years, our vast continent has been home to people of many cultures, languages and traditions.
A land whose extraordinary story spans from the vast mosaic of ancient nations and languages of First Nations peoples.
To the arrival of Europeans and the eventual dawn of our democratic system of government.
And now to modern multicultural Australia. Here today in the middle of Melbourne, 45 people from 22 countries are becoming citizens. Joining thousands more across Australia taking on the rights and indeed the responsibilities of becoming Australians.
I’m honoured to share today with you and preside over this special ceremony. To mark this national occasion, I’ll share some deeper reflections, noting this is the 75th anniversary of Australian Citizenship.
First though let me read to you the Welcome Message from Australia’s Minister for Immigration and Home Affairs, the Honourable Tony Burke MP:
In a few moments time, Australia becomes an even better nation. When you make the citizenship pledge you take on the privileges and responsibilities of Australian citizenship. From that moment your journey and heritage will become part of our shared Australian story. We are privileged to share this beautiful country with First Nations Australians, the custodians of the world’s oldest continuing culture. Appreciating and understanding this truth is a vital part of what it means to be Australian. Australia welcomes you as a full member of one of the most diverse nations on earth where our citizenship is a bond which unites us all. Australia welcomes you and everything you bring to Australia. Today your new nation says to you 'welcome home'.
I hope that however long you have lived in Australia, today is simply just formalising your commitment to our country, which is already your home.
It’s fitting that today’s special ceremony is hosted in Melbourne’s Immigration Museum. If this is your first time here, make sure you check it out later.
There’s so much history in this building. It was built in 1840 as a Customs House and, as the old saying goes, if only these walls could talk.
Now, 26 years since it was reborn as the Immigration Museum, this building is home to artefacts, objects, memories – and the stories of countless migrants who crossed the sea to make Victoria – and Australia – their home.
75 years ago – the concept of Australian Citizenship was basically invented through the Nationality and Citizenship Act.
That’s a fact that I think would surprise most Australians – before 1949 – through World War 1 and 2, the Great Depression, and some 48 years of a Federated Australia – we were still considered to be British subjects in the then British Empire.
But in 1949, the story of Australia, which goes back at least 60,000 years, had an important new chapter added to it.
The first Australian citizenship ceremony took place at Albert Hall in Canberra on 3 February 1949. On that auspicious summer’s day, we gained seven new citizens. Seven people from seven nations: Czechoslovakia, Denmark, France, Greece, Norway, Spain and the former Yugoslavia – and between them representing every state plus the Australian Capital Territory.
Such diversity, but by the end of that ceremony they had something wonderful in common – they were officially our fellow Australians.
During 1949, nearly 2,500 people from more than 35 countries became Australian citizens at similar ceremonies. Most were migrants from Italy, Poland, Greece, Germany and what was then still Yugoslavia.
25 years after that in 1974 – people were arriving in Australia from England, New Zealand and Scotland at the top of the list, with people from Uruguay, Lebanon and India the highest rate of arrivals outside of Europe.
In 1999 – arrivals from China ranked third behind New Zealand and England, with a growing proportion of people from elsewhere in Asia and the Middle East.
And already this year, in the 75th anniversary of Australian Citizenship, we’ve seen more than 115,000 Australians become citizens from all over the world, and that number will grow through today’s national celebrations.
In the 75 years since 1949, more than six million people, from over 200 nations across the globe have become Australian citizens.
Through this, our national fabric has been transformed – and it has been strengthened.
The foundations for the brilliant diversity of modern multicultural Australia really began to take shape following the abolition of the old racist White Australia Policy.
Australia today is one of the most culturally diverse nations on earth.
More than 300 different ancestries were identified in the last Census. Over half of Australia’s citizens have either been born overseas or have a parent born overseas.
The contribution to our society and economy of successive generations of migrants who have come to our shores is truly extraordinary.
Every town, every suburb, every sporting club in our nation charts the success stories of migrants who have worked to build their lives and build a better Australia.
I see this firsthand in my amazing community in South-East Melbourne, with people from more than 150 countries, speaking over 200 languages and practising 100 faith traditions. Living in harmony with that laser-like focus on education and hard work to give a better life to their children, which is surely the truest aspiration of all.
An Anniversary is, of course, an opportunity to not just reflect on the past, but also to contemplate where we are today and our future.
And 17 September, Australian Citizenship Day, is not only a day for new Australians.
Whether we are citizens through birth, like me and my family for generations, or because we have chosen Australia as our new home like you, Australian Citizenship Day is a chance for all Australians to be proud of our common bond.
Citizenship is the common legal bond that binds, protects and empowers Australians as a people. Our common citizenship celebrates our democratic values – as citizens we all get one vote and are equal under the law.
A special shout-out to those new Australians who have come to our country as humanitarian migrants, fleeing war and persecution. Right now, there are people across the world fighting and dying for that basic right that we enjoy: to vote and choose a government. It’s actually more than just a right in Australia – it’s a responsibility you will now bear, as we have and value our system of compulsory voting.
Citizenship confers upon us great privileges and responsibilities, which we should never take for granted.
Our common citizenship is also an identity, and as Australians we have far more in common than we do differences.
Perhaps the essence of modern multicultural Australia – of Australian multiculturalism – is simply that great Australian promise of the fair go: that everyone gets a fair go at life here, no matter your ancestry, ethnicity, faith or background.
Australians are free to live their life as they choose within the bounds of the law, while respecting the right of others to live how they wish with dignity and freedom.
Of course, no society is perfect, and just being ethnically diverse doesn’t make a successful multicultural society.
While there’s so much for us to be proud of and celebrate, in taking stock, the honest truth is that too many Australians from culturally diverse backgrounds still do not get the fair go we all deserve and expect. Too many of our fellow Australians experience racism, discrimination and exclusion from full participation in society, which diminishes us all.
Success in building an inclusive society — where everyone gets that fair go — can never be taken for granted.
Success requires deliberate government policy, and an ongoing commitment to non-discrimination. Next year we celebrate 50 years since the Whitlam Government introduced the Racial Discrimination Act.
Success also requires sustained investments to help new arrivals settle in, to learn English where needed, and to maintain our social cohesion.
But the magic ingredient – the “secret sauce” – is leadership. Political leadership, faith leadership but most especially community leadership.
I really want to acknowledge and thank the volunteers and community leaders who run the thousands of community organisations, helping people settle into life here, and continue cultural and language traditions.
This is especially important at a time when, let’s be frank, our social cohesion is strained. Whether due to global tensions, malign actors, social media, loud voices or so-called leaders who seek to divide rather than bring people together.
We all share a responsibility to look out for each other, to stand up for Australia and be proud, and to push back against those who seek to divide us.
So here’s my challenge to everyone here – stand up for Australia and be proud. Band together to keep us together. Push back on actors out there who seek to divide us.
Now – your life story is forever part of Australia’s great and evolving national story, but becoming an Australian citizen does not mean abandoning your ancestral culture. Quite the opposite.
We are a better country when Australians cherish and celebrate our diverse cultural traditions. Passing on languages, faith and culture to the next generation. Sharing the stories, share a sense of all who have gone before and have contributed something to the person you have become – and, in turn, the people your children will be.
Just as each one of us belongs to a great story, each one of us has a duty to keep telling it.
But, perhaps most importantly for the whole community, sharing our cultural traditions with neighbours and friends.
The real magic of modern multicultural Australia happens when we share with each other.
Get involved in community celebrations, whether Lunar New Year, an Easter egg hunt, Diwali or Holi, an Eid celebration, Rosh Hashanah or St Patrick’s Day.
Get your kids into Nippers or Scouts or a local dance group. Stop for a souvlaki or a banh mi on the way home. And you’re always welcome in Dandenong for the best Afghan food you’ll ever have!
We are the nation of the Fair Go, and we’ll keep walking that road because there’s more to do.
- First Nations reconciliation is a journey that continues.
- We owe the next generation a liveable planet, a clean environment and ongoing prosperity.
- We have more to do to ensure everyone, regardless of ethnicity, gender, religion or sexuality is safe and has the same opportunities – a fair crack at life.
- One day, perhaps, our story may evolve to see an Australian citizen as our Head of State, if the people so choose.
Australians are resilient and good people, and we should be positive and optimistic about our future.
As the Prime Minister has observed, we celebrate the differences that give our nation such an exciting breadth.
To me, an Australian is anyone committed to our nation and mutual respect.
Thank you for formalising your commitment to Australia on this special day.
Welcome home.
