Elise Archer MP

Glenorchy Civic Centre
Thursday, 26 November 2009, 6pm
 
Thank you for this opportunity to talk about the issues and concerns of and for our multicultural community, and congratulations to the Multicultural Council of Tasmania, TasCOSS and the Migrant Resource Centre for organising this evening’s forum.

I have pleasure today in representing the Liberal Opposition Leader, Will Hodgman, all State Parliamentary Liberal Members and Liberal candidates.

There is no doubt at all that Tasmania is far a richer place because of our cultural diversity.  
More than 70 nationalities call Tasmania home; the University of Tasmania hosts more than 3000 international students, and each year our State welcomes humanitarian entrants or refugees from countries around the world.
We have a proud reputation of welcoming migrants, refugees and international students to our State.
Our migrants, refugees and international students contribute to our society in so many ways - from introducing us to their own cultures and adding flavour and variety to our way of life - to bringing their skills and experience to Tasmania.

But a multicultural society is not without its struggles.

For migrants and refugees, moving to a new country can be very challenging.
They might find our culture different, find our work or school difficult, and even have trouble with our language or our Australian sayings.
I read recently where a migrant worker was told by his boss after a day’s work that he could go home and put his feet up – puzzled, he called a volunteer with Multicultural Affairs and said  “what’s wrong with my foot, why do I need to put it up?”

But aside from the language barriers, there are other challenges, particularly for refugees, in terms of accessing housing and employment, and there is often discrimination faced at that time.
And sadly, migrants, refugees and international students also face racist slurs.
Tasmania, as a whole, must also face up to the scourge of racism in our society.

I am a lawyer with an anti-discrimination (and employment) law practice and I am aware that recently, the Office of the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner conducted a survey on increasing racism and inciting hatred towards international students, migrants and refugees in Tasmania.
It is of great shame to me – and many others in this State – that this survey found verbal abuse, physical assault and discrimination is rife in Tasmania, especially on our streets and in public areas.
I agree with the Multicultural Society which has called for a public campaign to stamp out racism in Tasmania – and I agree that such a campaign should begin in our schools.

The response by the Government (Lisa Singh) was that there are more ‘urgent’ issues than an anti-racism campaign.

The Liberals disagree. 

We believe our children need to know that racial intolerance and discrimination is not legal in this country.
We believe they should have an awareness of the cultural difficulties and challenges faced by migrants, refugees and international students.
And we believe that if we fail to address racial discrimination, we face the prospect of losing our cultural diversity, and our growing and lucrative international student population.
Understanding is knowledge and knowledge can bring about greater acceptance and inclusion – and we believe that understanding should begin at the school level.

The Liberals, in Government, would be prepared to work with the Multicultural Council of Tasmania to look at how an education and awareness campaign, beginning in our schools, could help us to celebrate our cultural diversity and stamp out racism in this State.

The University of Tasmania is well known for its overseas students, many of whom have gone on to leadership positions back in their home countries, or have settled here in Australia.

But I believe the current Labor government is actively discouraging international students from pursuing further study here.  For example, I am aware that a Masters’ student on an overseas student visa had two school age students.  She enrolled them at a primary school in Sandy Bay. She was charged approximately $5,500 per student, per year by the State Government to enrol her two children. She was offered the chance to undertake a doctorate in Tasmania but chose instead to go to Adelaide, where students of international students are charged the usual levy like everyone else, and not these exorbitant fees.

Had this student stayed, she would have contributed to the local economy and may even have decided to settle here – bringing her skills, knowledge and culture to our State.

Who knows how many students are in the same situation?

This is small-minded and short-sighted, and purely profiteering.

Another challenge faced, especially by refugees, is access to housing.
Some time ago, Colony 47 arranged a forum on this issue, where the voices of humanitarian entrants to our State were heard loud and clear.
They told of discrimination by landlords in accessing affordable housing, the problems in finding larger dwellings for their larger families, and the sad fact that many refugees who make their way to our State are no longer here, and have moved interstate because of these difficulties.

These problems were also raised in Anglicare’s excellent report on the settlement experiences of refugee communities, entitled “Dropped from the moon”.
It found the State struggles to retain the refugee communities which have settled here, and because of Tasmania’s greater levels of general poverty and hardship, refugees are in direct competition for affordable housing and unskilled jobs. 
And it also found that housing problems are undermining settlement outcomes - in some cases resulting in refugees in crisis housing, financial stress, and struggling with the social isolation caused by frequent moves and disconnection from their community networks.

Another critical issue for migrants, some of whom have been here for many, many years, is the support required and the social isolation of many as they age -  especially those from non-English speaking backgrounds.
While it is our right to grow old in our own homes, sometimes, because of ill health, this is not possible.
Some elderly migrants may lose command of their English and revert to the language of their birth, and may feel powerless as a result in an aged care facility.

Tasmania owes an enormous debt to the thousands of migrants who came here and helped shape our State.
It is up to us to support those migrants, as they age.
And that means active participation in ethnic communities, providing funding support to those bodies which are active in assisting their own communities - ensuring migrants are not socially isolated or fall through the gaps.
Our migrant and refugee communities might also need assistance with English language, skills training, housing or tenancy support, or advocacy in their dealings with government bodies, employers or health providers. 

For the Liberals, the most important thing we can do is break down the barriers or obstacles that migrants and refugees face.
We can do that in a number of ways, including education of employers, landlords and the general Tasmanian community.

We can assist new entrants to our State with access to longer-term affordable housing options through case management and support.
And we can address the many other obstacles and barriers to social inclusion through our ‘Fairer Tasmania’ strategy.

The Liberals’ framework for creating a fairer Tasmania is based on five criteria –
- Providing better access to services;
- Supporting disadvantaged groups and disadvantaged places;
- Reducing barriers to opportunity;
- Giving equity to rural and regional people; and
- Creating a Tasmania where people have rights and respect, regardless of their age, gender, abilities or disabilities, religious beliefs or nationality.

I note that this framework very much aligns with the Hobart City Council’s strategy for Cultural and Linguistic Diverse communities.

Many of you will know that I am an Alderman of the Hobart City Council, and I have been involved with community development and also our social inclusion strategies, which are due to be considered by full council in the next few weeks.
That strategy will also have a defined role for council in terms of action plans in the key areas of community participation, vibrant places, affordable living, effective transport, health and wellbeing, community safety and economic development.

More importantly, the Liberals believe in working more closely with local government to enhance services in  these and other areas, truly partnering to make advancements at the grassroots level.

I can only speak for myself, but I do know that as a council, we are very supportive of migrant and refugee communities, including telephone interpreter services throughout council, the Hobart Networking for Harmony Committee (which organises the annual welcome by the Lord Mayor), one-off projects such as festival kits for schools, significant financial support for cultural events, ‘Refugee Week’ activities, international student expos, Living Recipes (in association with the Taste of Tasmania), and sister city relationships.
Next year, all council staff will undertake diversity training, and Council’s Strategic Plan for 2009-2012 sets out a major action agenda to take a greater leadership role in promoting Hobart’s cultural diversity in the areas of perception, communication and participation.
For instance, there will be fact sheets about Council in CALD (cultural & linguistic diverse) languages, we’ll use ethnic radio to advertise events and give information, we’ll promote Hobart as a Refugee Welcome Zone, and develop initiatives that address racist incidences in the Hobart CBD, bus mall and at UTAS.

Tasmania is a small State of 500,000 people.  The Tasmanian Liberals believe in enhancing, and supporting the good work already being done at the grass roots level through local government. 
We don’t need to re-invent the wheel and duplicate what is already happening in local communities and in local government – but we do need to identify the gaps in service delivery and tackle those.
Knowing what local councils are already doing, consulting and genuinely partnering with councils to enhance those services, can only help free up the resources of government to tackle the bigger problems of access to health, education, housing and transport for migrants, refugees and, indeed, all Tasmanians.

Tasmania is fortunate in that we have well-established bodies & organisations which have built good relationships and partnerships over many years, including the Multicultural Council of Tasmania and the Migrant Resource Centre, the community sector, ethnic community bodies, and of course, our community development officers throughout local councils. 

We support these bodies, these people and their volunteers, and applaud the work they do.

And I can sincerely commit that a Liberal Government will listen to them, take their advice, and more importantly, ensure their recommendations to government are taken on board and acted upon.

Once again, thank you for inviting me along today to address the forum.