Australian Citizenship Test

orange blossom · **Posted:** Wed Oct 03, 2007 6:39 am

Of the first batch of 26 applicants who have to sit for a mandatory test before they could be granted Australian citizenship, there was only one failure. Not too bad for a start.

However, the crux of the issue is whether taking the test would necessarily make or prove that one is going to be a good citizen. Many early pioneers from Eastern and Southern Europe and Asia did not speak or read much English but they contributed to nation building nonetheless.

The main contention is over the Australian values section of the test where the applicant has to score full marks in all the three questions posed.

What constitutes Australian values? According to PM John Howard, these are Anglo-Saxon and Christian heritage. But there is no mention of aboriginal culture or the cultures of more than 20 per cent of citizens who speak languages in addition to or other than English. Migrants from UK and New Zealand now make up only 4.3 and 2 per cent of new arrivals respectively according to the latest 2006 census.

Ostensibly, the aim of the test is to highlight the value of Australian citizenship and ensure that every citizen knows a bit of Australian history, geography and values. In that regard, migrants who have a good working knowledge of English should have no problem answering the mainly knowledge based test.

However, the policy seen as discriminatory, has caused disconcert among new arrivals and citizens, may prove politically costly for the incumbent government especially on family reunion programmes.

A key contradiction lies between mateship and egalitarianism. It makes a mockery of the whole exercise where old school ties and social network takes precedence over professionalism in work and business, fair dinkum is devalued.

The government's paranoia with Islamic fundamentalism and concerns expressed by conservative segments of Australia over the erosion of values must have influenced the decision. Howard, a conservative at heart, clearly wants to make a strong statement and leave a legacy.
Should the Labour party come to power, would it keep it's promise to abolish the citizenship test, and all of Howard's efforts be futile?

Joo · **Joined:** Fri Oct 19, 2007 4:36 am **Posts:** 4

It is a damn ridiculous idea as all migrants should be proficient in English instead of learning the values of Australian culture.

Observer · **Posted:** Fri Oct 19, 2007 9:06 pm

I strongly believe when a nation accepts a new immigrant, it is expected of the immigrant to learn the lingua franca of that particular nation. No one has asked that person to immigrate if his/her concern is not to assimilate. Multiculturalism as seen in Canada will soon turn that country into a state of balkanization. I prefer to see the melting pot as in USA. Again, when one migrates to Australia, one surely expects that nation which was founded by Anglo-Saxon settlers with Judeo-Christian values. However, there are always conflicts and hypocrisies regarding such principles and moralities with regard to their interaction with the original aboriginal settlers. Accommodations have to be made with the aspirations of these native settlers in order for them to be comfortable in the nation building. However, new immigrants have no say, whatsoever, but to be assimilated right into the social milieu.

XP12 · **Posted:** Sat Oct 20, 2007 12:00 pm

Though Australia may be far from achieving the US “melting pot” model of integration, the trend towards embracing more diverse cultural values is a reality that is difficult to resist even by the most conservative political forces or government.

The demographic landscape has changed immensely from since the abolition of the White Australian Policy in 1966, shifting from mono to diverse cultures. Would Anglo-Saxon and Christian cultural values be representative of Australian values? Bearing in the mind, Chinese migrants arrived in Australia as miners, labourers and small businessmen as early as the 1860s. Moreover, Australia is part of the Asia-Pacific and reaping the benefits from the booming Chinese and Indian economies.

There is no question that assimilation involves proficiency in English, acceptance of rule of law and good social behaviour. Beyond that, I believe there should be limited interference in how the communities and families live and function. Perhaps, there may be some foreign values that Australians could take a leaf from and derive benefits from it. The generosity and tolerance of most Australians should not backslide as a result of overreactions to terrorism or election campaigning. The bottomline is the citizenship test is a frustrating and cumbersome exercise that is not going to add much value to the assimilation of migrants.

Observer · **Posted:** Sat Oct 20, 2007 1:00 pm

Canada was a different country about 25 years ago. Now with a growing population of immigrants each "ghettoed" in different parts of the country/cities, we begin to see their "political" demands and agendas, which I agree are within their rights as rightful citizens of Canada. Their numbers have increased and thus their voice has grown louder. They have, however, become insensitive to their surrounding communities. This is especially true of those 2nd generation. Canada is not the only country seeing this problem. We see them in UK, Europe and Australia. Many ethnic groups have insisted on funding for their school systems and religious affairs. The Muslim groups, especially, have become more vocal in their expression of their believes and thus cause more frictions in this multicultural milieu. Most of us believe we have chosen the country we migrated to, a place where we would be able to find personal freedom of expression and living. We realise in this modern age of globalization, that a country needs to have many citizens trained in diversities in all forms. But lest not for a moment let our guard down, and see the erosion of freedom because of the growing threats from communities whose believes run contrary to the believes of the majority. In other words, no matter what the world says, each country should have their own selective system for immigrants. Hind sight is 20/20 right? But then it is too late.

robo king · **Posted:** Sun Oct 21, 2007 1:05 am

Hello Observer, welcome to the forum.

I would rather not use the term "ghetto" as it brings back abhorent memories of the notorious, xenophobic maverick politician Pauline Hanson. It is true that like Canada, there are many enclaves with high concentration of certain ethnicities in Australia such as Indochinese dominated Footscray (Victoria), Little Korea in Eastwood (NSW), Vietnamese town Cabramatta (NSW), Hongkonger's paradise at Sunnybank (Qld). You won't believe you're in Australia when you visit these unique suburbs.

I do agree that some of these immigrants might have abused their "rights" and overextended the hospitality of their new host countries. For instance, certain ethnicities are notorious for claiming family benefits by exploiting the loopholes in favour of single and low income parents. The couples are divorced but only in name and some quietly work overseas but continue to receive family allowance. Naturally, others are unhappy with this state of affairs and demand greater scrutiny. Then these communities would cry injustice and discrimination.

In order to achieve a harmonious society, every citizen has to be responsible and sensitive to the needs of their neigbours, co-workers and society at large. Certain ethnicities and religious groups, however, are self reliant and resourceful, and have contributed funds to build community facilities to be shared by all Australians.

From hindsight, it was due to the laxed immigration policies that Middle Eastern refugees were admitted on humanitarian and family reunion grounds. Unwittingly, some extremists elements have infiltrated into Australian society. However, the Howard government's swing to the other extreme may alienate the other moderate Muslims instead of engaging them constructively. There is a risk that the less tolerant and conservative constituents among the majority white Aussie population would view the leadership's stand as an endorsement of stereotyping and discriminatory policies.

Thankfully, in liberal democratic societies, the minority are not totally silenced by the louder voices of the majority. Like they always say, one should not wait to be the last surviving person before taking defensive actions.

Observer · **Posted:** Sun Oct 21, 2007 8:00 pm

In this modern age of globalization, every "civilized" country would like to be regarded as fair in its treatment of new immigrants especially those visible minorities. "Liberals" have taken up causes of minorities who are targeted for their differences in social and religious behaviours. There are no outright solutions.

More or less, in some cases, the problems with new immigrants are ones that the host countries have brought upon themselves. Cases in point can be seen in UK with Blacks and Pakistanis. Blacks were brought in from the Caribbean when there were no British willing to sweep and clean the streets of London. Pakistanis were allowed in because of their link to the Commonwealth. These two groups are now disenfranchised. Color discrimination is, I believe, not as big a problem. The bigger picture is the emergence of radical Islamic fundamentalism. If Muslims were to follow the very words of the Koran, then there would be no accommodation for them in a Western, democratic Christian society. Christian societies have gone through periods of reformation and as such have appeared more tolerant to visible minorities who adapted well.

I would thus suggest a policy similar to that of Switzerland, whereby, the local councils and neighbours would recommend a settler for final citizenship if the settler is deemed acceptable to "fit" into their cultural milieu. It may contain fine lines of discrimination, but in the long run, for the sake of social peace, this may be the best choice for any country which is hoping to bring in new immigrants.

Hot Chilly · **Posted:** Mon Oct 22, 2007 2:28 am

Wherever I move to, part of me will always be attached to my place of birth. That is something that I cannot and do not wish to change. No matter how much we imbibe new ideas and way of life in a different country, I think certain things are better not forced, otherwise we will not be true to ourselves.

Meddy · **Posted:** Thu Oct 25, 2007 8:13 am

World citizenship has caught on in recent times. What does it mean to be an international citizen? In countries where dual citizenship is allowed, citizens are required to renounce nationality. Even dual citizenship does not encompass or qualify one as a world citizen. Is there a conflict of interest being citizens of all countries in the world?

Children of diplomats have often impressed me. They are adaptable having moved from country to country from a young age. They are confident, flexible, dynamic and take in the best of world cultures (hopefully not the negative aspects).

orange blossom · **Posted:** Wed Nov 21, 2007 1:38 am

It may sound like a play of words and polemics between political contenders. However, the nuances of multiculturalism and integration carry profound meanings and have far-reaching implications for Australian which is build upon a largely migrant society.

Quote:

Harry Nicolaides November 2007

In an exclusive statement to Neos Kosmos English Edition, Leader of the Opposition, Kevin Rudd has recognised Greek Australians as proud flag bearers for the success of multiculturalism in Australia.

"The Hellenic community in Australia is a shining example of the success of migration to Australia," he said.

"Whether it be in education, business, politics, or the arts, Australians of Greek heritage have made an outstanding contribution to Australia. It is a contribution which Australians of Greek background should be immensely proud of," he added.

Mr Rudd also acknowledged the reality of multiculturalism in Australia - something which, according to peak ethnic bodies Prime Minister John Howard has tried to replace with a 'set of shared Australian values'.

"It is absolutely vital that whichever party forms the Government of Australia in less than two weeks time understands that Australia is a multicultural society of people drawn from a rich variety of cultural, ethnic linguistic and religious backgrounds," he said "Labor is committed to celebrating the diversity of Australians and to continuing to build a vibrant and cohesive Australia."

"Multiculturalism is an essential part of the fabric of our nation. It is about the story and journey of all Australians," he said.

Asked about the controversial citizenship test, Mr Rudd said "Citizenship is the common bond that unites individuals in their mutual commitment to Australia. The strength and success of the new citizenship test is in its ability to promote inclusiveness," he said.

"Labor has said right from the beginning that Labor wants the test to be reasonable. Labor has committed that if the test is unreasonable, Labor would change it," he said

"A good government assists migrants in becoming citizens by providing the resources and the opportunities for migrants to understand the responsibilities and privileges of what it means to be Australian," he said.

And where the Howard government was planning to spend over $120,000,000 on the implementation of the Citizenship Test, Mr Rudd has revealed that the Labor party has adopted some of the recommendations of humanitarian and ethnic organisations who highlighted the impact of the proposed test on disadvantaged arrivals like refugees.

"That is why a Rudd Labor Government will commit an additional $49.2 million to improve the Adult Migrant English program to assist people to learn English, to find employment and to fully participate in the community," he said.

"Government services should assist people to enter the Australian workforce and to participate in Australian society. Labor wants to ensure that people are given the best opportunity to learn English and to find their way into the workforce," he said

Echoing the statements made by peak ethnic groups and organisations in recent months, Mr Rudd was also critical of the Howard government's failure to understand the challenges some of Australia's newest ethnic arrivals face.

"Unfortunately, Mr Howard and his government have failed many newly arrived migrants by not recognising the hurdles they face and failing to support their integration," he said

In a glowing vote of confidence for the contribution Greek Australians have made to the life of Australia Mr Rudd also recognised their importance as role models for new groups.

"Australians of Hellenic heritage represent the best of multicultural Australia," he said. "They have made a vital and enduring contribution to Australia, and to the success, prosperity and cultural richness of our nation. The commitment of Hellenic Australians to hard work, education and family provides a model for integration."

"A Rudd Labor Government is committed to ensuring that we continue to build a vibrant and cohesive Australia that builds a stronger community from our diversity," he concluded.

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