Page 3413 - Week 11 - Wednesday, 22 October 2014

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In short, I think this is a good motion, with some positive additions both from Dr Bourke and Minister Burch on the range of things that the ACT government has already been doing to promote better understanding. I also understand from some media reports that the commonwealth government is seeking to support more understanding and harmony in our society in some key areas of concern, which I applaud. This is how you win hearts and minds, and this is how you maintain our civil society.

I think we do live in a time that is finely balanced and where great care is needed and great leadership is needed by a range of people in our community. Unfortunately, there are those in our community who will fan the flames of hatred, from a range of perspectives, and I think it is our job as community leaders to stand up against that, to insist on greater understanding, to lead by example and to assist our community through times when there are those who seek to divide us.

It is a big job. It will not always go smoothly. I think that unfortunately we will see things go wrong at times. Nonetheless it sits not just with those of us in this place but other leaders in the community. As Dr Bourke just acknowledged, we are joined in the Assembly by some of the leaders in the community. I heard some very important words on radio this morning of community leaders standing up and rejecting division and hatred. I think that we all have an ongoing job to do that. I am happy to speak in support of that spirit that is in Mrs Jones’s motion today and, I guess, reflect for all of us on the necessary job that we have to do, particularly at this time. It is an ongoing job, but particularly at this time, in maximising the cohesion, the acceptance, the tolerance and the understanding in our community.

MS BURCH (Brindabella—Minister for Education and Training, Minister for Disability, Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Minister for Racing and Gaming, Minister for Women and Minister for the Arts) (10.23): I thank Mrs Jones for bringing this motion on today. We are supporting it. There has been one amendment put forward by Dr Bourke, and I have also circulated an amendment that I think adds some depth to the motion.

I also recognise in our audience representatives of the Canberra Multicultural Community Forum and NEDA, which is a group that supports people with a disability from an ethnic background.

We are indeed one community held together by a multitude of faiths and cultures. The government remains committed to fostering the social harmony that has been an outstanding feature of our community over the years. Recently, we set out these principles in our “Capital culture” discussion paper. They ensure that all individuals have the right to maintain, practise and promote their culture and language, the right to cultural expression and understanding, regardless of their English language skills, the right to practise their religious and spiritual beliefs, the right to equitable access to government services and programs, the right to participate in and contribute to the social, cultural and economic life of the community, and the responsibility of us all to respect the culture, language and religion of others, within the legal and constitutional framework that is set out by the laws of the ACT and Australia. The paper also articulates the responsibility to treat everyone in a fair and respectful manner, and our responsibility to recognise and accept the linguistic and cultural assets of the ACT.


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