Page 81 - Week 01 - Tuesday, 12 February 2019
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grants. In 2017 the ACT government fulfilled its election commitment of establishing the ACT Multicultural Advisory Council, which comprises 15 members representing the voices of our culturally diverse community in Canberra.
Since that time the council has met formally on eight occasions, contributing to and consulting on a huge range of policy and program work which is key to the lives of many of our city’s residents. More importantly, the council hosted the 2018 multicultural summit in November at which 150 community leaders, service providers and government officials came together to identify a range of outcomes to make sure that we continue to make sure that our city is the most inclusive place for our multicultural communities.
As a result of the summit, I have asked the council to take a lead role in formulating the second action plan of the multicultural framework 2015-20, a plan that will take us into the beginning of the next decade and prepare us for the future. A vital element of the framework is to continue to ensure that the ACT maintains our human rights approach, welcoming refugees and other humanitarian entrants arriving from many different countries to make Canberra their home.
We have a very strong history of recognising the value of our refugee and migrant communities in our city. Over the past 10 years Canberra has welcomed more than 2,000 refugees as part of our proudly multicultural city. The ACT was the first jurisdiction in Australia to enact a human rights act, which provides an explicit statutory basis for respecting, protecting and promoting civil and political rights.
In 2015 the ACT was also the first jurisdiction amongst the states and territories in Australia to declare itself a refugee welcome zone. The declaration of the ACT as a refugee welcome zone is a commitment to welcoming refugees into our community, upholding their human rights, demonstrating compassion and enhancing cultural and religious diversity in our community. Furthermore, in 2016 the ACT joined the safe haven enterprise visa scheme to provide stability and support to asylum seekers and others who have chosen to make Canberra their home. We also invested $1.4 million in the 2016-17 budget in programs to assist refugees and asylum seekers with language and employment support.
The true strength of any city or community is measured by how we support, embrace and encourage our most vulnerable members, as well as how we acknowledge and value the established communities that we have and their contributions. As we join together this weekend to celebrate the 2019 National Multicultural Festival, it is a time to reflect on the contribution of our city’s culturally diverse communities and the way that we can further enhance their participation and support them.
This weekend I will be meeting with the huge range of our multicultural communities, their members, leaders and volunteers as I make my way across the three days of the festival. And I encourage members of the Legislative Assembly and, indeed, the broader Canberra community to head out over the weekend and support this fantastic community event and the efforts of our culturally diverse communities throughout the year.
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