Tim Watts (Gellibrand, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Saturday 21 March was the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. This is a day that all Australians can be proud of. It's a day to be proud to be Australian.

Australia's a country that has made terrible mistakes in its history with respect to race. Indeed, the first substantive bill passed by this parliament after Federation was the Immigration Restriction Act, better known today as the White Australia policy. But Australia's greatest strength as a country is our ability to change as a democracy, to recognise mistakes and to set a new course, and this is what Australia has done as a nation. We have recognised the mistakes and the dead end that race based politics can lead a country down, and we've corrected it. We've gone from a country that passed a White Australia policy at the moment of Federation to become a modern Australia, the most successful multicultural nation on earth.

Today, the parliament that first passed that Immigration Restriction Act now includes 17 members of parliament with Asian heritage, 10 from the government's side. I was so proud to see them all come together for a celebratory photo last week. Today's parliament includes eight members of parliament with Indigenous heritage, something that would have been unimaginable at the moment of Federation. We can be so proud as Australians of the journey we have taken as a nation and of the country that we have built together—a country drawing on 60,000 years of Indigenous heritage, a country leveraging the Westminster institutions of our democracy and our rule of law to change and recognise mistakes, a country where now half of us are either born overseas or have a parent born overseas, enriched by that multicultural migration. We're a country that can cheer on Sam Kerr at the Asian Cup as the captain of the Matildas with Indian heritage, a country that can cheer on Jason Day, a magnificent world-class golfer with Filipino heritage, at the Masters, a country that can cheer on Saya Sakakibara and Arisa Trew, gold-medal-winning Asian Australians, at the Olympics, a country that can celebrate Rose as part of Blackpink, a country where Terry Tao can become a maths prodigy and our first Fields Medal winner, a country where Jack Zhang can found Airwallex, a company worth $12 billion and a country where Melanie Perkins can co-found Canva, a company worth $60 billion.

Some things never change, though. In 1996, Pauline Hanson said, 'All Asian immigration should stop.' She said:

They have their own culture and religion, form ghettos and do not assimilate.

Just imagine what Australia would have missed out on if we had followed her advice 30 years ago. My family, my electorate and my country are in a better place for rejecting divisive, race based politics. Modern Australia is a country we've all built together and we can all be proud of.

Rebekha Sharkie (Mayo, Centre Alliance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In accordance with standing order 193, the time for member's constituency statements has concluded.