Bob Brown (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate—

(a)

supports the right of Tibetans to:

(i)

be educated in their own language, and

(ii)

peacefully protest to protect their right to speak their own language; and

(b)

recognises the importance of language in a people’s social, cultural, religious, academic and artistic endeavours.

Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Government Business in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—The government recognises the importance of language in a people’s social, cultural, religious, academic and artistic endeavours. Every human being has the right to take part in cultural life and enjoy and develop their own identity, including their own language. We continue to urge China to protect the economic, social and cultural rights of ethnic minorities, including Tibetans, in accordance with the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

We are aware that the Qinghai education department issued a new education reform plan in September stipulating that Mandarin become the medium for instruction in 2015 at all primary schools, which would mean that in the Tibetan area of Qinghai province Tibetan would be a subject in the curriculum rather than the medium of instruction. According to Chinese media, the purpose of this bilingual education reform is to bridge the education gap between China’s various ethnic groups and to promote development in ethnic minority areas.

Some ethnic Tibetans, however, are concerned about the implication of this policy for their linguistic heritage. Any reform like this needs to be carried out in close consultation with local communities and with respect for the linguistic heritage. At the same time we need to recognise that there is another issue here: the right of ethnic minorities to have equal access to education and employment opportunities and improving their livelihoods as a result. Bilingual education reform is one way of addressing that issue.

Bob Brown (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—That is extraordinary. That is the government endorsing this motion but, in a spineless display of forelock tugging to Beijing, saying that it will not vote for it. The ethic and the moral compulsion are very clear in the motion: that the Tibetan people have a right to be educated in their own language. The government accepts that but is going to vote against it. Have you ever, Mr Deputy President, seen a greater display of cowardice on principle than the one the government is currently flagging before this chamber?

It is well known that the death of language is the death of culture. There has been not just an edict from authorities in Qinghai overruling the Tibetan people but a response which has seen riots, extensive repression of the Tibetan people, including schoolchildren, a great deal of cruelty and the loss of their rights. You would think that the Australian parliament, which believes in a fair go and free speech, and an elected government Australians thought would stand up for those principles, would be endorsing a motion like this because it is a simple message to Beijing to treat the people of Tibet with a little bit more not just common sense but morality. But we are not seeing that from this government. I find that disgusting and I ask the government to change its thinking on this. We have not heard from the opposition yet, but I hope the opposition and the crossbench will join the Greens in supporting this motion so that the message can go to Beijing. (Time expired)

Question put:

That the motion (Senator Bob Brown’s) be agreed to.