Bruce Baird (Cook, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1)

recognises and supports the United Nations Association of Australia (NSW Division) for its resolution to declare 2006 the ‘National Year of Community’;

(2)

acknowledges the importance of ‘community’ to the social fabric of Australian society; and

(3)

notes the role of community in developing young Australians.

The United Nations Association of Australia (NSW) has declared 2006 the National Year of Community. The association has stated that this is an opportunity for people around the nation to celebrate their local, regional, state and national communities. The association aims to facilitate the building of stronger community links between Australians. I wish to congratulate the United Nations Association on this declaration and on working to improve the strength and cohesion of Australian society. ‘Community’ is defined as society as a whole, but it goes further than that. Community is a group of people with a common interest and a common identity, a group of people sharing and participating in fellowship for the common good.

The importance of community, of shared interest and fellowship, was recently reinforced to me in a very real and tangible sense. As the House would be aware my electorate was at the centre of the recent so-called race riots, which occurred just a hundred metres or so from my home in Cronulla. These riots were brought about by a feeling amongst some beach goers and local residents that people from outside of the shire, in particular young Lebanese Australians, were not participating in Australian beach culture and were in many cases there solely to cause problems. On the Thursday following the riot, I called together the leaders of the Australian Lebanese community and Sutherland Shire communities to meet and discuss the continuing problems. I was extremely pleased by the cooperative approach that each and every one of these participants took. The leaders of each community freely and easily admitted the problems that exist, and we all began to look toward solutions. Of course, the need to avoid further violence was the driving motivation and was something that dominated the first meeting. Since then, however, we have continued to meet as a group and continued to look at ways that we can break down conflict and misunderstanding between our two communities. It has been a great credit to all the leaders that participated that further incidents have not taken place.

As the leaders of both communities came together to address the ongoing unrest, we began to see that each side felt aggrieved by the actions of a small number of the other. Yesterday’s Sunday program report on Cronulla demonstrated this well. One young man of Lebanese background made the telling observation that if he, his cousin and his brother walk down the street, people view them as a gang rather than as some young Australians going about their business. Similarly, people from the shire and elsewhere have either had a bad experience with Middle Eastern youths or heard of people who have. The old saying ‘once bitten twice shy’ is a truism in this case. There is no doubt that there is an element of crime amongst Lebanese youth, which is no doubt born in part of the social ostracism and disproportionately high unemployment rates. However, these acts of intimidation and harassment et cetera have helped to label the entire Australian Lebanese community as people to be feared or avoided.

Since the Cronulla incident and subsequent retaliatory attacks by young Australian Lebanese, the leaders of the two conflicting communities have come together. We have done so to work in the full spirit of community, as a group of people with a common interest. We have come together with the best interests of our young people and our local communities to work towards a greater understanding and appreciation of each other and each other’s communities. Broadly, one great responsibility of our community is to ensure that appropriate social mores and a sense of community spirit are instilled into our younger generation. In 2004, there were 2.79 million people in Australia aged between 15 and 24. As has been shown recently by the Cronulla incidents, and by both sides, society has an important role to play in showing young Australians in a positive sense what it means to be Australian and what it means to be a sound citizen.

According to Australian government figures, 14 per cent of young people aged 15 to 19 are not engaged in either full-time study, full-time work or a combination of the two. For the 20 to 24 age group, this figure rises to 22.5 per cent. There is a greater role for community—that is, for parents, community leaders and community organisations—to play in this regard. These young people who are not fully engaged in society are considered at risk. They are at risk of not achieving their best and at risk of falling into a criminal cycle or one of welfare dependence. The community and, of course, parents are the groups who can effect change in attitudes of these young people. Through the community’s expectations, through the so-called social contract, these young people can be assisted to get back on track. (Time expired)

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