Ian Goodenough (Moore, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

  I am a first-generation migrant to Australia and my journey has been quite remarkable, because I made an effort from the beginning to get actively involved in my local community. From an early age, I joined community groups, sporting clubs and volunteered with many charities. It was through participation that I interacted with members of the wider community and was accepted by my fellow Australians.

As I said in my first speech, multiculturalism and reconciliation are two-way streets. There has to be a degree of flexibility—of give and take, of resilience and goodwill. If I expect others to respect my culture, I must also learn to respect the cultures of others. In order to live in multicultural harmony, there must be a degree of goodwill and compromise on both sides. It does not matter how long one has been in Australia or from which country one has come from. What matters is what we do in Australia—our accomplishments, our achievements and our contribution to Australian society.

When I first stood for the local government elections in 1997, I was unsuccessful. Many people said it was because I came from an ethnic background. But I was undeterred and I had another go. On my second attempt, I was elected to council by a small margin. At the next election, my community elected me with over 70 per cent of the vote. I served on the City of Wanneroo c ouncil for nearly 14 years before being elected to this parliament.

In the current political climate, as leaders of our nation , it is important that we are careful not to generalise or stereotype any particular ethnic group or religion as being solely associated with terrorism.

Rather, as representatives of our community we have a duty to speak out against fundamentalism, extremism and criminality in all their forms. We must take tough measures to protect the fabric of Australian society, founded on our Westminster democracy, and Australian culture, values, traditions and principles which we hold dear—the very things which make Australia the country which we love, and the very characteristics which draw thousands of immigrants to our shores.

Australia's immigration system has traditionally welcomed people from across the globe into our multicultural community over the years. In return, our society is entitled to expect that when migrants arrive to our country that they will adopt a positive attitude and make a constructive contribution to their new homeland. Above all, society expects that they will be civic-minded, loyal and patriotic to Australia and to their fellow Australians. Experience has shown that the majority of immigrants have indeed settled and become good citizens, which is testament to our immigration system and our multicultural society.

Unfortunately, there are certain enclaves that have failed to integrate into mainstream society and which have adopted hostile, antisocial and radical attitudes towards mainstream Australian society and culture—in the worst instances resorting to violence and intimidation. Currently, there is a great deal of unrest in the community about perceived threats from particular subgroups. These groups cannot expect ordinary Australians to embrace them into our society if they are unwilling to reciprocate.

We must strongly oppose radicalism, militancy and moves to introduce foreign legal systems into Australia. Together we must unite to defeat our enemies that intend to do us harm and bring those who have contravened Australian laws to justice. We have a responsibility to protect our national borders and to be very selective to ensure the merit-based selection of immigrants who are committed to integrate into mainstream society and who will strive to become good Australian citizens.

I am proud to be part of a government that will take a hard line against radicalism, extremism and militancy, whilst at the same time upholding the rule of law and protecting traditional Australian institutions and culture. We will not allow global terrorists to scare us into a state of fear that allows prejudice to unravel the social cohesion in our mainstream communities. Neither will we allow zealots and fundamentalists to disrupt the fabric of our Australian society.

See this speech in context