Kevin Hogan (Page, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

I second the motion. Many people in my community and millions of people around the world have celebrated the 550th birthday of Guru Nanak. His birth is celebrated worldwide on Kartik Pooranmashi, the full moon day, in the month of Katak. This year it was celebrated on the 12 November.

Guru Nanak was the founder of Sikhism and the first of the 10 Sikh gurus. These gurus were responsible for shaping the beliefs of the Sikhs. Their birthdays are occasions for celebration and prayer among the Sikh community.

Guru Nanak was a wonderful philosopher. His timeless teachings remain a source of inspiration for millions today, and the global Sikh community bring his teachings into their own lives. He brought equality, good actions, honesty and hard work to the core of the value system of his followers. He offered dignity to the people in the lower hierarchy of society by emphasising that everyone was equal—man or woman, rich or poor—and rejecting religious hatred.

Here in Australia, Punjabi is the fastest-growing language groups with about 130,000 Sikhs calling Australia home. These qualities are ones I see evident amongst the wonderful Sikh community in my region. The importance of the Sikh community in the Coffs Coast and surrounds is immense. It's a very beautiful part of our country and it has the added bonus of having a large Sikh component in its population.

Many Sikhs began to settle here post-World War II where they were able to acquire leaseholds and freeholds on banana plantations. Indeed, Gurmesh Singh, a mate of mine, a Woolgoolga local, is the first elected member of any Australian parliament to the New South Wales parliament from the Sikh faith. His great-grandfather Bella Singh came to Australia in 1895. The family moved from Ulmarra to Woolgoolga in 1950.

The first permanent Sikh resident of Woolgoolga was Labu Singh from Belga and Booja Singh from Malpur Arkan district in Jalandhar. Booja Singh was the first Sikh to purchase a banana plantation and had a residence in Beach Street.

There are now more than 2,500 people of Sikh heritage in the Coffs Harbour City Council centre. At Woolgoolga Public School, 21 per cent of the student population are Sikh; and at the Woolgoolga High School, more than 12 per cent of children have Sikh heritage. Australia's first Sikh temple was established in Woolgoolga.

By maintaining their culture, religion and heritage the Sikhs have contributed to the ethnic and cultural diversity of our region, giving the Coffs Coast area a vibrant and unique character. As well, the Sikh community has utilised their inherent agricultural background and skills in creating great economic success.

Woolgoolga has the largest regional Sikh Punjabi population in Australia. Over the past 70 years the community has flourished. Sikh leaders say the town's Indian heritage would not have been possible without the welcome tolerance and encouragement of the wider Woolgoolga community. Regarded as an oasis of Indian culture and home to Australia's first Sikh temple, Woolgoolga is known among local Sikhs as the missing piece of paradise.

Woolgoolga and the Coffs Coast truly are microcosms of today's multicultural Australia. I am grateful to our local Sikh population for making their home in our region. I thank them for the wonderful contribution they have made over many generations not only to our community but also indeed to our nation. I acknowledge the birthday of Guru Nanak earlier this month.

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