Multiculturalism Has Come Back To Bite Us During Pandemic
STATEMENT
I love Australia. I will love this nation with pride until the day I die.
I have always respected the people from many different nations and cultures that live here, with whom I interact almost daily, and who help to make this the best country on earth.
However, we are not perfect and we can’t stick our heads in the sand and pretend that we don’t have our problems.
My comments in the media this week reflected an honest assessment of failures in the management of our multiculturalism that have now come back to bite us during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The pandemic has revealed that the failure to assimilate into Australian culture and learn English can indirectly be deadly. Governments of all persuasions are guilty of being soft on promoting assimilation and the need for English language proficiency, for the benefit of the individual and society as a whole.
Many who come to Australia are happy to enjoy the good things – our safety and stability, our friendly way of life, our relatively good government services, our generous welfare support – but then believe it’s acceptable to reject the culture and common language of their adoptive nation, and we now see the consequences.
Health advice during this emergency has been published only in English, our national language, so it meant many residents from non-English speaking backgrounds, who have rejected the English language, missed the safety message.
We now have an emerging second wave and the Melbourne housing apartment harsh lockdown. The two weeks in quarantine for the 3000 residents will be aided by taxpayer-funded food, alcohol and drug deliveries, government financial handouts, and more than 500 police guards.
I want the best for Australia and its many residents from all cultural backgrounds. That is why I will keep highlighting the problems that need to be fixed, that many people feel afraid to discuss.
We need to be allowed to debate the problems that exist in Australia – including issues that revolve around multiculturalism and Aboriginals – otherwise we will never smooth out the bumps that hold our nation back.
I have said many times that criticism is not racism. To reject certain opinions and stifle debate on the issues that affect our nation is an attack on free speech and also a roadblock to a better future for all Australia.
Senator Pauline Hanson
One Nation Leader
Senator for Queensland
