20 March 2008
A new dawn for racial harmony in Australia
This year, Harmony Day and its celebration of cultural diversity have special significance coming only a few weeks after the landmark apology to our first peoples.
Australia’s Race Discrimination Commissioner, Tom Calma, said he is hopeful that the Prime Minister’s apology has rekindled a determination by government and civil society to address the legacy of racism against Indigenous Australians.
‘The apology is a milestone in the history of race relations in this country,” Commissioner Calma said.
“How Australia relates to its first peoples is an indication of how we manage our growing diversity and forge ahead as a respectful, tolerant and harmonious society.”
Harmony Day is a federal Government initiative that brings Australians together and encourages them to say 'no' to discrimination and racism. It coincides with the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.
Commissioner Calma said he was heartened to see Australians from all backgrounds coming together to celebrate diversity and to exchange experiences, knowledge and community customs.
“As HREOC pointed out in its Position Paper on Multiculturalism, released last year, respect for each other’s culture is the pre-condition of reciprocity and social interaction between cultural groups,” he said. “I encourage the present government to consider this paper while developing its own policies in this area.”
He said he was also very pleased to see the government reinstating the human rights principles of non-discrimination and equality as the centrepiece of their review of the Harmony Day grants program.
“I have consistently argued that reducing incidents of racial discrimination is the best way to maintain the integrity of our social fabric,” said Mr Calma. “In order to do this we need to ensure that our legislative tools for combating racism are strengthened so that they remain responsive to the changing makeup and attitudes of Australian society.”
Media contact: Brinsley Marlay (02) 9284 9656 or 0430 366 529
