Arabic and Pacific Islander Youth Partnerships
Page: 2134
Urgent Motion
Mr STEWART (Bankstown—Parliamentary Secretary) [3.45 p.m.]: I move:
That this House supports the State Government efforts to improve relations with the State's Arabic and Pacific Islander communities in Sydney's west and south-west, particularly through its Youth Partnerships.
I am very proud to speak to this urgent motion because I represent one of the most multiculturally diverse electorates in Australia. More than 122 different nationalities are represented in the electorate of Bankstown and surrounding areas such as Canterbury and Strathfield. Amongst the communities I represent are Arabic-speaking and Pacific Islander communities. Both those communities are very important in my electorate and the surrounding regions.
Last week the Premier launched an important initiative, Youth Partnerships, with Pacific Islander communities. This initiative is worth a whopping $1.1 million over the next three years. It is modelled on the successful Youth Partnership plan for Arabic-speaking communities, which was launched by the Premier in July 2001. The very successful Youth Partnerships for Arabic-speaking communities has delivered tangible and measurable results in my local area. The basic premise of the plan is to empower my local community, in partnership with the Carr Government, to take ownership of issues, to make positive and proactive changes and to understand and be committed to the cause.
Through the Youth Partnerships initiative, children and young people of Arabic-speaking background have been provided with a better learning opportunity for long-term personal development. The aim of the plan is to build young people's self-esteem and give them an opportunity to understand their real value and worth. The plan provides increased parental support and educates parents to help them prevent risk-taking behaviour amongst young people. Importantly, the plan aims to increase community harmony by strengthening community interaction through communication and to build on the capacity of the Government and the community to understand and effectively respond to young people of Arabic-speaking background.
This new Youth Partnerships plan will build on the same formula, provide the same opportunities and, I believe, have the same success. This new plan is a great example of how a community can work in partnership with the Carr Government. The plan has three objectives: to promote the wellbeing of young people of Pacific Islander background; to increase parental support and educate parents to help them prevent risk-taking behaviour by young people, to understand their roles and responsibilities and to recognise the needs of young people; and to provide young people and children with better learning opportunities and recreational activities for long-term personal development. The Government and the Pacific Island community have come together in partnership in a spirit of common purpose to prevent young people falling under the wrong influence. The community is very alarmed that young Pacific Islanders account for almost half the juvenile inmates in Sydney gaols. Community leader Mr Mir Siganiscu said on 2BL on 20 June:
My concern is that crime is a problem for our kids.
That is why this plan has been put in place. The Northern Daily Leader, a great local newspaper, carried a headline a few days ago stating, "Young Pacific Islanders fill Sydney jails". That is terrible. We must reflect on it as a community and do something about it. The same article reported that while at a recent function with the Pacific Island community the Premier stated:
… one-third of juvenile detainees last year were of Pacific Islander background … Out in Campbelltown, in the outer south west, they accounted for a full 50 per cent of young inmates. … it was a mystery why Pacific Islanders, who make up only 1.6 per cent of the NSW population, accounted for 3.6 per cent of violent crime.
It is clear that something needs to be done about it, and that is what this plan will do. Patterns of behaviour emerging in this community need to be corrected. The Minister for Police, the Hon. John Watkins, was at the same function and related similar concerns. He stressed:
… there needed to be a multi-pronged approach to tackling the problem.
"It's not just a police matter," …
I agree; it is also a community matter. He went on to say:
We need to use all the resources of the Government including juvenile justice, education, health and community services to assist where there are high levels of crime.
For reasons unknown—we are still coming to grips with this in the plan—young people from a Pacific Island background account disproportionately for higher rates of crime in our community. Again, that is why this partnership was formed. One of the initiatives of the partnership includes NSW Police developing programs for young adult offenders from a Pacific Island background and mentorships with sporting identities. I note that the article I just quoted includes a report that rugby league legend Solomon Haumono has thrown his weight behind this scheme. He states:
We believe that sport helps give kids something to aim for.
That is what this program does: It provides opportunities for young people through sport. Another measure in the package is flying squads of Pacific Island elders in vans patrolling hotspots in Mount Druitt and surrounding areas. They establish links with young people from a Pacific Island background. They are similar to the Arabic-speaking youth liaison teams patrolling parts of Sydney, particularly Bankstown and Canterbury. To date they have made more than 3,000 positive connections with young people from Arabic-speaking backgrounds. That has had a fantastic and measurable positive result in my local community.
The plan also includes a student and family support project that will improve school outcomes for students in years 5 to 9—very formative education years. That project is the Youth Reconnect Program, involving NSW Police and the Police and Community Youth Clubs. We need to improve, as we are doing through this plan, communication and connections between young people, the local police and wider communities. A youth magazine will also be produced to assist communication with the younger community.
The Community Relations Commission will set up a New South Wales council for Pacific Island communities. The council will initially be chaired by the commission's chairman, Mr Stepan Kerkyasharian. I note that he is in the gallery today. I commend him for the fine work he has done in Bankstown and Canterbury through the youth Arabic plan. He will continue that fine work with the Pacific Island community. The New South Wales council for Pacific Island communities will support and advise the Youth Partnership, and Pacific Island communities will form an umbrella group. The implementation committee will be chaired by the Director-General of the Premier's Department, Mr Col Gellatly, and will include three community representatives and three young people from a Pacific Island background.
This plan responds to concerns about antisocial behaviour by the Australian Pacific Island community. This is a comprehensive package that aims to bridge the gap between parents and young people and between young people and the wider Australian community. As I said, we have a successful barometer in the Arabic Youth Partnership plan. The State schools of Bankstown have about 500 students from a Pacific Island background. In fact, demographically these young people form the fastest growing group of young people in my electorate. I trust that this plan will go a long way to helping those students and children to forge a positive future. That is what I want.
As I have pointed out, the Youth Partnership with Arabic-speaking communities has yielded great results. It has assisted hundreds of young people from Arabic-speaking backgrounds in numerous education initiatives such as Gateways, which is a fantastic program involving case management targeting students at risk of being suspended and which works through more than 20 schools in Liverpool, Granville, Bankstown and St George. Homework Plus provides support to identified students in years 7 to 10 who require additional support. It provides a bit of a push and an opportunity, particularly at school certificate level. That support is primarily directed at literacy and numeracy. The Machismo program involves working with boys to improve their communication skills and to help them to form better relationships with people and to deal with conflict in a more positive way.
These partnerships are going a long way to addressing the issues of concern to the community at large. I acknowledge that more still needs to be done. I ask this House to continue to support the Government's strong efforts to improve relations with the State's Arabic and Pacific Island communities in Sydney's west and south-west through these Youth Partnerships, which have proved to be a success in my local region. I am sure that with the support of the community and honourable members of this House it will continue to be effective for the wider community, and particularly for the Pacific Island community.
Mrs SKINNER (North Shore) [3.55 p.m.]: I am happy to start this debate on behalf of the Coalition. Members on this side of the House will not oppose the motion moved by the honourable member for Bankstown. Those honourable members who know me well will smile when I report that my colleagues said that I should speak on this motion because I have lived, slept, dreamed and eaten youth affairs for many years. The honourable member for Canterbury and the Chairman of the Community Relations Commission, Stepan Kerkyasharian, know that I was the Director of the Office of Youth affairs for five years immediately before being elected to this place. These were the exact initiatives we were invited to pursue. In fact, the Office of Youth Affairs emerged from concern about young people of a particular ethnic background who had behavioural problems and who were involved in crime.
I am very pleased to say that work in this area continued through the Greiner and Fahey governments. The headlines disappeared because we had phenomenal success. I well recall former Premier Greiner saying much the same as the honourable member for Bankstown has said today: that this is not a problem only for Government, it is a problem for everyone—the community, business and the Government. Many of the support structures that existed for young people have broken down, whether they be churches, families or extended support groups. We as a society must co-operate to provide support for the young, regardless of their ethnic, racial or family background. Anything that any group, individual or government does to support these young people will have my wholehearted support.
The Office of Youth Affairs examined government policies in every portfolio area. We understood that we needed to have a co-ordinated approach and that it was just as important to provide access to transport—so that young people could get to schools, jobs and youth cultural programs, to be active and feel as though they were wanted as members of the community—as it was to provide educational opportunities. The issues that needed to be addressed in order to meet the total needs of young people included health, education, policing and many other issues.
The Coalition also focused upon providing opportunities for young disadvantaged people. One of the most important programs devised by the Office of Youth Affairs and provided by the former Coalition Government was a program called the Helping Early Leavers Program. The program was designed for young people who either dropped out of school early or were at risk of doing so, and it was exceptionally successful. It was funded by non-government organisations and provided by community groups to deliver improvements in literacy, numeracy and self-esteem—words used a few moments ago by the honourable member for Bankstown. Such programs are fundamental to these young people in gaining the skills to be able to fully participate in society in a way that makes them feel good about themselves and enables them to lead independent lives. Over the five years that I was involved in the Office of Youth Affairs, the Helping Early Leavers Program helped thousands of young people throughout New South Wales, from Broken Hill to the Tweed and Albury, and every suburb of Sydney.
The program was highly concentrated in areas in which there was a high level of youth unemployment and low school retention rates. Because I happen to be the member for North Shore, which does not have high youth unemployment or high school dropout rates, Government members often suggest that I know nothing about any of these issues confronting young people. I hazard a guess that I would have met more of these young people and would have been to more of their electorates than any Government member has. I am passionate about these issues, which the former Coalition Government made a number one priority, which meant that there were no headlines such as those that we have seen in recent years.
There were several offshoots of the Helping Early Leavers Program. One, the Koori Youth Program, was designed to assist young Koori and Torres Strait Islander people who were dropping out of school early or not staying on. It was a very special program. The woman who was working with us in the Office of Youth Affairs in developing the program was the first Aboriginal person, outside an Aboriginal unit, ever to work in the New South Wales bureaucracy. We were very proud of the fact that she was part of our team. I remain a friend of hers to this day, although I see her far too infrequently.
Another offshoot of the Helping Early Leavers Program was Circuit Breaker, a program specifically designed to deal with issues of people from a non-English speaking background who were identified by the then Ethnic Communities Council as having high rates of unemployment and who were therefore inclined not to lead the full, independent and satisfactory lives that their families and communities wanted for them. The Office of Youth Affairs developed the program in consultation with the Ethnic Affairs Commission, as it was known at that time. As I said earlier, the chairman of the commission, Stepan Kerkyasharian, would know about it, because his agency has played an important role in developing that very successful program.
The Coalition believes it is extremely important that governments provide a comprehensive range of programs for young people, no matter whether they are from an Arabic, Pacific Islander or Aboriginal background, or whether they are of low social, economic or geographical isolation—who need assistance to enable them to participate in society in a way that will advance their independent lives and not disrupt others in the community. The Coalition strongly supports such programs.
I wish to refer to a matter that demonstrates how innovative programs can assist in this regard. When I worked for the Office of Youth Affairs some of the most exciting programs were those tailored to meet the needs of young people in the local community. One program that springs to mind is conducted on the Central Coast. A community group submitted a tender to run a program to provide the literacy and numeracy part of the course, which was carefully disguised in horse riding activities. It was identified that horse riding was a major activity on the Central Coast and that by developing these skills the young people would get jobs in the industry. The program operated in areas across the State. An article appearing in the Blacktown Sun of 28 May under the heading "This band sure is top brass" reads:
A brass band which was formed to stop youngsters of Tongan background in Blacktown getting involved in crime has achieved remarkable results.
The Royal Hifofua Tongan Brass Band … beat 92 bands to win six major awards in a national brass band competition in Newcastle last month.
Bandmaster Frederic Deroy Vi also won the best conductor award and Joshua Pita Fotofili won the best drum major award.
The band was started by the Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga in Glendenning in 1996. Its aim was to get young people of Tongan origin involved in music instead of bad company and crime. The band not only achieved that, but it is now winning awards. It is a fantastic example of what lateral thinking can do to make young people feel involved in activity and positive about themselves. Many issues need to be addressed in relation to this matter, and the honourable member for Bankstown has raised some of those issues. They include the need for policing efforts, more police with bilingual skills, and matters of that nature. The Coalition will always support activities that assist young marginalised people to be part of the broader community.
Ms JUDGE (Strathfield) [4.05 p.m.]: The Carr Government has demonstrated its commitment to working with communities to overcome problems by establishing youth partnership initiatives with the Pacific Islander and Arabic-speaking communities. The population of people from Pacific Island backgrounds in New South Wales has increased steadily in the past 15 years. In the seat of Strathfield, which I have the privilege to represent, a number of people of Polynesian background live in the Ashfield area, and a number of Arabic-speaking youth live in the Burwood-Croydon area. The school census data for 2002 show that the State school districts with more than 300 primary and secondary school students of Fijian, Tongan and Samoan language backgrounds were Mount Druitt, Grenfell, Liverpool, Campbelltown, Fairfield, Bankstown, St George, Parramatta and Port Jackson.
Having spent some time living and working in the South Pacific I am acutely aware of the extensive traditional support systems that exist as part of the culture of countries such as Samoa, Tonga, Fiji and Vanuatu. An intrinsic feature of the culture in many of these island communities is an extensive extended family system, including the various churches which play a pivotal role in the social system with built-in ways of behaving, communicating and reacting with each other, right down to the traditional kava parties. Every member of the community has a respected role to play to contribute to the wellbeing of the broader community. Part of the culture is that everyone is interconnected, and everyone is included. Even the houses demonstrate this. In Tonga they are called fales. They are round, they do not have any corners, so no-one can be left out.
When islanders migrate and move into western society, the structures that are so familiar to them are replaced by new and unfamiliar ways of operating, new behaviours, new structures and new systems. Many parents are often confused about how to respond to their children's interactions with their new culture. The children are sometimes left to their own devices as the parents or relatives work long hours in shift work to pay rent, school fees, and so on. As a result, their youth often look to others of their own age for companionship and security and, sadly, sometimes they get involved with gangs. These gangs have an attraction because they speak the same language and they have the same set of rules and familiar structure. They also share resources, as people in the islands do. Sadly, some of these gangs also engage in lawbreaking activity and end up in trouble.
People who have recently arrived in Australia are often not aware of some of our laws. For example, Tonga has a matriarchal monarchical system. When Tongan people come to Australia they know about a democracy and they know that people in Australia have rights. However, they also know they do not have rights without the responsibility of doing things we take for granted, such as getting a drivers licence before we drive or paying the rent on time. To some people time has a different meaning. Anyone who has gone to the Pacific will know what I am talking about. There are different times for different islands. For example, for a scheduled meeting there is Solomon Islands time, which might mean two days later, or there is Fijian time, which might mean four hours later. But it is different and it is wonderful. It is a much more fluid system in the islands. Tasks like financial planning are difficult because in the islands things are used, they are not stored for long periods of time.
The Carr Government recognises these problems and is developing partnerships with communities to assist in supporting young people and combating antisocial behaviours. Hopefully, through those programs our youth will get back into schools and eventually have satisfying careers and job opportunities. The partnership project aims to promote the well-being of these young people, offer support and education to the parents, and provide better learning opportunities and recreational activities. The implementation of this project will include members of Pacific Island communities to progress the plan.
As I have already mentioned, a New South Wales Council for Pacific Island Communities will be established by the head of the Community Relations Commission, Stepan Kerkyasharian. That council will develop coordinated and innovative strategies to meet the needs of Pacific Islanders. A flying squad will be established. Two vans will be used by the Pacific Islanders to patrol areas and establish positive relationships with young people from Pacific Island backgrounds. This brilliant initiative is similar to the Point Zero program that, as mayor, I have recently set up in the Strathfield area. It will bring assistance and support right to where the young people are. Under that initiative we are relating to the young people and interacting with them at their level. We are not saying, "You come to us". We are saying, "We will go to you." Two school-based family support and community development workers will also be employed to support students of Pacific Island backgrounds and improve school outcomes for students in the Canterbury Bankstown local government area. These are absolutely brilliant programs that seek to bring the community together to solve problems. They have my full support.
Ms BEREJIKLIAN (Willoughby) [4.10 p.m.]: As the honourable member for North Shore said, the Coalition does not oppose this motion. However, it is regrettable that the Government regards this matter as urgent. Making it urgent at this time implies that not enough has been done in the previous eight years. I am proud to represent an electorate that is extremely diverse in its culture. In the electorate of Willoughby 55 per cent of residents have at least one parent who was born overseas. When I visited Chatswood Public School recently I was pleasantly surprised to learn that 68 per cent of the pupils at that school were born overseas.
Because I come from a non-English-speaking background I am highly cognisant of the enormous challenges faced by youth in assimilating into mainstream culture, especially if they migrated to Australia at a certain age. I am also aware of the challenges they face as a result of being between two cultures. Youth partnerships need to be supported by important initiatives in education. Education is the key to ensuring that students from non-English-speaking backgrounds throughout our State system have sufficient resources to participate in mainstream society. That is why I am rather frustrated by the fact that the Intensive Language Centre in Chatswood High School is housed in a dilapidated building. The centre supports many students from non-English backgrounds. Students from as far away as the Central Coast utilise the service. The last time I checked the plans for the upgrade of Chatswood High School, regrettably the Intensive Language Centre was not part of the upgrade.
Although I do not oppose the motion, I believe it is important to acknowledge the work that is being done, especially in relation to the State's Arabic and Pacific Islander communities. Such initiatives will not work in isolation. I call upon the Government to increase the support it gives to students from non-English-speaking backgrounds through the State school system. I highlight again the Intensive Language Centre at Chatswood High School, which, as I mentioned, services a large number of students from diverse parts of New South Wales. The Government needs to match what it is saying on this issue with what it is doing through the State school system.
I place on the record how proud I am of the foresight and vision displayed by the Coalition under the Greiner and Fahey governments in establishing and promoting work done by ethnic communities throughout New South Wales. I believe the legacy they left on this State has allowed people such as myself and others from non-English-speaking backgrounds to make an enormous contribution to the wider community. It is also important to mention the contribution that non-government community organisations make to help their youth. I am aware of some of the work undertaken by the Australian Lebanese Association in the Arabic community, especially in relation to the special youth awards nights that it hosts. That community has fantastic role models. It is appropriate for the Government to acknowledge the enormous contribution made by the non-government sector.
Similarly, as mentioned in passing by the honourable member for Bankstown, the Pacific Islander community has enormously successful role models, and I encourage the Government to utilise more of those role models in the initiatives and partnerships. I also encourage such mentors and role models to become part of the State school system and not act only in isolation through so-called youth initiatives. Any of those measures will assist those young people enormously to feel proud of their cultural backgrounds and also to realise the enormous contribution they can make to the wider Australian society.
It is important, where possible, to support the State's efforts to improve youth opportunities and youth partnerships and to educate youth from non-English-speaking backgrounds, specifically Pacific Islander communities. However, I regret that the Government regards this motion as urgent. I would have thought that these activities had been ongoing for the past eight years. The Government needs to give greater acknowledgement to the work done by non-government communities. Again, I highlight my pride in the foresight displayed by the Greiner and Fahey governments in establishing the Ethnic Affairs Commission, now the Community Relations Commission, and the good work it has done in the community.
Ms BURNEY (Canterbury) [4.15 p.m.]: I am thrilled to support the motion of the honourable member for Bankstown, which seeks support for the Government's efforts to work closely with the Arabic and the Pacific Islander communities in the west and the south-west of Sydney. I focus my remarks on the partnership plan targeting Pacific Islander young people. The name of this project is the Pacific Islander Student and Family Support Project. An allocation has been recently announced of $430,000 to conduct a Pacific Islander student and family support project. Much of the project will operate in the electorate of Canterbury, but it will not be confined to that area. This is not only a highly significant initiative, it also fulfils an election commitment made by the Premier through our citizenship policy of promoting harmony and valuing diversity.
Stepan Kerkyasharian's presence in the Chamber today has been acknowledged. He is the chair of the Community Relations Commission, which has the important governance of these projects. This project is of particular importance in my electorate. We have a large and growing Pacific Islander population. In our local government area there are well over 3,000 people from many of the Pacific Islander nations, including Fiji, Samoa, the Cook Islands, Tonga, Vanuatu and Nuie. The fundamental thrust of the project is to support young people and their families in years 5 to 9 across 13 schools in the Canterbury Bankstown local government area and in Mt Druitt.
The project is the outcome of extensive consultation undertaken by the Premier's Department across the Canterbury-Bankstown Pacific Islander communities, community organisations and service providers. The governance of the project, which is important, will be a reference group comprised of government agencies, community representatives, auspice bodies and, most important, the Pacific Islander Council and the Pacific Islander Women's Advisory and Support Service. The honourable member for Bankstown referred to the three important aims of the project. Those aims are the promotion of wellbeing, the provision of support to parents so that they can cope with the challenging behaviours of the young people and support them in their endeavours, and the provision of better school outcomes and recreational activities for young people to encourage long-term personal development.
The project focuses on children between the ages of five and nine years, which is often the time when kids are most at risk of exiting the school system. The initiatives seek to establish an implementation group and a Council for Pacific Island Communities, to be chaired by Stepan Kerkyasharian, to identify young people at risk and to establish flying squads in the Mount Druitt area. I have seen that terrific initiative work in many Aboriginal communities. The elders or grannies run flying squads—or night patrols, as we in the Aboriginal community call them. Kids from indigenous backgrounds might give a bit of lip to police but they will not give lip to grannies. The project also includes education initiatives such as the employment of people with Pacific Island backgrounds and seeks to ensure that programs are culturally appropriate.
The project aims to address mentoring as a positive initiative to be developed by police and to identify youth development initiatives. Essentially, this is about important capacity building within communities. When a community has capacity, youth crime and risk taking can be reduced and family cohesion and cultural maintenance can be achieved. The essential challenges and motivation for that important initiative result from the fact that there are a disproportionate number of Pacific Islander young people in detention. Indeed, with the exception of the Koori population, they represent the largest group in detention.
The program should not regard Pacific Islander communities as an homogenous group. In fact, Pacific Islander communities comprise a number of diverse communities with different languages, cultures and beliefs. That diversity must be acknowledged as a key component of the program. Special recognition must be given to the fact that these kids are from indigenous backgrounds and that must be the basis for going forward in the program. I conclude by stating that this wonderful initiative addresses many of the issues that are important in our communities.
Mr GEORGE (Lismore) [4.20 p.m.]: I am honoured to support the contributions of the honourable member for North Shore and the honourable member for Willoughby to the debate on this motion for urgent consideration, which states:
That this House supports the State Government efforts to improve relations with the State's Arabic and Pacific Islander communities in Sydney's west and south-west, particularly through its Youth Partnerships.
Mr Stewart: I moved the motion.
Mr GEORGE: I know that, but the honourable member for North Shore and the honourable member for Willoughby highlighted the fact that the Greiner-Fahey governments commenced the work. I am pleased that the Government acknowledges the fact that continuing support must be given to this important program. I am proud to be the son of Lebanese migrants to Australia. Sadly, my electorate does not have many Arabic-speaking or Pacific Islander communities. However, because of my heritage and my position as a member of Parliament, I have an excellent relationship with the Australian Lebanese Association in Sydney. Its contribution to Arabic-speaking youth in Sydney is unequalled. The association has put in the effort, time and expense to provide a future for the youth of Lebanese and Arabic backgrounds.
I am pleased that Stepan Kerkyasharian is in the gallery. I have met him at various Australian-Lebanese functions. He also attended the youth awards where Hazem El Masri from Canterbury Bulldogs was named as Youth Sportsperson of the Year. The Australian Lebanese Association presents apprenticeship awards to students and highlights the accolades and achievements of young Lebanese people throughout the State. Those functions have always been well attended because Lebanese and Arabic speaking youth need support to help connect them with the community statewide.
I pay tribute also to Gary Hardgraves, the Federal Minister for Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, who has been supportive of a number of programs in New South Wales by providing community grants, living and harmony grants, and other initiatives to help Arabic speaking youth and Pacific Islander communities in the west and south-west of Sydney through youth partnerships. The Greiner-Fahey governments laid the foundation for the program and it is up to the honourable member for Bankstown to encourage the Carr Government to continue to provide support. The Opposition gives bipartisan support to this program, which encourages these young people to feel they are part of our wonderful community, and to be active participants in it. I support the motion.
Mrs PERRY (Auburn) [4.25 p.m.]: I support this motion for urgent consideration and commend the honourable member for Bankstown for bringing the matter to the attention of the House. I have been involved in the Youth Partnerships with Arabic Speaking Communities Program since I became the member for Auburn, so I can say without qualification that the program is helping the very people it was designed to help. I have seen first-hand the difference it has made. A cursory glance at my electorate shows how the program is working in a range of areas to assist young people targeted by the program. First, the program seeks to encourage young people to minimise and avoid risk-taking behaviour and, second, gives them greater access to learning opportunities.
At Auburn Girls High School and Birrong Boys High School the Gateways Program has provided invaluable individual support to those students deemed to be at risk of not completing their schooling. At Birrong Boys High School, the homework plus initiative has provided useful educational assistance to students from Arabic-speaking backgrounds. At local railway stations, sporting venues and shopping malls, youth liaison teams consisting of community leaders have been successful in removing young people from situations where they might get into trouble. They redirect them towards support networks such as family and community organisations. These teams play a key role in Auburn. More recently, the Premier approved a grant to the Association of Bhanin El Minieh, a local community organisation, to promote the Shifa Leadership Program. That wonderful organisation has strong links to young people in the Auburn area. Generally, the results of the program have been positive, with many mutually beneficial contacts being made by young people. The feedback from police and the Arabic-speaking community has also been encouraging.
Further to that, though, are the changes it has made to individual lives, which is especially significant given the multicultural nature of the Auburn electorate. As such, it is achieving its core objective remarkably well. Anything that achieves such a desirable social aim is something that I believe should be not only supported but, rather, actively pursued. Given the success of the program in relation to youth of Arabic-speaking backgrounds, I fully support the extension of the program to address issues relating to youth from the Pacific Islander community who also form an integral part of the Auburn electorate.
I believe that the success of the program is partly attributable to the way it facilitates community partnerships. Indeed, it was the Arabic-speaking community that approached the Government for assistance in dealing with such issues. It represents a localised solution to a problem for which there are no easy answers. As we all know, there is no substitute for sheer hard work and dedication, plenty of which has gone into making the program such a success to date. I offer my heartfelt thanks and appreciation to John Choueifate, Dr Jamal Rifi and Randa Kattan for their excellent contributions as community representatives on the implementation group.
Stepan Kerkyasharian, the head of the Community Relations Commission and member of the group, along with its chairperson, Dr Col Gellatly, have brought much in the way of insight and good guidance, for which they are owed a debt of gratitude. I note that Mr Kerkyasharian will also initially chair the New South Wales Council for Pacific Islander Communities. The Hon. Eddie Obeid, along with a member of his staff, Michael Ross, have also been valuable contributors from the commencement of the Arabic youth program. A special thanks to Nada Nasser, who, as senior project manager, has worked so tirelessly and brilliantly at ground level to develop, co-ordinate and manage the program. Her efforts have not gone unnoticed.
Lastly, I extend special thanks to a very special woman—the Governor, Marie Bashir—who has served as such a wonderful role model for the Arabic-speaking community and the wider community. That support for this program, in the truest sense, has been invaluable. I also take this opportunity to express my pleasure with regard to the 2003-04 budget, which secures $1.4 million for the youth partnership for Arabic-speaking communities and $1.1 million for the youth partnership for Pacific Islander communities. Ultimately, as representatives of the people, it is incumbent on us to work in partnership with the community to address the issues affecting it, issues that can only be effectively engaged through the participation of all parties who are stakeholders in our community alike.
Mr TORBAY (Northern Tablelands) [4.30 p.m.]: I am pleased to contribute to the debate on the motion moved by the honourable member for Bankstown. I congratulate him on bringing the motion forward. I also congratulate the previous speakers from both sides of the House, who support not only the State Government's efforts to improve relations with the Arabic and Pacific Islander communities in Sydney's west and south-west and its youth programs, but also youth relations generally. That support is certainly welcomed. I listened closely to all the speakers in the debate, who referred to past initiatives under previous governments and requested that the programs be extended. I support that request.
Like my colleagues the honourable member for Auburn and the honourable member for Lismore, I am from an Arabic background. I spent time growing up in the electorates of Bankstown and East Hills. I remember the issues for young people like they were yesterday. As previous speakers have said, we cannot focus on these issues as policing issues. Indeed, that is the wrong way to be debating the issues. As a young person from a non-English speaking background, an Arabic background—no doubt Pacific Islander young people have the same issues—I believe it is important to continue these programs, and that the people who participate in them have a good understanding of the cultural issues: tolerance, respect, understanding and ability to support young people through challenging and difficult times.
When I was at school I remember a careers adviser telling me, "You could probably get a job on a building site. Manual labour is perhaps the best thing we can do for you." But I had loving parents, and I had strong support from community leaders and organisations. That made a big difference to me. In celebrating those programs, it is important that we acknowledge the significance and importance of parenting, families, friendships and support if we are to make a real contribution to the serious challenges ahead of us in youth relations. I congratulate the Community Relations Commission on its work. Stepan Kerkyasharian has not only been a city dweller; he has also lived in regional New South Wales. I can recall Stepan spending some time in Armidale when I was the mayor.
I left school at a young age—indeed, I did not finish year 10—but returned to studies in later life. As someone who now serves on a university council, I remember the irony of some of the issues that arose when I was younger and the fact that I was paid the great honour of being elected to serve as a mayor and a local member of Parliament. I remember the opportunity I had of speaking to other young people—in my case from an Arabic background—in metropolitan Sydney who told me that they were surprised that someone in country New South Wales from a non-English speaking background, from an Arabic background, could be elected to this place. That is the beauty and tolerance of this country, and it is important that we celebrate that. It is important that we support the initiatives, programs and processes that allow us to celebrate that and to support our young people.
The worst thing we can do is give up on our young people. The next worst thing we can do is simply treat this issue as a policing problem, which would result in an expansion of our prison system. It is important that we do not do that. I know that there is a lot of criticism of this work. It is important that our programs get down and get personal, and support and assist our young people. If I can be of any assistance in that regard, be it in metropolitan areas or in country New South Wales, I am certainly happy to offer what support I can.
Mr WEST (Campbelltown—Parliamentary Secretary) [4.35 p.m.]: All members agree that partnership is the only way to go when dealing with issues that affect our electorates. I pay particular attention to the few people who have worked to develop those partnerships in the Campbelltown area. The Pacific Islander community is an important part of the Campbelltown area. We have more than 1,000 Pacific Islander students in our local schools, plus the wider community. Involved in the entire process has been Phil Costa and the team at the Macarthur Migrant Resource Centre. They were championing the cause of migrants long before many others got involved. They have specialist migrant placement officers. They run art workshops, prizes, hip-hop dance projects and many other projects. Indeed, there are too many projects to go into details here.
The best evidence of how dedicated they are is that about a year ago they opened a new facility. The paint was still went when it was being announced. A year later they have so many projects running, so much community involvement, that they need to look at getting even bigger premises. I congratulate the team at the Macarthur Migrant Resource Centre. Keep up the good work in developing those partnerships! I mention also a number of special people in the Pacific Islander community. Two people with whom I have had many dealings are Moira Tuisila and her husband, Chief Tuisila. They are active in the Pacific Islander community. Often they come knocking on my door and talk to me about issues affecting their culture, their community and, more important, their youth. They want to know how to help their youth. The chief knows the importance of culture and of ensuring that young people are taught that culture.
The Chief has compiled a book of cultural stories and traditions of the Pacific Islander community. He promotes that to his community wherever he can. He is also a guiding hand amongst young people, mentoring them wherever he can. Both he and Moira were instrumental in the establishment of a community garden in Claymore together with Argyle Housing, in an area that was experiencing some problems. That community garden is the envy of many other communities in New South Wales. Moira was singled out with a Centenary of Federation Medal and I know the Chief is held in high esteem. This came out in the Pacific Islander cultural awareness day that I attended. As well as doing the obligatory dances—and I am not a very good dancer—we were treated to food and, more importantly, to the warmth and hospitality that is characteristic of the Pacific Islander community.
Another person instrumental in working with our community, and with the Pacific Islander community in particular, is Molly Thomas, who is known throughout the region for her hard work, together with her husband who passed away a while ago from cancer. The Minister for Infrastructure and Planning, and Minister for Natural Resources, who also represents an electorate in the area, and I attended a cultural day at Minto, where we opened a new facility. Once again, that facility is not just bricks and mortar but is a focus for the community. Molly has been actively involved in working with youth and with the police, and brings the two together at Ingleburn. She gets them involved in fund raising and working with the police, and she continues to work on the police and community training in our area, bringing her expertise to policing matters. She is a tireless campaigner for the Pacific Islander community and the wider Campbelltown community.
Also in Campbelltown we are fortunate in having two of the new Pacific Islander liaison officers. I meet one of them quite regularly at Mass when the Tongan and Pacific Islander choir sing. He and his family not only are involved in practical crime prevention in our local area but are also part of the community. That is something that singles these people out. They get involved in the community and it is the most important thing in their minds. The feedback about these two Pacific Islander liaison officers has been sensational. I am told by community leaders that the two of them have got people together in the one room who would usually not entertain the thought of sitting at the same table. I make particular mention of them, and the efforts of the police. As the honourable member for Bankstown, who is a champion of this issue, reminded the House, partnership with the community is the only long-term solution to these issues.
Mr STEWART (Bankstown—Parliamentary Secretary) [4.40 p.m.], in reply: I thank all honourable members who have contributed to this most important debate this afternoon. Members of the Opposition indicated their support for the motion and I thank them for that. As the honourable member for North Shore put it, one could hardly not support this motion. It is a very important motion that deals with community relations at the coalface and recognises those in need. The honourable member almost convinced me today that she is potentially a nice person. Perhaps she needs to work on that. She has worked on these issues with young people in the past.
We need to continue with our youth partnership plan. It has been road-tested already with the Arabic-speaking community in my area of Canterbury-Bankstown. It has been a great success and the opportunities that came out of that have demonstrated clearly to the wider community that it is a worthwhile project. We want to continue that with representatives of the Pacific Islander community who are in need. I was a little perplexed by the honourable member for Willoughby, who mentioned that this motion should not be urgent. As I said when I argued for urgency, this motion should be urgent because young people are our future. I do not see the sense in anyone saying this is not an urgent motion. The honourable member also indicated that perhaps not enough had been done in the past and we are now reacting a little too late. Work has been done on a continuous basis by the Carr Government through the broader community and within specific communities.
That is what happened with the Arabic-speaking community and the Indo-Chinese community and now we are targeting members of the Pacific Islander community. They have reached out to us and said they want to work in partnership towards a common end to establish in their community what we have done elsewhere. What the honourable member for Willoughby said is a little nonsensical and I would have thought that she, having scraped into the House by the skin of her teeth, needs to connect more with her community before she is suitably qualified to make comments about the needs of the broader community.
Nevertheless, it is important that we move on in a constructive way. The partnership will receive $1.1 million in government funding over the next three years. That money will be used in a formative way to provide a youth plan. As I say, it has already been road-tested elsewhere, but it will be reshaped to meet the needs of the Pacific Islander community. As a result, young people will have better learning opportunities to help their personal development. It is important to help build their self-esteem. We know that is a problem with this community, as it has been with some other communities. We need to help these young people, push them along and give them the opportunity that they deserve for the future.
This program will also look at parent education. This is such an important aspect of the partnership. The partnership will not work unless parents are given the support structures and opportunities that we have provided elsewhere, so they can see how to make an input to their children's needs and how to keep their children away from behaviour patterns that will cause problems in the future. That parent education is an important ingredient of the partnership plan. The plan also provides for building on the capacity of the Government and the community to respond together to the needs of the Pacific Islander community. The essence of this plan is recognising that we can work together towards a common end, with community representatives—and we have already heard about them in today's debate—and with government support structures.
We are looking at partnership support from the Department of Education and Training, from the Department of Community Services, from the Department of Sport and Recreation, from the Department of Health and from the New South Wales police service—coming together in a holistic approach to get an end result that will be positive to the community, and working in partnership with community members themselves. This is commendable and I am sure the House acknowledges it is the best approach. I appreciate the support the Government has received from all honourable members today.
Motion agreed to.