Why did Australian officials feel the need to ‘sell’ Australia in the DP camps of post-war Europe?
“We are but 7, 000, 000 people and we hold 3, 000, 000 square miles of this earth’s surface.” In his speech to the House of Representatives on the 2nd August 1945, Calwell announced a target increase in population of two percent of population per year, approximately 70 000 through immigration, to increase population density. Various Australian officials travelled to the Displaced Persons (DP) camps in Occupied Europe to ‘recruit’ possible migrants. However, there were various obstacles to increasing the population, including that Australia was not well known, and not attractive to DPs, as the distance was considerable and hard to get to.
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“Nobody knew what was awaiting us in Australia.” This statement by an interviewed person by Jerzy Zubrzycki, named Lydia, suggests Australia was simply not well known in the DP camps of Europe. Thus Australian officials advertised Australia as a “…country of salvation and new beginnings, and an escape route from the wartime devastation and postwar Communist perils of Europe.” This subversion directly appeals to DPs, however with “new beginnings”, there were many differences between Australia and Europe that were often unexpected by migrants. Chub presents this stark contrast between reality and the highly publicised version of Australia, including “…the trees and birds [which] were different…even the frogs croaked differently to those in Ukraine…” These representations suggest Australia was a homeland that was also pastoral and nostalgic in a European sense. On the other hand, these representations suggest attention was more towards representing Australia as a desirable resettlement destination, rather than successfully integrating immigrants into the Australian community. The features of the Australian immigration policy, and other factors including distance made it an unattractive resettlement destination. For these reasons, Australian officials may have felt the need to ‘sell’ Australia.
Following the creation of a desirable Australia was the writing of a specific historical narrative by
For many years refugees have been demonized by the country through the spread of fear and misconception. Furthermore, the disgusting treatment of refugees in the detention camps by the Australian Government has been roundly criticised by the international community.
World war 2 was fought in many countries around the world between 1939 to 1945. Throughout these years there were many issues that had arisen. During world war 2 the Japanese had captured Australian soldiers which had surrendered as prisoners of war, which to the japanese was dishonorable and thought to be unworthy of any respect due to their cultural ideologies and their complex behaviour of their indoctrinated set beliefs made for punishable treatment towards the prisoner of war. Within this argumentative essay it will outline, the laws under the geneva convention signed by the japanese in 1929 had stated the humane treatment of prisoners in which japan did not sanction (follow), the japanese had found that because the australian prisoners
This was good for both countries, as Britain was struggling with the repatriation of many of its soldiers, and unemployment was at record highs in that country, and Australia desperately needed its population to rise to help develop a new nation. This incentive program was ultimately very successful, with over 300 000 (Bereson, 2000) British nationals emigrating to Australia, bringing skills, labour force and population growth to drive the economy forward. One component of this immigration program was that offered involved land settlements to Allied ex-servicemen, and 17 000 ex-soldiers took this opportunity. This led to greater farm and industry production, which fed the growth of a young Australia.
Australia is filled with many different aspects in which makes it the country it is today. I believe it is important to study texts that explore aspects of Australia by studying texts such as ‘The Club’, by David Williamson, a play written in 1977 about an Australian football club and movies such as “The Castle”, directed by Rob Stitch in 1997, about the daily life of an Australian family when their happiness is threatened when developers attempt to buy their house to expand the neighboring airport. Both these texts show us what Australian life was like in the past. By us looking at themes such as language, tradition and the mateship shown we are able to explore different aspects of Australia that make it what it is today.
Australia’s response to the threat of communism after WW2 was extraordinary. Australia and its politicians immediately recognised what could happen of a result of the domino theory. With the Soviet Union influencing so many countries and causing China, Vietnam, and North Korea to turn Communist it was only matter of time until it reached Australia, and all in all this was when Australia took action.
During the years from 1914 - 1918 Australia was at constant battle all over the world fighting for the british. With battles deaths always follow. So many people say, “what did we ever gain from WW1 we lost so many people as a country”. Although we lost almost 60,000 men and 150,000 wounded or taken prisoner. After the war the British Government offered ex-servicemen free transportation to some of the colonies, 17,000 migrants arrived in Australia between 1919 and 1922. Community organisations paid for migrants to come over to Australia. Small numbers also arrived independently. It was also said that up to 300,000 men came over from britain post war to live. The British government gave an incentive to migrate over because so many people
Although both the World Wars had significant impacts on Australians, the statement that wartime controls in World War One had a greater impact on Australians than they did in World War Two is fairly inaccurate. There are a number of reasons as to why this was the case, as demonstrated through the government 's wartime controls. One of the wartime controls that was utilised by the government in both World Wars but had greater impact on Australians in World War Two was conscription. Another wartime control that had a higher degree of impact on Australians in World War Two than in World War One was the detainment and isolation of ‘enemy aliens’ when the government again took steps to protect their national security. With such a large number of servicemen deployed overseas, the role of women in Australia also changed drastically to meet the needs of the armed forces, the government and the economy and this influenced Australian life more in World War Two. Therefore, although both wars affected the lives of many Australians in mental, physical, social and economic aspects, the wartime controls of World War Two had a much greater impact on Australians than in World War One.
The Hungarians who migrated after World War II were refugees who came to Australia looking for a better life and in doing so significantly contributed to the country by not only offering their culture to the development of Australia’s multiculturalism but by also contributing to the academic and artistic life of Australia. The main reason for Hungarian immigration to Australia was the Hungarian Revolution that followed the disaster of World War II. In Australia the Hungarians quickly proved their dedication to making the most of their new life in Australia and in doing so, contributed to the development of Australian society.
During World War II, of the 7 million people who lived in Australia, 550 000 served overseas in the armed forces. While this was a high proportion of the population and they all fought bravely in battle, it still can not be said that their efforts made a significant contribution to the course and outcome of the war. In campaigns such as Tobruk and El Alamein in North Africa and, primarily, Papua New Guinea, the Australian troops gave a good account of themselves and made significant contributions to the battles in each of these areas. However, in comparison to battles in the European theatre of
The mandatory detention policy in Australia is a legal requirement to detain non-citizens without a valid visa. It was first introduced in 1992 by the Australian Labour Party led by Paul Keating, as a response to the number of boat arrivals seeking asylum in Australia from the aftermath of the Vietnam War. In 1976 to 1981, the first wave of 2000 asylum seekers landed in Australia, where they were sympathetically allowed entrance, followed by a quick grant of a refugee visa status as they were assumed to be ‘genuine refugees’. However, continuous boats arrived been 1989 and 1994 which caused concern within the Australian public as there were issues of increased unemployment (Phillips, 2000).
The great majority of Australian prisoners were taken captive by the Japanese in the Second World War, it is their stories that are the most well known. Over 22,000 Australians became prisoners of war of the Japanese in southeast Asia.
26th of January is celebrated around Australia, every year with millions of Australians enjoying barbeques at the beach, park or in your backyard to commemorate the landing of the first fleet in 1788 and establishing Australia’s history. However, does this day provide a unifying force for all Australians, Australians such as indigenous and migrants who did not have equal rights approximately 100 years ago. This essay will analyse the significance of the date of Australia day. It will further investigate why it has been subjected to terms such as invasion and survival day. In an attempt to navigate if Australia day is a unifying force for all Australians, I will first examine the date of Australia day and discuss the importance for all Australians. Identifying the impact it has had on Australians to be celebrated, for over 300 years since the first fleet. Finally, I will observe why this day is known as invasion and survival days to other Australians, which Australians observe that this day is an invasion day and should this day change to another date, which does not hold the same significance as 26th of January.
Identity changed significantly in Australia during the Second World War, and this was mainly due to America’s presence within Australia during the time. American troops began arriving in Australia in December 1941, and they arrived in a large sum of 250,000, and became a continuous presence in Australian life from 1941-1945. When the Americans first arrived, the Australian people treated them like saviors, however they also bought their culture with them, which caused great change within Australian society due to being influenced by the ‘superior’ Americans. For young people in particular, American’s represented wealth, glamour and modernity. American service men and women set up enclaves of American culture with soda fountains, their own clubs where they could eat American style meals and exquisite ballrooms.. The American’s troops presence in Australia caused a major change in Australian society culturally.
Since the conclusion of World War II, countries across the world have been constantly searching for a solution to the resettling and protection of those who have fled from the war and violence of their country. The Refugee Convention of 1951, and the Protocol of 1967 were the first rights and regulations that were laid down by many nations (including Australia) to ensure the protection of refugees would remain constant throughout the world. By signing it, Australia committed to providing rights to any refugee that would arrive in Australia, and helped to reduce the number of displaced people after the tragedy of the war. (Hot Topics Book). However, after the recent conflicts in the Middle East, there
As mentioned above, the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 was a key part in changing of attitudes to how refugees were welcomed in Australia. This act, however, had its beginnings as an amendment to the ‘Migration Act’ in 1973, which introduced a non-discriminatory immigration policy. This vastly changed Australia’s immigration policy, as well as changing Australia from a largely white country, to a new multiethnic society. The way that immigrants were selected, to come to Australia, also changed from the 1970s onwards. Stewart West, the Federal Minister for Immigration and Ethnic Affairs, addressed this selection during a speech in 1984; “Our first commitment is to honor responsibilities to those migrants already in Australia, to honor international obligations and to accept that humanitarian considerations apply to both these areas” (Foster, 1988, pp.). One of the new categories introduced, was the skilled migrant. This allowed immigrants with useful and professional skills and trades to have an advantage over other immigrants when being considered to gain visas. Family reunion is another one of these new categories, which gave priority to the relatives of immigrants and refugees who have already relocated to Australia. The family reunion policy also played a large role in the influx of Vietnamese refugees after the war, as those who had escaped the communist regime, now were able to bring their families to safety in Australia as well. Humanitarian migration is another of these categories, which specialised specifically in refugees and providing both offshore and onshore resettlement programs. These new categories of immigrants, as well as pressure from other countries, encouraged Australia to increase the amount of immigrants allowed entry into Australia every