Values, values, values
Parents, government split on 'values' for kids
A DRAFT report canvassing the values parents want schools to instil in their children has highlighted "considerable differences" between what parents want and the nine values identified by the Howard Government.The report, obtained by The Age, says parents are critical of the perceived inconsistencies between the values promoted by the Federal Government in schools — such as compassion, honesty, respect and tolerance — and the conduct of the Government on boat people, the environment, people from the Middle East and Aborigines...
...The findings were based on parent focus groups, held in each state and territory between May and September. All 150 parents who participated had children at non-government schools.The report — commissioned by the Australian Parents Council, which represents parents of students at non-government schools — was funded as part of the Federal Government's values education program [my emphasis].
Oddly enough I can't find any mention of this story in the Herald Sun online, which is instead prominently flagging this story:
We close door on Africans
EXCLUSIVE: THE Howard Government yesterday slammed the door shut on refugees from Africa. Immigration Minister Kevin Andrews said that no more Africans would be allowed into Australia under the humanitarian refugee program until at least July next year.And he said there were no guarantees any Africans would be accepted in the next intake.
Announcing a move critics slammed as simplistic and inhumane [my emphasis], Mr Andrews said the program's quota for Africans had already been filled.
Mr Andrews said Africans, particularly Sudanese, had experienced serious problems settling in Australia.
"They tend to have more problems and challenges associated with them. Their level of education, for example, is a lot lower than for any other group of refugees," he said.
"They've been in war-torn conflict for a decade, many of them. Many are young . . . and many have been in refugee camps for decades.
In other words, classic Howard Government dog-whistle politics: African immigrants don't share our values, they're violent, and they cause trouble. Elsewhere in the Herald Sun today is a charming article quoting another Howard Government MP:
Beware of thirsty peril, warns Heffernen
AUSTRALIA'S north faces a future threat of invasion by Asian refugees who have run out of water because of climate change, outspoken Liberal senator Bill Heffernan has warned.In a Bulletin article to be published today, Senator Heffernan says that underpopulated northern Australia has to be developed and settled to avoid such a fate.
"Without being alarmist, it would be better for us to do it than letting someone else," he told the magazine. "We're not talking tomorrow, but in 50 to 80 years time. If there are 400 million people who have run out of water -- Bangladesh or Indonesia -- well, you've got to have a plan."
So, scaremongering and covert racism from Coalition MPs instead of... I'm sorry, what were those Australian values the government wanted schools to teach again?
'The Government's nine values for Australian schools are: care and compassion; doing your best; fair go; freedom; honesty and trustworthiness; integrity; respect; responsibility; and understanding, tolerance and inclusion. But according to the report findings, many parents questioned if "doing your best" and "freedom" were values, while "fair go" was dismissed as "wishy-washy jargon" that had been "hijacked for political purposes". And rather than being seen as a value to aspire to, "tolerance" was considered by many respondents as a negative trait better replaced by "acceptance".'
No wonder "parents are critical of the perceived inconsistencies between the values promoted by the Federal Government in schools — such as compassion, honesty, respect and tolerance — and the conduct of the Government on boat people, the environment, people from the Middle East and Aborigines"!!!!!
Comments
mr. andrews is a compassionless prick timing his remarks to correspond with the death of the young refugee. after it happened, i wondered if it might have been committed by a group of non-african people, or perhaps even be racially motivated. and then came the announcement that, indeed, his assailants were not african.
imagine how his family must be feeling... and there's andrews bleating on about africans - he should look a bit closer to home to find the cause of the problem. and yes, all set off by a dog whistle!
what a compassionate lot we are. it makes me feel sick.
PS: re heffernan and his BS - he should check his facts there. we're drier than any of the surrounding nations. oh the irony if there was a flood of australian refugees to asia. no water crisis there, as far as i'm aware. still, i don't suppose we can really expect the libs to get their facts straight on climate change seeing they didn't believe it existed until recently.
OUT WITH THEM (the libs that is, not the refugees!)
sorry for the ramble. your post triggered something.
Although Pauline Hanson et al have been making noises about African refugees… you know, fighting the hard issues.
As a friend once pointed out, you don't see white people in ethnic gangs.
I'm sick of this shit: sick of Rudd nodding in agreement, sick of blatant lies gaining political currency… Oh well, I'm sure the election will fix everything.
I don't hold out much hope for Rudd as PM. He just copies Liberal policy anyway with a tweak here and there. He is virtually a carbon copy of Howard. Another bible-bashing hypocrite. I have no allegiance to either party and won't be celebrating no matter who wins.
Besides, the premise of granting asylum based on "integration" is contrary to the concept of asylum and human decency, as is the idea that asylum needs to be granted across an even geographic spread… as opposed to, oh I don't know, actual need.
I think you'll find Australia is #42 in the world in terms of current intake and #36 per capita. In 2000, we were 3rd in terms of permanent settlement (and there was a large drop-off after America and Canada).* We're #1 in shipping refugees to our exclusive prison on Nauru and locking children up until they go insane, so take comfort in that.
As for your comments on the UK and France: what facts? Where? Are you able to differentiate between migrants and asylum-seekers? Do you have any idea about the impact of colonialism on migration in either country? I think you're using "refugee" as a euphemism for "non-white" and it isn't fooling anyone.
It's called the Internet: look shit up.
(Sorry Richard for spraying on your blog!)
*Stats were taken from the UN and OECD websites.
anon - anytime you want to take this off site, come over to my blog and i'll be happy to argue blue in the face about this issue. Bring it! but don't assume your scare bullshit will work. i think lumpen is correct in saying you've simply conflated 'migrant' and 'refugee'. you've also swallowed the liberal party line and regurgitated it like a cat with a furball here - so i find your bipartisan claims a little disingenuous.
sorry again richard - that's the last comment i'll make on this post. it's got me really fired up.
That said, I have "accommodated" refugees before (Muslims from Afghanistan! Sharing with gays! Oh the horror!).
And ooh looky at The Age yesterday: "…the 2007-08 refugee quota had been realigned after advice from a UN agency. [According to Opp. Immigration spokesman Tony Burke] "There was nothing said at the time about these numbers changing because of issues with Sudanese integration or African integration."
So where are these facts you were suggesting we look at? Unless, just maybe, you're so used to your prejudices being reflected in government policy you just assumed there would be something to back you up. Hence your tired "house" analogy instead of facts you claim to have.