08
FROM THE PREMIER’S DESK
SK
BARRY
O’FARRELL
NSW Premier
Bigotry should never be sanctioned
”OUR
diversity, cultures and contributions are
the foundations of New South Wales’ past and
future success and we must avoid actions that
would undermine these foundations.”
I recently launched a Museum of Sydney exhibition, Celestial City: Sydney’s
Chinese Story, which traced the highs
and lows of Chinese immigration.
It’s a story common to many of the
immigrants who have come to Sydney
and NSW from so many parts of the
world. It reflects the efforts to forge a
place in society - and the contribution
migrants have made to this State and
our nation.
It reminds us that we live in harmony in one of the most multicultural cities in the world.
The launch took place as Australia was debating proposed changes to
Federal racial discrimination laws, and
it was a fitting occasion for me to express my views on the issue.
In commendably seeking to protect freedom of speech we must not
lower our defences against the evil of
racial and religious intolerance because
bigotry should never be sanctioned,
whether intentionally or not.
Vilification on the grounds of race
or religion is always wrong, and there is
no place for inciting hatreds within our
Australian society. We are, after all, the
envy of so much of the world.
I lead Australia’s most culturally diverse State and we live in a city which
for more than 200 years has welcomed
people from around the world.
Our diversity, cultures and contributions are the foundations of New
South Wales’ past and future success
and we must avoid actions that would
undermine these foundations.
We enjoy a history, as a State and
nation, of which we can be overwhelmingly proud, but we must never forget
that it also includes appalling examples
of the consequences of intolerance and
hatred.
No government, no organisation
and no citizen can afford to be less than
vigilant in combatting bigotry, intol-
THE MESSAGE. BRINGING INTO FOCUS FILIPINO PRESENCE IN AUSTRALIA
www.kalatas.com.au | Volume 4 Number 7 | April 2014
STATE
erance and hatred. Our way of life depends on it.
In other news, I’m pleased to report
the North West Rail Link is progressing
well with the first of four tunnel boring
machines due to be in the ground by
October 2014.
The $8.3 billion project will add
eight new railway stations, twin tunnels from Bella Vista to Epping, and
4,000 commuter car parking spaces.
Excavation work has started to prepare the site for the tunnel boring machines at the site of what will be the
new Bella Vista Station. The tunnelling
phase of the project will support more
than 900 jobs, and a massive recruitment drive is now underway in good
news for jobseekers in Western Sydney.
Jobs are open to both experienced
tradies and new entrants to the tunnelling and civil construction industry.
More details about the jobs on offer can
be found on the North West Rail Link
website, www.northwestrail.com.au.
The NSW Liberals & Nationals
Government is getting on with the job
of delivering the major public transport
projects that are desperately needed after 16 years of Labor neglect, and we’re
on track to open the North West Rail
Link in 2019 on