English language proficiency test now required to promote ‘full engagement’ in wider/whiter Australian society

Announced in the Federal Budget last Tuesday, the government is to introduce an English language test for Partner visa applicants and their permanent resident sponsors in order to settle in Australia. 
Sala-O-Vea Walter
@salaovea 

From 1901 until 1958, under the government’s Immigration Restriction Act, also known as the White Australia Policy, people migrating to Australia were required to complete a dictation test. In order to pass the test, migrants were to write fifty words in any European language under the provision of an immigration officer. The Australian government deported applicants that were unsuccessful in the test.

This year’s Federal Budget amplified the need for increased funding in education since it is alarmingly clear that history classes have eluded the memories of certain people, as almost 120 years later, Australia still, evidently, has not managed to rid itself of its racist, colonial and Eurocentric past. 

Acting Immigration Minister Alan Tudge announced the new English language requirements which were updated in the 2020-21 Federal Budget, whereby Australians could be prohibited 

from bringing their partner to permanently reside here unless both the applicant and their sponsor have acquired “functional level English”. 

The acquisition of the English language being used as a measure of merit, intelligence or capacity to integrate ‘successfully’ into Australian society is simply false and unsubstantiated. Australia has no official language,  and being a nation that is increasingly multicultural, with almost half (49 per cent) of the Australian population being born overseas, it is discouraging to witness our government perpetuate colonial ways of thinking. 

Tweet from @NayukaGorrie, October 9 2020

Twenty years ago, my parents immigrated from Tonga to Australia, like many immigrants, to provide their children a life with more opportunities. Despite my father knowing more Tongan than English, both my parents have been able to create a fulfilling life for our family here in Sydney. I am in my second year of my undergraduate degree at the University of New South Wales – something many children of immigrants are able to achieve because of their parents’ migration;

My parents are in a position to work and also give back to family in Tonga,

And we have a roof over our heads 

My sister and I are privileged enough to have never been without anything that we needed. The lack of English spoken by one of my parents will never diminish their work ethic or capacity to be an Australian. The burden of living in a country that does not see people from ‘undesirable’ countries as valid, equal members of society should not be blamed on the individual with limited English language skills, but on the environment in which such prejudice and intolerance is facilitated.  

Tudge has stated that he wants people to fulfil these English language requirements to engage in “employment markets, our democracy, society, community activities.” What an insult to the thousands of refugees and immigrants like my parents who work - stimulating our economy - who vote, volunteer, care for their communities, and establish a multicultural society from which we all benefit, without fluency in the English language. It is also interesting to mention that another reason Mr Tudge believes this test is beneficial is that it is one of the necessities that helps to ensure safety for people living in Australia. Safe from whom, from what, exactly? Is this to imply that Australia is not a safe for people from immigrant, refugee or non-English speaking backgrounds? Surely this particular instance could be taken as a moment of realisation by the Australian government to recognise the enduring legacies of its entrenched racism and prejudice on the ways in which members of our society view, interact and treat people that are not white and speak fluent English. 

Enacting a policy such as this English language proficiency test is deeply reflective of the archaic policies and laws settler governments, including our very own, implemented to rationalise and institutionalise racial exclusion. In 2020, a year that has amplified the immense embedded racial inequalities that are still pertinent today, it is unacceptable for the government to sanction such discriminatory policies. This colonial mindset should never have any place in our country, especially now. 

The government, alongside the greater Australian community, could work together to foster am environment that is safe, comfortable and welcoming, especially for those that are systematically marginalised and oppressed for not being able to communicate in English. Non-English speaking people in Australia deserve the safety and dignity that is afforded to the rest of the population.  

All of this is not to negate the undeniable significance of the English language in our nation. It is, of course, one of the primary forms of our daily communication. But what is with the constant emphasis on the English language, or the idea of integrating or assimilating into Australian society? Given the historical significance of events and laws like the White Australia Policy and the Assimilation Policy (1951-1962), is it even appropriate for our country to be reclaiming such ideas and reinstating such criteria? For a government that perpetually praises itself for being the “most successful multicultural country in the world”, they sure do everything to diminish and destroy it. 

Tweet from @ScottMorrisonMP, April 30 2019 

Rather than constantly privileging and essentialising the English language, and discriminating against those that do not meet the government’s rigid standards, our country has an opportunity to begin prioritising the acquisition of other languages, especially including First Nations languages. For dozens of countries around the world, bilingualism/multilingualism is of significant value and is a normal aspect of life. The benefits of learning and speaking multiple languages are limitless, and could equip our country to finally authentically be the successful multicultural nation it attempts to convince itself to be. English should not be a barrier to enter this country, and it certainly should not be considered the foundation for a fulfilling, ‘successful’ life in Australia, as thousands of people like my parents have proved.