The Australian Journey – Muslim Communities the Australian Journey – Muslim Communities Contents
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The Australian Journey – Muslim communities The Australian Journey – Muslim communities Contents Introduction 4 How did Muslim people come to Australia? 5 Through the years 6 Where do Muslims in Australia come from today? 8 Where do Muslims live in Australia? 9 Muslims in a multicultural Australia 10 Local government 13 Music, art and the written word 17 Business 29 © Commonwealth of Australia 2009 Medicine 37 This work is copyright. You may download, display, print and reproduce this material in unaltered Emergency services 43 form only (retaining this notice) for your personal, non-commercial use or use within your organisation. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, all other rights are reserved. Education 55 Requests for further authorisation should be directed to the: Defence 61 Commonwealth Copyright Administration Sport 67 Copyright Law Branch Attorney-General’s Department Media 73 Robert Garran Offices National Circuit Theatre and film 77 Barton ACT 2600 Fax: 02 6250 5989 Fashion 83 Email: [email protected] Cuisine 85 ISBN 978-1-921446-97-9 Acknowledgements 88 The Australian Journey – Muslim communities Introduction How did Muslim people come to Australia? The Australian Journey – Muslim communities is characterised Muslim migration to Australia pre-dates European These new migrants were invaluable, providing necessary labour by contributions of people from all over the world who settlement and has been traced as far back as the 16th and in Australia’s numerous manufacturing industries and factories. have made Australia home. Today there are more than 17th centuries. During this time Indonesians known as In the 1960s, Bosnian and Kosovar Muslims migrated to 22 million Australians. We speak over 300 languages, ‘Macassans’ shared their lives with local Indigenous people Australia to work with many other migrants in the Snowy including Indigenous languages, identify with more than throughout northern Australia through trade, ceremony, Mountains Hydro-electric Scheme. From the 1970s onwards, 200 ancestries and observe a wide variety of cultural and marriage and family. religious traditions. changes to Australia’s immigration policy marked an increase in With the early fleets of European settlement, Muslims contemporary Muslim migration. In Australia people of all cultures and religions are able from the British Empire came to Australia as sailors and More recently, Australia has provided a safe haven for people to express their beliefs and practise their religion without convicts in the 18th and 19th centuries. intimidation and without interference. escaping war or persecution. Since the 1990s, humanitarian As Australia grew, so too did the desire to explore this Muslims were some of the very first visitors to our shores resettlement has helped Muslims from Lebanon, Bosnia and great country. In the 1800s Muslims known as ‘Afghan and have helped to build our country into the prosperous Herzegovina, Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as African cameleers’ migrated from Pakistan and India, bringing with and successful nation it is today. Many have chosen to live nations such as Sudan and Somalia to begin a new life in Australia. them camels which were used to trek the harsh land of the in Australia for the sake of their children, for education Australian outback. The ‘cameleers’ were vital to the early Of course there are many Muslims who were born here, or opportunities and for a better life. They bring with them chose to come to Australia to study or join family members who a wealth of different ideas, skills and talents. establishment of Australia’s communication and transport infrastructure. migrated previously. No matter how they came to Australia, This publication recognises the diversity of Australia’s Muslims from all walks of life have the opportunity to thrive in From the 1920s, Albanian Muslims established Muslim communities and celebrates the important role this vibrant and diverse country. many have played in Australia’s past and present and will communities in Queensland providing much needed continue to play in the future. The following pages feature labour for the sugar cane, tobacco and cotton regions. Would you like to know more? some successful Muslims in Australia and their thoughts They also worked in Western Australia and Victoria about what it means to be both a Muslim and an Australian. clearing land or picking fruit, with some settlers becoming The National Archives’ ‘Uncommon Lives’ is an online As we journey further into the 21st century, Australia farmers in these areas. information series. See the Muslim Journeys section for continues to prosper thanks to its vibrant mix of people more information about early Muslims in Australia at Following the first and second world wars, Australia committed to their country and culture. www.uncommonlives.naa.gov.au welcomed migrants from many countries. The 1940s saw the first migration of Turkish Cypriots and in 1968 it The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade also has a fact sheet became easier for Turkish people to migrate to Australia with information about Muslim history in Australia at through the Australian-Turkish Assisted Passage Scheme. www.dfat.gov.au/facts/muslims_in_Australia.html 4 The Australian Journey – Muslim communities The Australian Journey – Muslim communities 5 Through the years 16th–17th centuries Late 1700s 1830s 1860s-1870s 1860 1861 1885 1890 Fishermen and traders Muslim immigrants from The first Afghan Afghan cameleers assist Two Muslim cameleers, Australia’s first mosque First Eid prayers held in Australia’s first large from the Macassar region British Empire countries cameleers arrive in in the construction Dost Mahomet and is built at Marree in Melbourne mosque is built in of Indonesia engage in travel to Australia as South Australia of rail links across the Esan Khan, accompany South Australia Adelaide trade with Indigenous sailors and convicts Australian outback and the Burke and Wills Australians in Western with the early fleets of build Australia’s overland expedition from Australia, the Northern European settlers telegraph line Melbourne Territory and Queensland Late 1800s 1920–1930 1940s 1950s 1954 1960s 1963 Malaysian and Indonesian Albanian migrants arrive Following World War II Southeast Asian students, The new diesel electric Bosnian and Kosovar Australian Federation pearl divers arrive in in Australia to work on European Muslims many of whom were Ghan, named after Muslims arrive in of Islamic Societies is Broome to work in the North Queensland sugar (mainly Turkish) lead Muslim, come to Australia Muslim cameleers Australia for the established pearling industry cane farms and Victorian Muslim migration to under the Colombo Plan construction of the fruit farms Australia Snowy Mountains Hydro-electric Scheme 1968 1970 1983 1993 2005 2006 2007 The Australian-Turkish Australian Federation Australia’s first Islamic Muslim Scouts Australia The Muslim Community Australian National National Centre of Assisted Passage Scheme of Islamic Councils is schools open – the is established Reference Group is Imams’ Council Excellence for Islamic allows the permanent established Noor al Houda Primary established to advise is established Studies opens migration of a sizeable School in Sydney and government for a period number of Muslims from King Khalid College in of 12 months mainland Turkey Melbourne 6 The Australian Journey – Muslim communities The Australian Journey – Muslim communities 7 Where do Muslims in Australia come from today? Where do Muslims live in Australia? Almost 40 per cent of Muslims in Australia were born in Australia. Their parents or grandparents may The map below displays the distribution of Muslim people throughout have migrated to Australia from one of more than 70 countries and there are over 1000 Indigenous Australia as percentages of the total Muslim population – around 340 000. Muslims in Australia. Over half of the Muslim population in Australia is under the age of 30 making it one of the youngest faiths in Australia. In Australia around 1.7 per cent of people describe themselves as Muslim. This includes people who may have been raised in another religion and chose to become Muslim. Top 10 countries of birth Country of birth Per cent Australia 37.9 Northern Territory Lebanon 8.9 0.3% Queensland Turkey 6.8 6.0% Western Australia Afghanistan 4.7 7.1% South Pakistan 4.1 Australia 3.1% Bangladesh 3.9 New South Wales 49.6% Iraq 2.9 Australian Capital Territory Indonesia 2.5 Victoria 1.3% 32.1% Bosnia and Herzegovina 2.2 Iran 2.1 Tasmania Other 24.0 0.3% Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) 2006 Census of Population and Housing Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) 2006 Census of Population and Housing 8 The Australian Journey – Muslim communities The Australian Journey – Muslim communities 9 Muslims in a multicultural Australia Would you like to know more? People from all over the world live in Australia in peace The chair of the council is Mr Andrew Demetriou, The strength of this council is its members, their wide range of Find out more about the Australian Multicultural Advisory and harmony. Australia’s approach to immigration and the Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Football League. backgrounds, experience and professional expertise and their Council at www.immi.gov.au. cultural diversity is one of our national strengths. The determination to make a difference to the way we appreciate The Department of Immigration and Citizenship funds