Address by the Australian High Commissioner during the 2008 Australia Day Function
25 January 2008; Australian High Commission, Port Moresby, PNG
Ladies and Gentlemen, Fellow Australians.
Welcome to the Australian High Commission to celebrate Australia Day.
As many of you will know Australia Day falls on 26 January, which is actually tomorrow. But since tomorrow is a Saturday, we thought it better to get together today. Besides this is a good way to enjoy the end of the working week! And in true Aussie fashion: with a few beers and snags on the barbie!
On Australia Day, Australians come together to celebrate what's great about Australia and being Australian. It's a day for Australians to reflect on what we have achieved and what we can be proud of in our great nation. It is also a day for us to reaffirm our commitment to making Australia an even better place for the future.
Australia is a wonderful country – a democratic and diverse society with a strong economy and a vibrant cultural life. We are rightly proud of our beautiful land, our diversity, our Indigenous cultures and our sense of a fair go.
Another thing which Australians are proud of is the way that Australia works in the region. Our relationship with Papua New Guinea is particularly strong. Australia and PNG are very closely linked through geographical proximity, a shared history, a mutual desire for strong democratic institutions operating under the rule of law, and by our ongoing security, economic, tourism, educational and people-to-people links.
This year should be a particularly positive one for the relationship. Our two Prime Ministers met recently in Bali. Sir Michael Somare invited Mr Rudd to visit PNG and Mr Rudd said he would be keen to do so in 2008. We can also expect the annual Australia-PNG Ministerial Forum, involving a number of ministers from both countries to take place early this year.
What’s more, the High Commission is organising an exciting series of events in March this year as part of Australia Week 2008. While Australia Day is a time for Australians to celebrate Australia, Australia Week is about promoting Australia to a Papua New Guinean audience and about celebrating the bilateral relationship with Papua New Guineans. Some well-known Australians, including the television personality and movie star Ernie Dingo, are expected to take part in Australia Week 2008. We’re also looking at bringing you a fabulous musical collaboration involving one of Australia’s brightest young jazz stars and a choir from Port Moresby. Expect to hear more from us on these and other events as Australia Week draws closer.
Australia has been a close partner and friend of PNG for many years and remains so today. Our countries share a common aspiration for a stable and prosperous PNG. Australian assistance is designed to help implement the PNG government’s key policy objectives. Australia’s policies in the region are driven by the best intentions – we care about our Pacific neighbours, including PNG. And we are here to help, in close consultation with our PNG counterparts, to address some of the development challenges in this country.
Before closing I would like to take this opportunity to briefly urge all Australians who are not registered with the High Commission to register with us today. Registering is easy and is for your own benefit. Among other things, this information can help us to find you in an emergency. All information held in the register is protected under privacy laws. So please do register with us.
In conclusion, I would like to wish all my compatriots a very happy Australia Day 2008. I would also like to take the opportunity to reaffirm to our PNG friends and colleagues our commitment to working closely with you in the year ahead to ensure a positive and productive bilateral relationship.
I hope you all have a great time here this evening. We’re now going to have some music from a local band, which, I’m pleased to say, includes staff from the High Commission. Enjoy the entertainment.
Australian High Commissioner to PNG, HE Mr Chris Moraitis