NO BETTER PLACE TO SETTLE DOWN: GLADYS
by Andrew Priestley
North Shore Times
ews/story/no-better-place-to-settle-down-gladys/
M ay 13 2010
Australia
THE North Shore has always been culturally diverse, Willoughby State
Liberal MP Gladys Berejiklian said.
The MP grew up in Ryde and remembered spending time on the North
Shore playing basketball and taking part in scouts and guides.
Her family moved to the area from Armenia 50 years ago and, she said,
it was culturally diverse then.
"This is where … the Armenians decided to settle," she said. "I
don’t think they could have chosen a better place."
Throughout the North Shore’s history there had been a rich mix of
cultures.
The English, Irish, Italians, Yugoslavs, Armenians and now the Chinese
and Koreans had all come to the area to be part of the community,
she said.
"The North Shore, and particularly Willoughby, has always been an
area of cultural diversity," she said. "We’ve grown but, for me,
the heart and soul of the place are still the same."
The multicultural makeup of the community continued to offer
vibrant opportunities for cultural interaction and celebration, she
said. "Chatswood Public School does the annual Moon Festival. All
the kids learn a Korean dance," she said.
"Chinese New Year has become part of our social calendar.
"That’s how our community is celebrating cultural diversity."
Population growth and immigration brought challenges, particularly in
areas such as infrastructure, services, health and education, she said.
But Ms Berejiklian encouraged people to see the positives in the
debate on these issues.
"A bigger population brings challenges. You can have the debate about
population growth (but) I think when we debate immigration and growth,
it’s a negative," she said. "You also have to focus on the positives
of a diverse community."
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
