All the legislation in the world will not change society's attitudes towards multiculturalism in Australia, says Chris Bowen, the Minister for Immigration & Citizenship.

"Last week on Australia Day nearly 14,000 people took the pledge to respect the rights, liberties and laws of Australia on our national day. Many wore the traditional dress of their homelands. More than a few had tears in their eyes as they completed their journey to citizenship.

This is the genius of our unique model of multiculturalism in practice: mutual respect for the values we hold dear in Australia, and for the cultures and traditions of those who have made Australia their home.

But the people who took the pledge and the thousands who turned out to welcome them didn't need an act of parliament to tell them how to conduct themselves. The people in multicultural communities such as where I live in Sydney's Fairfield, don't need legislation to tell them how people from different backgrounds should get along.

The Baillieu Victorian government has suggested that Australia needs a multicultural act. I don't agree. The federal government won't be introducing a multicultural act, because it's unnecessary..."

"...We believe that while those who come here should respect our laws and participate in our society, they also have the right to celebrate their traditional cultures.

There is a difference between a government encouraging Australians to embrace multiculturalism and a parliament legislating to mandate a certain attitude. In my view we no more need a multicultural act than we need an Australia shall be good at cricket act. These are things that you cannot mandate by force of law. Australia does well at cricket because our team is talented and works hard, not because the government legislates that it shall be so. You can't legislate attitude. For this reason, our political leaders need to foster and nurture multiculturalism by providing leadership and evidence of the virtues of multiculturalism, not by passing a law."

More can be found on The Australian website here (subscriber link).