Dozynki Harvest Festival

Adjourned debate on motion of Hon. J.S. Lee:

That this council—

1. Recognises that 2016 marks the 30^th anniversary of the Polish Dozynki Harvest Festival and 160 years of Polish settlement in Australia;

2. Acknowledges the wonderful work that the organising committee has done over the years in the promotion of Polish culture, food, language and activities of Australian-Polish community in South Australia; and

3. Pays tribute to the social, cultural and economic achievements of the Australian-Polish community to South Australia, including the contributions of many Polish clubs and associations.

(Continued from 30 November 2016.)

The Hon. T.T. NGO (17:56): I rise to support this motion. 2016 was certainly a year of milestones for the South Australian Polish community. The 30^th Dozynki Harvest Festival and the 160^th anniversary of Poles settling in South Australia are just a couple of milestones that the community celebrated last year.

Dozynki is a centuries-old Polish harvest festival. Historically, it has been a celebration of farmers' hard work and a time to enjoy a bountiful feast at the end of the harvest. Traditionally, the festival is celebrated with dancing, singing, eating and drinking in true Polish style. Today, the festival is celebrated in a number of locations around the world, including South Australia, where it is a popular event on our multicultural calendar.

On Sunday 23 October 2016, South Australia's Polish community celebrated the 30^th Dozynki Harvest Festival held in our state. The South Australian government is proud to be able to support this festival, having committed $10,000 for the 2016 event and another $10,000 for the 2018 Dozynki Festival. I would like to congratulate the many hardworking members of the Dozynki Festival committee for staging yet another successful festival.

The year 2016 also marked the 160^th anniversary since Poles first settled in South Australia. It is a remarkable milestone, given that European settlement in South Australia occurred only 180 years ago. It is also a very important chapter in our state's history. I want to give particular recognition to Poland's post World War II migrants to South Australia.

Poland's history is littered with conflict and constant invasion by foreign powers from both the East and the West. Poland is one of a select few countries that has endured both Nazi and, subsequently, Soviet communist occupation. The fact that many Poles, who had escaped the tyranny of both Hitler and Stalin, were able to make a new life in Australia, demonstrates the fortitude of its people.

In many ways, my own personal experiences relate to those of many Poles, in that I was also forced to flee a communist regime in search of a better life. We do not have mass murderers, food rationing or inadequate basic services in Australia, which are the historical hallmarks of suffering that communism has imposed on people across the world.

The Soviet communists were particularly brutal to the Polish due to their 1,050 years of Christian history and heritage. As a Vietnamese Catholic, I express my solidarity with the Polish Catholic community in South Australia. They should be proud, as they were the first people to offer the worldwide Catholic community a non-Italian pope, in Pope John Paul II. In fact, it is well known that one of Pope John Paul II's enduring legacies is how he mobilised Polish Catholic trade unions in a non-combative way against the Soviets, demonstrating to the world that the communists were not only enemies of Catholics, but also the enemy of workers, and that Soviet liberation was a cruel hoax.

Upon reflection, I believe that this Christian humanism that the pontiff demonstrated fits ideally within the philosophy of traditional Labor supporters of the Catholic faith, people who support the family, trade unions and workers' rights, but are distrustful of broader social agendas. It is unfortunate then, whilst completely understandable, that many Polish Australians have a natural distrust of the Australian Labor Party, as it was viewed as a communist party. The Labor Party in the 1960s was very different from the party it is today. Given that communism has been a prominent part of the trade union movement and the Labor Party in years gone by, it is understandable why many Polish Australians still hold their views. However, many of the younger generation in the party are working very hard to change their views.

A number of events were held during the year to celebrate the 160^th anniversary of Polish settlement in South Australia. Among the celebrations, the Premier hosted Polish community leaders at a parliamentary reception on 7 September and presented a plaque to Mr Ted Dudzinski, president of the Polish Federation, to mark the anniversary. The Polish Hill River Church Museum and committee hosted a gala picnic on 27 August 2016 at the Polish Hill River Road, Sevenhill, to celebrate this anniversary and the 1,050^th anniversary of Christianity in Poland.

I would like to give particular recognition to the Polish community in the western suburbs, especially in Ottoway, which resides in the council ward that I used to represent. Ottoway had a large Polish community that I would often meet when I was doorknocking during my council days. We should be very proud of the generations of Poles who have made a significant contribution to the social and economic development of our state through their culture, food and traditions. South Australia has been blessed by the presence of ethnic communities from around the world, and the Polish migrants who have made South Australia their home can stand tall as a community that came with so little but has given so much. I commend this motion to the council.

The Hon. T.A. FRANKS (18:03): I rise to support the motion of the Hon. Jing Lee, and join other members of this chamber in celebrating and acknowledging that 2016 marks 160 years of Polish settlement in Australia and the 50^th anniversary of the Dozynki Harvest Festival. The Polish community in South Australia has been very active in sharing its culture with us all.

While we are talking about the Dozynki Polish Harvest Festival, I want to also make mention of some of the incredible Polish organisations in our state. There are over 40 Polish organisations, clubs and committees for Polish South Australians, the largest of which are the Federation of Polish Organisations SA, the Polish Association of South Australia, the Dom Polski Centre, the Polish Cultural Society and the Polish Women's Association. Many Polish organisations are associated with aged care or strive to maintain links between older Polish people and their communities, while many also support young people or are Polish language schools.

In particular, I would like to note the importance and success of the Federation of Polish Organisations in SA, which unites 22 Polish member organisations that represent cultural, educational, patriotic, historical and social aspects of South Australia's Polish community and provide a vital hub of information and link services such as welfare services, the Polish social support services where volunteers provide transport help and assistance with shopping and support for carers, as well as community aged-care packages and the Polish active seniors program, which focuses on maintaining health and wellbeing as well as providing social activities and connections.

We have some wonderful groups and organisations sharing Polish art, culture and history, such as tatry, the traditional Polish folk dance and song group, part of a network of tatry groups across the world. We have a Polish radio program called Always on Sunday on Radio Adelaide, which provides news, culture and information for the Polish community in Adelaide and is presented in Polish and brought to you by the Polish Radio Programs Association.

While we are talking about celebrating 160 years of history of Polish settlement in South Australia, we should also look to the future, and so I would like to acknowledge the hard work and dedication of those who run, organise and participate in Polish language schools in South Australia, particularly the young children who, while they may not have been born in Poland, are still learning the language, history and culture of their heritage.

Federico Fellini, an Italian film producer, once said that, 'A different language is a different vision of life,' and as we live in a multicultural society we are truly blessed to recognise just how valuable those different perspectives are and how much they contribute to our collective wellbeing, understanding and world view.

I want to commend all of the organisers of the Dozynki Polish Harvest Festival for their hard work and success. It is amazing to see how the festival has grown and created such a wonderful occasion for families to celebrate their history and heritage, to attract guests and musicians and speakers from Poland, and to include festivities such as the wonderful folklore performances, sheaf-tossing contests, and exhibition of Polish arts and crafts.

In particular, I would like to recognise the hours and hours of practice and hard work that goes into creating these performances, where children and adults alike have been giving up their spare time to choreograph, teach and learn traditional Polish dances and songs.

In conclusion, I join the Hon. Jing Lee and others in recognising the rich history of Polish settlement in South Australia and commending it. I encourage those who are reading this Hansard, or, indeed, members of this chamber, to have a look at the Polish Hill River Church Museum that commemorates and documents this history.

As with all people of any culture or nationality who make their home in South Australia, there are not enough words to describe the value of having people share, celebrate and pass on the knowledge, history, language and culture of their other countries, the countries of their heritage, as this is what has built the rich multicultural society that we enjoy here in our state. I want to thank all those who have contributed and continue to contribute and the hard work of the Polish communities that make South Australia the wonderful place it is today.

The Hon. J.S. LEE (18:08): In summing up, I would just like to express my appreciation and thank the Hon. Tung Ngo and the Hon. Tammy Franks, particularly when the Hon. Tammy Franks was talking about the Dozynki Festival itself. It brings back lots of memories of when I attended those festivals and the sort of activities and the socialising and entertainment that they have, which is just wonderful. So, I express my thanks for your contributions and commend the motion to the chamber.

Motion carried.