Over 85 People Became Australian Citizens At Parramatta Riverside Theatre

08 Oct 2013

Over 85 people from 65 different countries became new Australian citizens at a special ceremony marking the 65th anniversary of the passage of Australian citizenship legislation.

The citizenship ceremony involving - for the first time - Scott Morrison, the new Immigration and Border Protection Minister is arranged at the Parramatta Riverside Theatre.

The Australian Parliament passed the Citizenship Act 1948 and the event on 7th October, 2013 marked the 65th anniversary of that day.

Among the new citizens is Miguel Maestre - Spanish celebrity chef and Channel 10 personality, who said he is becoming an Australian Citizen because of his two-year-old daughter born in the country.  Other new Australians also include Mrs Ereny Ghabrial and Mr Bahar Derias pharmacists of Egyptian descent, and their 11-year-old triplets, Peter, Marian and Andrew.

Angela Lopez, a new young citizen from Spain, celebrated her sixth birthday amidst 10 other members of her family who also become citizens.

Over 4.5 million people chose to become Australian citizens since the 1st citizenship ceremony, with more than one million new citizens in the past decade.  More than 120,000 people were conferred Australian citizenship in 2012-13.

Mr. Morrison said that the citizenship ceremonies of Australia are an opportunity for all Aussies to reflect on the values and a common future shared by them.

Mr. Morrison said that this special event celebrates the equality, respect and democratic values and everything that unites all the Australians.  He said that they encourage anyone who is eligible to formally become a part of the Australian community as Australian citizens.

He also added that Australian citizenship means accepting Australia as home, embracing the country's way of life and providing children with a settled environment where they feel embedded in the country in which they may spend the rest of their lives.

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