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White Australia Policy
In1901, 98% of people in Australia were white. Australia wanted to remain a country of white people who lived by British customs. Trade unions were keen to prevent labour competition from Chinese and Pacific Islander migrants who they feared would undercut wages. One of the first pieces of legislation passed in the new Federal Parliament was the Immigration Restriction Act. The White Australia Policy made it very difficult for Asians and Pacific Islanders to migrate to Australia -
Period: to
1901-2014
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World War 1 finishes
After World War II, Australia launched an immigration program whose goal was to increase the population of Australia. Hundreds of thousands of displaced Europeans immigrated to Australia with more than three million people immigrating from Europe during the late 1940s till the 1960s. -
38,000 Italian Immigrants in Australia
Australia has been heavily influenced by Italian immigrants and Australians of Italian descents.Italian is the third most commonly spoken language. Since Italian immigration began in the 1850's, there have been many successful Italian-Australians in all areas of life, and Italians have influenced our food and our culture. -
Snowy Mountains Scheme
The scheme is one of the most complex integrated water and hydro-electric power schemes in the world. The Scheme collects and stores the water that would normally flow east to the coast and diverts it through trans-mountain tunnels and power stations. The water is then released into the Murray and Murrumbidgee Rivers for irrigation.The Scheme took 25 years to build and was finished in 1974. More than 100,000 people from over 30 different countries came to work in the mountains. -
End of the White Australia Policy
In 1966, the Holt Liberal Government made the Migration Act, 1966 it replaced the White Australia Policy and increased access to non-European migrants, including refugees fleeing the Vietnam War.Australia's contemporary immigration program has two parts: a program for skilled and family migrants and a humanitarian program for refugees and asylum seekers. By 2010, the post-war immigration program had received more than 6.5 million migrants from every continent.
