Australia celebrates 65th Anniversary of citizenship

Over the past 65 years, more than 4.5 million people have become Australian citizens and 17,863 people are set to become the citizens of the country on ‘Australia Day’.

The public news campaign intends to share the variety and various journeys of the people who have adopted Australia and to focus on those who are on the final step of migrating to Australia, stated the spokesperson of the Department of Immigration and Border Protection.   

‘The Pledge’, a series  that will get published  on the Internet all through the year, mainly focuses on the journeys of people who have come from different strata of society to obtain the citizenship of Australia. 

Additionally, the new citizens will be encouraged to share their citizenship journeys on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter by using #AusPledge hashtag, that maps the new citizens everywhere in the country all through the year.

 ‘The Pledge’ series had published its first story that talks about the celebrity chef of Spain named Miguel Maestre. He became a citizen of Australia in October 2013. This story had been launched on the department’s ‘immiTV’ YouTube channel, on 28^th Jan, 2014.

Mr Maestre remarked that when one becomes an Australian citizen he/she will feel happy and be proud to belong to a fascinating country like Australia.

To mark the 65^th Anniversary, the public can upload a video, or a photo or a message or a greeting card sent through mail, so that the members of the general public can make their contribution also to the anniversary, according to or based on their interests. This may include photographs that show celebrations marking citizenship, or any experiences of their family members. 

The spokesperson said that all the social media users are encouraged to look at ‘The Pledge’ and get to know (or, get acquainted with) the citizenship stories on #AusPledge hashtag.

Australia is truly a cauldron of stories and cultures. This campaign aspires to display the various experiences and journeys that the Australian citizens have gone through. Everyone is encouraged to get himself/herself involved and tell his/her stories, the spokesperson added.