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Senate Legal & Constitutional
Reference Committee
Subject: Australian Expatriates
Tuesday, 27th July 2004
Parliament House, Sydney
In the presence of Senators Nick Bolkus, Marise Payne and Linda Kirk.
1000032CHAIR0CHAIR—We will move on to the Maltese Welfare Society in New South Wales Inc. Mr Dimech, welcome. You have lodged submission No. 77 with the committee. Do you need to alter or amend it, or would you like to start with an opening statement?
unknown32unknown1Mr Dimech—I do not have much to alter. I need to add a few things that have transpired since then.
1000032CHAIR0CHAIR—Please go ahead.
unknown32unknown1Mr Dimech—What we have before us are the many phases of migration. As a migrant myself I can tell you that migration has a profound effect not only on your life but on the lives of your children, your family and your friends. As to the plight of the persons I am here to represent, they had little choice in their decision to relocate to Malta, as they were in their teens; nonetheless, they were born legally in Australia.
They have signed away the right to be an Australian citizen, or to their Australian birth, as they have renounced their citizenship—sometimes under duress. If they decide to return to their country of birth, they will no doubt be an asset; the kind of people this country needs.
There is another issue that needs to be looked into: any provisions made have to extend to the children born, in most cases after their parent’s renounced Australian citizenship. This matter was not mentioned in my original submission; nonetheless, I need to bring the matter to your attention.
The fact that some 300 Australians, living in Malta, submitted submissions to your inquiry shows that there is a need for these matters to be looked into, with the hope that in this globalised world a national expatriate policy will be considered.
1000032CHAIR0CHAIR—Thank you. What numbers are we talking about? How many people do you think?
unknown32unknown1Mr Dimech—We are looking at perhaps some 2,000 Maltese who have been affected by this anomaly in the situation.
1000032CHAIR0CHAIR—They are 2,000 Maltese living in Malta?
unknown32unknown1Mr Dimech—Yes in Malta, that may be affected.
1000032CHAIR0CHAIR—They would have renounced their Australian citizenship in which years?
unknown32unknown1Mr Dimech—Between 1964 to year 2000. There was an age bracket. Up to the age of 19 you had dual citizenship. But then between 18 to 19 you had to renounce any other citizenship that you may hold therefore, those Australian born who went back to Malta were mostly young children with their parents. Their parents wanted to live back in Malta. Therefore had to renounce the Australian citizenship to be able to live in Malta.
1000033CHAIR0CHAIR—We are talking about people who were under 19 in the year 2002?
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unknown33unknown1Mr Dimech—Yes, when they went back to Malta.
1000033CHAIR0CHAIR—There would not be all that many children involved, would there?
unknown33unknown1Mr Dimech—There was a long period 1964 to 2000.
1000033CHAIR0CHAIR—Yes, sure. But what I am trying to get at is that we are talking about people who, at the time of renunciation of their Australian citizenship, would have been around the age of 18 or 19?
unknown33unknown1Mr Dimech—From 18 to 19, yes.
1000033CHAIR0CHAIR—And the most recent changes to the Citizenship Act do not pick up this problem?
unknown33unknown1Mr Dimech—That law does not apply any more in Malta now. They all have been given dual citizenship, as if they have never lost it before.
1000033CHAIR0CHAIR—That is by the Maltese law?
unknown33unknown1Mr Dimech—Yes, by the Maltese Government.
1000033CHAIR0CHAIR—But the Australian proposed changes do not accommodate this problem?
unknown33unknown1Mr Dimech—That is right.
1000033CHAIR0CHAIR—Do we know of any other countries in which there has been a similar problem?
unknown33unknown1Mr Dimech—With other nationalities?
1000033CHAIR0CHAIR—Yes.
unknown33unknown1Mr Dimech—I do not know. This depends very much on the citizenship laws of that particular country, but I am not aware of anywhere else.
1000033CHAIR0CHAIR—Of those 2,000 you talk about, do you have any idea as to how many would really want to come back to Australia?
unknown33unknown1Mr Dimech—I am not saying that they will all want to come back to Australia but there are at least 300 that have signed a petition to your inquiry, indicating that they would like to regain their Australian citizenship, not necessarily to come back to Australia but to regain Australian citizenship.
M5634Payne, Sen Marise0Senator PAYNE—Thank you, Mr Dimech, for your submission. I think you said in your initial remarks that you thought we should develop a broad national expatriate policy. What do you think that should include?
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unknown34unknown1Mr Dimech—I think in today’s world, anybody of Australian descent should be regarded as Australian, and that is in short what I mean by it; irrespective of where they are living, irrespective of where they were born.
M5634Payne, Sen Marise0Senator PAYNE—One example might be not having the time limit that you refer to. The amendments from 2002 said that people who renounce their Australian citizenship and were under 25 years of age could resume it.
unknown34unknown1Mr Dimech—Yes because the Australian law has changed and they have put an age limit on it.
M5634Payne, Sen Marise0Senator PAYNE—But you were finding that people were over 25.
unknown34unknown1Mr Dimech—Yes, in our particular case—the Maltese. Most of these people are over 25 years, because if they were not over 25, they would not have a problem.
M5634Payne, Sen Marise0Senator PAYNE—Indeed. I do not have the details in front of me but the citizenship minister announced further changes earlier this month.
unknown34unknown1Mr Dimech—The changes would certainly include what we are talking about.
M5634Payne, Sen Marise0Senator PAYNE—That would address your problem?
unknown34unknown1Mr Dimech—Yes. The other aspect are the children of the people that have lost citizenship in that period had. We are not very clear whether it contravenes section 18, because the minister was not very clear about this or about the children of the people that lost citizenship between that period.
M5634Payne, Sen Marise0Senator PAYNE—I am sure we will be talking to the department at some stage, so we can certainly endeavour to clarify that.
unknown34unknown1Mr Dimech—It would be very unfair and very unreasonable if they had children and their children were not accepted. You might have a family where one child had Australian citizenship and the other one is not able to regain it.
M5634Payne, Sen Marise0Senator PAYNE—I know Senator Bolkus asked you about the numbers of people who might want to return to Australia.
unknown34unknown1Mr Dimech—I think it is an estimate. We were trying to get the exact number from the Malta government. I do not know whether we ever did, but other people perhaps from the Southern Cross Group would be able to identify the exact number. The number that we are mentioning is about 2,000 people but, as I said, they are not all wanting to come to Australia. We had the same problem with the Malta government when they gave citizenship to the children of Maltese migrants. They thought they were all going back to Malta, but that did not happen.
M5635Payne, Sen Marise0Senator PAYNE—What is the reason for the level of interest for those people who are in Malta about this in particular? Is there a particular motivator?
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unknown35unknown1Mr Dimech—There is an enormous bond between Malta and Australia because practically every family in Malta has got somebody in Australia.
M5635Payne, Sen Marise0Senator PAYNE—Family here, yes.
unknown35unknown1Mr Dimech—Most of these people we are talking about were born in Australia—they went back when they were 14 and 15—had have lived in Australia for many years. They were educated here. They still consider themselves Australian. They have changed their citizenship only because they had to live in Malta.
1000035CHAIR0CHAIR—They all speak with a Maltese Australian accent too.
unknown35unknown1Mr Dimech—They do, yes. You went to Malta, I think, at one time.
1000035CHAIR0CHAIR—That is right.
unknown35unknown1Mr Dimech—There is enormous interest in Australia in Malta. I probably cannot describe it. I just came back from there, and I had meetings with these people, and they said, ‘Look, we’re Australian. It doesn’t matter what other nationality we took. We’re still Australian and we would like to have the right to go back to Australia if we ever want to.’
M5635Payne, Sen Marise0Senator PAYNE—Was your meeting in that regard part of your exploration for this inquiry or was it just a general meeting?
unknown35unknown1Mr Dimech—No. I go to Malta periodically because of other work I do, but this time I took the opportunity to talk to some of these people.
M5635Payne, Sen Marise0Senator PAYNE—Thank you very much.
1000035CHAIR0CHAIR—Just one final question: I think the experience has been in Australia, under the previous law, that people had to renounce their Australian citizenship were they to take up the citizenship of their prior right—I suppose is the way to put it. In many circumstances, and I think this happened particularly with people of Italian background, they may have taken up their Italian citizenship but they did not formally notify the Australian authorities that they had done so, so they maintained in practice both citizenships. Would that have happened with the Maltese at all?
unknown35unknown1Mr Dimech—No. I worked for many years in the Malta High Commission. The Maltese definitely had to renounce their Australian citizenship before being given back their Maltese citizenship; they had to produce a renunciation certificate. At one time the department of immigration did not even know what to do with the renunciation, but you definitely had to produce a certificate of renunciation.
1000035CHAIR0CHAIR—I think it is fair to say that the question of descent is covered in the press statement issued by the minister, but we will obviously focus on the detail of it.
unknown36unknown1Mr Dimech—Yes, the details are needed now, after the announcement of the minister.
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1000036CHAIR0CHAIR—Yes. Mr Dimech, thank you very much.
unknown36unknown1 Mr Dimech—Thank you.
To read further to relating issue, press here.
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