USA TODAY International Edition
Could you pass Australia’s proposed new citizenship test?
Rules tout values, fluency in English
SYDNEY The Australian government unveiled sweeping new citizenship rules last week that require applicants to live here for at least four years, speak English fluently and conform to “Australian values.”
Applicants will be asked whether they believe in forced marriages for children, genital mutilation, striking a spouse and prohibiting girls from school. Those questions appear aimed at Muslim immigrants. Nearly 30% of Australia’s population of 6.9 million is foreign- born.
“We’re not defined by race or religion or culture, as many other nations are,” Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said. “We’re defined by commitment to common values, political values, the rule of law, democracy, freedom, mutual respect, equality for men and women.
“These fundamental values are what make us Australian. ... And our citizenship process should reflect that,” he said.
Australia’s citizenship test previously focused on knowledge of the nation’s history and political system and gave applicants unlimited chances to pass. The proposed change would limit test- takers to three tries and bar citizenship for anyone with a history of domestic violence.
Turnbull, leader of Australia’s Liberal Party, called on the opposition Labor Party to support the changes, which appear to have broad support.
Centrist Sen. Nick Xenophon supported the move. “There’s no polite way to beat up your wife,” he said. “If you want to beat up your wife, you can’t become a citizen of this nation.”
The move comes as Australia’s far- right anti- immigration party, One Nation, has been gaining in popularity. It won three seats in parliament in last year’s election.
Critics said the idea of testing for values is flawed. “People will just lie,” said George Williams, a constitutional expert and dean of the University of New South Wales law faculty. “The suggestion you can ascertain someone’s values from a multiple- choice question is just wrong.”