Wednesday, 27 November 2024

Lara electorate Punjabi community

Ella GEORGE (Lara) (19:12): (956) My adjournment matter is for the Minister for Multicultural Affairs, and the action that I seek from the minister is to provide me with an update about how the Allan Labor government supports multicultural communities in the Lara electorate. The Lara electorate is incredibly diverse and home to many multicultural groups. Last week I had the absolute joy of attending the Punjabi Swag and Virasati Punjabi School’s annual end-of-year event. This was my second year attending, and it was an amazing showcase of the incredible work that students have done throughout the year.

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The Virasati Punjabi language school is part of the Punjabi Swag Geelong community group. These groups are run by incredible volunteers who dedicate hours of their time and their skills to ensure that their children continue learning, valuing and celebrating their culture and traditions. None of this would be possible without the wonderful Preet Khinda. Preet established Punjabi Swag to keep children of Punjabi heritage connected to their culture, and she has built a beautiful, vibrant community, which we celebrated last week. Thank you also to Simran Kalsi and Pari Jar, two students who did a fantastic job hosting the evening. You both have bright futures ahead of you, and I cannot wait to see what you achieve. Thank you to Shiraaz Innovative Indian Restaurant in Geelong, who generously provided everyone with dinner. Thank you to all the parents and community members who came out to celebrate the work of the Virasati school students. It was wonderful to see their work on display, particularly the detailed art that the students created showcasing traditional homes in India.

Multicultural groups such as Punjabi Swag make invaluable contributions to our local community, and I am so proud to be a member of a government that supports multicultural communities across Victoria, celebrates our cultural diversity and makes sure that Victoria is a place where we honour, recognise and celebrate the different cultures and traditions of all of the people that make up our state.