Geopolitics and History of Australia

Today I have been asked to talk a little bit about geopolitics in Australia. It may not be the most fun article but it can be interesting to know a little bit more about this country. I hope you will learn something !

· Presentation of the country

The Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901, so it is a recent country compared to countries in Europe for example. It was created as a result of an agreement among six self-governing British colonies, which became the six states. Australia is a multicultural country. We can feel this through the country's food, lifestyle and cultural practices and experience. After WWII, Australia realized they were underpopulated, so the country decided to launch an immigration policy. After this proclamation 2 millions immigrants where welcomed in Australia in 20 years. This explains the different cultures in Australia. I’ve been living here for two months and I can really feel it.

It is a large country (7,692 millions km²) almost as large as Europe but has « only » 23.6 million inhabitants. Indeed, the population is concentrated along the coastal region of Australia from Adelaide to Cairns, with a small concentration around Perth, Western Australia. The centre of Australia is sparsely populated. We can see how the population is divided with the map below.

Australia's population density

Australia has an important heritage from its indigenous people (3% of Australia’s population) which plays a defining role in the cultural landscape. Indigenous Australians are descended from the people who lived in Australia and the surrounding islands prior to European colonization. They are hundreds of diverse groups. They do not speak the same languages or have the same believes. Only 30% of the general Australian community socialize with Indigenous people. Indeed, Australian friends told me that it was really difficult to talk to them. There are strong social inequalities between indigenous people and non- indigenous people. For example, the unemployment rate for non- indigenous people is 5% while 16,6% for indigenous. This inequalities can leads to conflicts. Even if they are not perfectly integrated in Australian society, they have an important role and reflect a part of the Australian culture.

An Australia's Reconciliation journey has been created. Indeed, On 27 May 1967, 90% of voters gave the Commonwealth the power to make laws for Aboriginal people, and for Aboriginal people to be recognized in the national census. National Reconciliation Week is from 27 May to 3 June each year. This week is an opportunity to celebrate the unique culture and history of Aboriginal people.

Australia has a Westminster system, which is originated in England. It means the Government is heading by a Prime Minister or Premier. The Government of the Commonwealth of Australia is divided into three branches: the executive branch, the legislative branch and the federal courts. The branches are each with separate power.

The executive carries out the laws. Australian government is formed by parties and members of the House of Representatives. The legislative makes the laws. It is made up of democratically-elected representatives from around Australia. The representations meet at the Parliament House in Canberra to make laws for the nation. The Parliament of the Commonwealth comprises two separate chambers : the House of Representatives and the Senate. Finally, the judiciary interprets the laws.

Australia has federal election on 18th of April 2019. They will elect members of the 46th Parliament of Australia. Those members will then choose a new prime Minister. The second-term incumbent minority Coalition Government is attempting to win a third three-year term against the Labor opposition. This election has an important impact and there ads everywhere here to make people vote on the 18th.

· Regional geopolitical

Australia is a large country and is divided in 8 capital cities. Each city functions as the seat of government for the state or territory in which it is located and hosts the judicial, administrative and legislative functions for its jurisdiction. They make their own role and are not controlled by the Commonwealth. The national capital is Canberra since 1927 but was initially Melbourne. You can see with the picture below all capitals from each citie. Adelaïde is the capital of South Australia, Melbourne of Vitoria, New South Wales has Sydney as capital. Also, Brisbane is Queenslands capital, Darwin of Nothern Territory and Perth from the Western Australia. Fiannly, Hobart is the capital from Tasmania, which is an island of Australia.

Australian capital cities

· Internal/ external conflicts

In 1950 Australian society is dominated by conservative elite. They persecuted homosexuals and indigenous were considered not important in the society. After the abolition of the "White Australia Policy", the nation became multicultural and multiethnic for the whole world.

Since World War Two Australians have taken part in many other wars and conflicts, including Korea, Vietnam, the Gulf War, Afghanistan and the ongoing "War on Terror".

However, Australia is very isolated so every military actions against Australia is very costly. That makes Australia one of the most secure country in the world. Finally, Australia depends on China for a large portion of its trade and on the United States for its security. Any confrontation with those countries would have bad consequences for Australia.

During my semester I took one history class and I’m suprised, but I really like it. I am learning new things and mostly from a different point of view than what we learn in France. Today we were talking a little bit about Australian history and what people thought about it. I found it interesting to see everyone’s point of view. Most of them where explaining that they don’t really talk about it at school but more about Europeans history. They were also saying that what happened to the indigenous through history was mitigate. Finally, my history teacher explained that a lot of work was made from historian about Australian’s colonization and that people should be more informed about it.

I think that Australian culture is very interesting. I’ve learned a lot about this country being here and knowing the country’s history helps me understand their culture and habits. I have also seen through my Australian friends that they are very attached to their homeland.

I hope you learned something different about the history of Australia and its Government