Why Afghans Came To Australia
Good Morning/afternoon Mr Hammoud and fellow students. I am one of the direct descendants of the Afghan people that migrated to Australia between the 1800’s and 1900’s. The Afghan people have contributed to Australia’s communities more than any of us can imagine. Despite suffering seclusion and unacceptable treatment by the Europeans, the type of work done by the Afghans has helped us build Australia to what it is today. So why did the Afghans come to Australia? The first Afghan settlers were BROUGHT to SOUTH AUSTRALIA in 1938 when Joseph Bruce, a European settler, bought 18 men to work as cameleers… With the correct skillset, the Afghans found they were able to lead discoverers and other Europeans into the dessert with camels. This resulted in Afghan communities that were quite wealthy with large businesses.
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Although, this did not come without a price, the Afghan people were treated like Aboriginals.
For example, whenever Afghan people settled, they lived in a separate part of the town, similar to the placement of the Aboriginal people. This resulted in three sections in every settlement area, one for the Europeans, one for the Aboriginals and a third section for the Afghans. The Afghan section usually became known as Ghan town or simply Afghan. By this time, the Afghan population had grown rapidly. Because the European communities were located far from Afghan and Aboriginal settlement, the interaction of European and Afghan people remained to a minimal level. Yet, Aboriginal and Afghan people formed relationships and alliances. The European discrimination was clearly unacceptable to the Afghan people. Although this was only problem faced by the Afghan people, it was an issue that carried on for
decades.
Most Afghan people were cameleers, they lead explorers into the dessert and served as good transport around the country. Although having a great skillset and a lot of experience, this was not the only job the Afghan people did. Many Afghan people living in Australia during the 1800’s were involved in large projects. The type of work they did was very different to other colonising people at the time. One example would be the Afghan’s building the Overland Telegraph Line, one of great engineering accomplishments of the 1900’s in Australia, the first achievement of many. The overland telegraph line was a 3200 km line that connected Darwin with Port Augusta in South Australia. Completed in 1872 the Overland Telegraph Line allowed fast communication between Australia and the rest of the world. In this way, the Afghan people contributed to Australia’s development in different means… In the mid-nineteenth century, the camel men were also very critical to opening up Australian outback to Europeans. The camel trains were a crucial life support system to outback communities
Their labour and skills in hot, dry, arid conditions made possible a number of key projects including the Overland Telegraph Line, the Queensland Border Fence, the Transcontinental railway Line, the Rabbit-proof Fence and Canning Stock Route in Western Australia. What’s more, some of the expeditions which traversed the most inhospitable parts of Australia only survived due to the expertise and endurance of the cameleers. By the end of the nineteenth century, racial intolerance swept across Australia directed at Afghans. Acts of violence and harassment at the local level, linked with the national policies of The Immigration Restriction Act, later to be known as the White Australia policy, gradually undermined the Afghan community in Australia. Many Afghans were forced to leave the country and gradually the role of the camel was replaced by trains and trucks.
Although, this did not come without a price, the Afghan people were treated like Aboriginals.
For example, whenever Afghan people settled, they lived in a separate part of the town, similar to the placement of the Aboriginal people. This resulted in three sections in every settlement area, one for the Europeans, one for the Aboriginals and a third section for the Afghans. The Afghan section usually became known as Ghan town or simply Afghan. By this time, the Afghan population had grown rapidly. Because the European communities were located far from Afghan and Aboriginal settlement, the interaction of European and Afghan people remained to a minimal level. Yet, Aboriginal and Afghan people formed relationships and alliances. The European discrimination was clearly unacceptable to the Afghan people. Although this was only problem faced by the Afghan people, it was an issue that carried on for
decades.
Most Afghan people were cameleers, they lead explorers into the dessert and served as good transport around the country. Although having a great skillset and a lot of experience, this was not the only job the Afghan people did. Many Afghan people living in Australia during the 1800’s were involved in large projects. The type of work they did was very different to other colonising people at the time. One example would be the Afghan’s building the Overland Telegraph Line, one of great engineering accomplishments of the 1900’s in Australia, the first achievement of many. The overland telegraph line was a 3200 km line that connected Darwin with Port Augusta in South Australia. Completed in 1872 the Overland Telegraph Line allowed fast communication between Australia and the rest of the world. In this way, the Afghan people contributed to Australia’s development in different means… In the mid-nineteenth century, the camel men were also very critical to opening up Australian outback to Europeans. The camel trains were a crucial life support system to outback communities
Their labour and skills in hot, dry, arid conditions made possible a number of key projects including the Overland Telegraph Line, the Queensland Border Fence, the Transcontinental railway Line, the Rabbit-proof Fence and Canning Stock Route in Western Australia. What’s more, some of the expeditions which traversed the most inhospitable parts of Australia only survived due to the expertise and endurance of the cameleers. By the end of the nineteenth century, racial intolerance swept across Australia directed at Afghans. Acts of violence and harassment at the local level, linked with the national policies of The Immigration Restriction Act, later to be known as the White Australia policy, gradually undermined the Afghan community in Australia. Many Afghans were forced to leave the country and gradually the role of the camel was replaced by trains and trucks.