Australian Samoan Language Week

First Australian Samoan Language Week With Rugby League As Supporter

Samoan Language Week will be celebrated in Australia for the first time this year, running from Sunday 30 May to Friday 4 June to coincide with Samoan Independence Day.

“Samoan Language Week is a partnership initiative between the Australian Human Rights Commission and the New Zealand Human Rights Commission, which has already been running the event for a number of years,” said Race Discrimination Commissioner, Graeme Innes. “In this, our inaugural year, we are extremely happy to have both the National Rugby League (NRL) and the Australian Rugby League (ARL) as our first supporters.”

In Australia, there are more than 28 500 Samoan language speakers.

“Language is an intrinsically important aspect of culture, so it follows that protection of languages is one of the most powerful ways of ensuring that a people’s culture is preserved,” said Commissioner Innes.

As an initiative, Samoan Language Week will provide Samoan people in Australia - particularly young people - with an avenue to connect, share community experiences and build and appreciate the importance of their language.

“We know that language connects people to their culture, that speaking your own language has measurable health outcomes and improves general education outcomes in children,” Mr Innes said.

Commissioner Innes said that the involvement of high profile personalities and organisations, like the NRL and the ARL, was critical to ensuring initiatives like this reach into Samoan communities in Australia.

Chief Executive Officer of the ARL, Geoff Carr, said he was all too happy to get behind this wonderful initiative.

“We are proud to acknowledge and celebrate the contribution of the Samoan communities across the Australian Rugby League landscape,” Mr Carr said. “A great aspect of our game is its ability to enrich the lives of others, both socially and culturally, by celebrating our diverse backgrounds.”

As well as the activities mounted by the NRL, Commissioner Innes has interviewed Samoan High Commissioner, Mr Lemalu Samaustate, for the Commission’s PodRights series, about the kind of strategies that might best protect the languages of linguistic minorities in a country like Australia. Commissioner Innes said he hoped to build on the activities provided by the NRL, ARL and the Commission to create new partnerships for Samoan Language Week in 2011.

ENDS

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