Chilean Australians
| Regions with significant populations | |
|---|---|
| New South Wales (2001 est.) | 12,630 |
| Victoria (2001 est.) | 6,670 |
| Languages | |
| English and Spanish | |
| Religion | |
| Roman Catholic, Christian, Protestantism | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Europeans, Amerindians | |
Chilean Australians are citizens of Australia whose ancestry originates in the South American nation of Chile. In Australia, Chileans are the biggest Latin American group residing in the nation. The biggest Chilean Australian communities are primarily found in Sydney and Melbourne. Australia ranks the third largest in Chilean immigrants next to Argentina, Brazil; and Europe (esp. France and Sweden). Historically, there was some cultural exchange between Australia (and New Zealand) with Chile, despite the long distance from South America.
Demographics
The 2006 Australian Census recorded 23,305 Chile-born persons resident in Australia, a slight decrease from the 23,370 persons recorded at the 2001 Census[3]. Chilean-born persons resided in Sydney (10,909), and a further 6,530 were in Melbourne[4].
According to the same Census, 25,439 persons resident in Australia claimed Chilean ancestry, either alone or with another ancestry[5]. Note that a large proportion of Chilean-born persons and their children may have nominated other ancestries. At the 2001 Census 63% of Chilean-born respondents nominated their leading ancestry as Chilean, while others nominated a Spanish (29%), German (3%), Italian (3%) or English (2%) ancestry[6]
History
Chilean migration to Australia occurred at different times through out the late 19th and 20th centuries. The first Labor Party Prime Minister of Australia, Chris Watson, was the son of a Chilean citizen of German descent. Chilean people first arrived in great numbers in late 1970's and 1980's. Many came seeking work, skills and education after the economic crisis in Chile. It was also motivated by the Presidential election of Salvador Allende in 1970. By 1971, 3,760 Chilean-born people were registered in Australia. Current Chilean president Michelle Bachelet briefly lived in Australia with family already present in the country after the Chilean coup of 1973 later moving to East Germany. More recent migration studies suggest that contemporary Chilean migration to Australia occurred in three distinguishable waves. [7]
In the 1960s, especially between the years 1968-70, around 1,500-2,000 Chileans arrived in Australia as a consequence of the economic recession produced during the government of Eduardo Frei Montalva, and the high level of unemployment at the termination of his administration. The majority of these people were middle class and well educated, and their migration can be seen to have an economic basis.
The second significant group to arrive was likely motivated by the presidential election of Salvador Allende in 1970. Allende was to be the first Marxist to be freely elected as President in Latin America, and his ascension to the presidency provoked a high level of uncertainty amongst the wealthy, given his stated platform of nationalisation of mining, industry, and services. The political and economic unrest that followed prompted many Chileans to flee the perceived threats against their interests. This group was, again, overwhelmingly middle class, with sufficient resources (education and finance) to establish themselves as small business operators within Australia .
The third distinguishable wave of immigration to Australia was the greatest in number, and was characterised in large part by those Chileans fleeing their homeland as a consequence of political events flowing on from the 1973 military coup.
This wave of Chilean migrants was quite homogenous, comprised in the majority by skilled workers, and at times, their families. The middle class were represented only in the minority here. Political elitists and intellectuals from the left were also small in numbers, due to their preference for Western Europe and socialist nations in Latin America.
President Pinochet’s military stranglehold over Chile was to last until 1990, during which time more than one million Chileans fled the country, 21,029 of whom sought sanctuary in Australia.
Chile has contributed the largest number of Australian migrants out of any Latin American state. Despite its comparably small size, the Chilean community has successfully integrated itself into the Australian community.
List of Notable Chilean Australians
See also
References
- ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics 20680-Ancestry (full classification list) by Sex - Australia
- ^ ABS 20680-Country of Birth of Person (full classification list) by Sex - Australia
- ^ ABS 20680-Country of Birth of Person (full classification list) by Sex - Australia
- ^ ABS 20680-Country of Birth of Person (full classification list) by Sex - Australia
- ^ Australian Bureau of Statistics 20680-Ancestry (full classification list) by Sex - Australia
- ^ 4102.0 - Australian Social Trends, 2003
- ^ Embassy of Chile