Last Friday, 47 local residents from 19 different countries officially became new Australians at our citizenship ceremony in Queanbeyan.
The ceremony took place during Refugee Week— a chance to celebrate the contributions that refugees make and come together to create an inclusive and welcoming Australia.
‘The group we welcomed as Australian citizens on Friday reflects the diversity we are so proud to have in our community. It was an honour to be there to support them and be a part of their special day,’ Mayor Kenrick Winchester said.
Md. Shahinur Rahman currently works as a researcher at the Australian ³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾ University and was excited to finally become an Australian citizen.
‘I’m very happy to be an Australian citizen because I could have proper rights, I could have a choice and I could have a say for the Australian people for Australian government also.’
After living and working in Australia for over five years he was excited about his future as an Australian citizen.
Mitali Mallick Biswas her son, Aditya, and husband, Goutam, all became Australian citizens on Friday.
‘We are very excited to get our Australian citizenship today because we have waited so long to get it!’
The process took the pair almost 10 years but Mitali said ‘we cannot express how happy we are to become Australian.’
Aimee Catherine Keogh and Aaron Power moved to Australia from Ireland almost 10 years ago and after working on different visas and sponsorships since then, the pair looked very happy to become citizens.
