AUSTRALIAN: VALUES AND BELIEFS

1. FAIR DINKUM

Origin: The word dinkum possibly originate from ding kam from
Chinese. On the Victorian gold rush days, the Chinese was forced to
sell gold to government assayers. They would refer the gold as ting
kum meaning genuine gold.
Meaning: true, genuine
Australian are fair dinkum. They strongly appreciate the fact and
despise vagueness. They believe that what you see is what you get.

2. FAIR GO

Meaning: an equitable opportunity, a reasonable chance; even-handed

treatment
Spirit of the 'fair go for everyone' comes from the belief that all
Australians are equal, regardless of what they do or who they are.
The Australian highly value justice and equality. As a result, they get
frustrated when something is unfair or injustice.
Laws in Australia are fair and apply equally to all members of the
community, and not excluding people in government. The courts must
be independent of the government and be open to everyone.
A fair day's work for a fair day's pay has long been considered as a
right for all and most young Aussies believe it is only fair that they
have the right to own their own home.

3. FREEDOM

Australia has no land borders with other nations so the special sense of
Freedom comes naturally. There is no such an artificial boundaries.
People are free to think, speak and act.
Freedom includes freedom of speech, opinion, information, assembly,
association, and freedom to demonstrate.
Newspapers are run by an increasingly smaller number of media
moguls. Australians can choose from a wide and healthy selection of
TV and radio networks. Thanks to the rapid growth of the Internet,
Australians have more opportunities to report stories and opinions.

4. MATESHIP

The term originated from the way convicts call each other when they
were on Convict ship. The convicts were not allowed to call others
name, so they used the word mate instead.
Mateship means to befriend and help people regardless of race, skin
color, and religious belief.

In Australia, there is a spirit of mateship. This means we help

and receive help from each other in times of need. A mate is
often a friend, but can also be a total stranger. A mate might take
a meal to an elderly neighbour, drive a friend to a medical
appointment or visit someone who is lonely.

 Mateship has been form through suffering from harsh circumstances

and climate. One of the unpleasant circumstances was the living
conditions on convict transports where it lacked medicine and the
convicts were usually flogged. More recently, most migrants did not
have families to rely on so they turned to friends when they need help.
The value of mateship is expressed by
helping East Timor stabilize its country after liberating from
Indonesia,
providing financial support and personnel to South East Asian
countries where natural disasters occur,
aiding those who suffer from accidents like bush fires, floods and
draughts in its own country,
the ANZAC Spirit

5. THE ANZAC SPIRIT

The ANZAC spirit pays to remember the volunteers of Australia and

New Zealand in World War I.
A large number of Australians signed up even though they did not
approve of the governments conscription. They suffered from the
highest rate of casualties per capita amongst all nations involved. The
Australian volunteers pulled through, whereas British and French
conscripts retreated and floundered. Afterwards, the Australia
managed to beat the Japanese without much media attention or hightech weapons.

6. EGALITARIANISM

Origin: The term is derived from the French word "gal", meaning
"equal" or "level", and was first used in English in the 1880s.
Definitions:
Egalitarianism: The doctrine that all people are equal and deserve
equal rights and opportunities.
Egalitarian: A person who advocates or supports the principle of
equality for all people.
Tall-poppy: A person who is conspicuously successful and whose
success frequently attracts envious hostility.
Tall-poppy Syndrome: A perceived tendency to discredit or disparage
those who have achieved notable wealth or prominence in public
life.
Australia is a classless society. The President of France is addressed as
Messieur or Madame Presidente. When the President of US walks into a
room, people inside that room will stand up to greet and their Head of
State. On the other hand, Australians call their President by first names
and feel comfortable chatting with him/ her.
Egalitarianism of Australians is expressed by:
Australians tend to only respect people who clearly deserve it.
Australia women were the first to get the vote.
Australian unions are the oldest in the world.
Australian workers were the first to work eight hours a day.

7. COMMUNITY SPIRIT

 Definition: willingness and desire to participate in activities that

promote a community (Collins dictionary)
Australians are proud of their community. With mateship being valued,
many Australians enjoy helping others, doing volunteer work and
working for the community.
Organizations are founded and funded by the government to
encourage and nurture communitiy spirit.
NGOs: Shelter Australia, Blind Citizens Australia, Deaf Australia and
Down Syndrome Australia
Local SES: Local State Emergency Service
CFA: Country Fire Authority
Lions: Disaster and Emergency Relief, Medical Research and
Community Service
Rotary Clubs: international network of business, professional and
community leaders
CWA: Country Women's Association
Surf Lifesaving: risk management approach to coastal safety
Five Characteristics of Australian Community Spirit
Pride: We dont seem inhibited by the fact were at the end of the
world
Fun: Only in Australia is a redhead called Bluey, and a stranger is
called mate.
Teamwork: Australia is collaborative rather than individualistic.
Community: Despite their cultural mix, what makes Australia great is
the way they band together when things get tough.
Freedom: You dont need to be anyone to be someone in Australia.
Its the come over for a cuppa kind of attitude that makes an
Aussie an Aussie

REFERENCES
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