NINE members of the Mount Gambier community have pledged their loyalty to Australia, taking the last step to become citizens of the country earlier this month.
Candidates made the Australian citizenship oath at a ceremony held in the city’s council chamber on November 1.
Mount Gambier City Council chief executive officer Mark McShane welcomed the new recipients before they were presented with their official certificates of citizenship.
Labor Legislative Council parliamentarian Clare Scriven spoke to the new group of citizens about what it means to become Australian.
“It is a great privilege to be an Australian citizen and with that privilege comes many rights and responsibilities,” Ms Scriven said.
“I am very pleased to say congratulations on your citizenship and I hope you enjoy the rights, privileges and responsibilities that come with it.”
Sobhan Salari Shahrbabaki and Sepideh Sajadi migrated to Australia from Iran in 2013 and were excited to finally become Australians.
“We came to Mount Gambier in early 2017 for my wife’s job after living in Brisbane and Melbourne and we just love it here,” Mr Shahrbabaki said.
“It is a great time to be Australian.”
Mr Shahrbabaki said the opportunities that have presented since arriving in Australia have been in abundance.
“I could start studying here and my wife could find a job here,” he said.
“It is a very multi-cultural country, a welcoming country and it is a country of opportunities.”
Not taking citizenship for granted, Ms Sajadi said they looked forward to contributing to the nation’s society.
“We can actually be involved in voting and politics without any prosecution, which is something I am really looking forward to,” she said.
Nicholas Holmes enjoyed a different path to citizenship after migrating to Australia from the United Kingdom with his parents when he was six years old.
He recently celebrated his 60th birthday and in the months leading up to the milestone he made his application to become an Australian citizen.
“I just thought, by the time I turn 60, I want to be an Australian citizen because everything I do and live is Australian,” Mr Holmes said.
“So why would not I want to become a citizen, it’s just crazy, so that’s why I finally did it.”
Feeling a sense of pride in finally being announced officially as an Australian, Mr Holmes said he expected it to make life a lot easier.
“Often when you are applying for something they will aske you if you have an Australian citizenship and if you do not, the process is usually longer,” he said.
“That sort of thing will be easier and I will not have to go through that again.”
Married to an Australian, he also revealed how not being a citizen made travelling a challenge.
“We were travelling in Europe and at one point we actually became separated because we had different passports,” Mr Holmes said.
