Cranbourne electorate
Ms RICHARDS (Cranbourne) (14:48): (6515) My constituency question is to the Minister for Education. How is the government supporting Malayalam language in the Victorian curricula? The Keralite-Australian community in Cranbourne is strong in number and in character, known to be both altruistic and aspirational, which is a terrific combination, and of course the focus of the community is on education and opportunities for children. On Sunday I was honoured to join with the Malayalee Association of Victoria and many distinguished guests, including the Honourable Bill Shorten; the Victorian Minister for Education; the mayor of the City of Greater Dandenong, Cr Jim Memeti; Crs Tan and Lim; Mr Tarlamis and Dr Kieu, from the other place; and the extraordinary member for Holt, Cassandra Fernando, for a wonderful celebration of the Onam festival. Having an energetic woman like Cassandra as a colleague is wonderful for Melbourne’s south-east. I thank the organisation and particularly Mr Madanan Chellappan for the generosity of the community and the whole diaspora, numbered at over 25 000 in Victoria, for their contribution, and I look forward to reporting back to the community on the minister’s response.