The Immigration Restriction Act 1901 (Cth)[1] was an Act of the Parliament of Australia which limited immigration to Australia and formed the basis of the White Australia policy which sought to exclude all non-Europeans from Australia. The law granted immigration officers a wide degree of discretion to prevent individuals from entering Australia. The Act prohibited various classes of people from immigrating and provided for illegal immigrants to be deported.[2]
Because of opposition from the British government, a more explicit racial policy was avoided in the legislation, with the control mechanism for people deemed undesirable being a dictation test, which required a person seeking entry to Australia to write out a passage of fifty words dictated to them in any European language, not necessarily English, at the discretion of an immigration officer.[a] The test was not designed to allow immigration officers to evaluate applicants on the basis of language skills, rather the language chosen was always one known beforehand that the person would fail. The initial bill was based on similar legislation in South Africa.[4]
The Act provided that any would-be immigrant could be subjected to a 50-word dictation test. "Any person who when asked to do so by an officer fails to write out at dictation and sign in the presence of the officer a passage of fifty words in length in a European language directed by the officer" [b] was deemed a "prohibited immigrant"[5] and was to be prevented from landing.[c]
This was similar to tests previously used in Western Australia, New South Wales and Tasmania. It enabled immigration officials to exclude individuals on the basis of race without explicitly saying so. After 1903 the passage chosen was not important in itself as it was already decided the person could not enter Australia and so failure was inevitable. Although the test could theoretically be given to any person arriving in Australia, in practice it was given selectively on the basis of race, and others considered undesirables.[6][7] Between 1902 and 1909, 52 people passed the test out of 1,359 who were given it.[2]
Offences
The Act established a range of federal crimes relating to immigration. Illegal immigrants could be imprisoned for up to six months and then could be deported. Both the captain and the owners of ships which transported illegal immigrants to Australia could be fined GBP 100 for each immigrant, unless the immigrant was European. The Minister for Foreign Affairs was also able to detain ships which were suspected of carrying illegal immigrants. People who brought ill or insane immigrants into Australia were also liable for the costs of caring for them, on top of other penalties.
Controversies
The dictation test came into disrepute when it began to be used to exclude and deport individuals which the government considered undesirable.
Jewish political activist Egon Kisch from Czechoslovakia, who was exiled from Germany for opposing Nazism, arrived in Australia in 1934. The Government of Joseph Lyons went to extraordinary lengths to exclude Kisch, including using the dictation test. Kisch was fluent in a number of European languages and, after completing passages in several, was finally failed when he declined to be tested in Scottish Gaelic. The officer who tested him had grown up in northern Scotland but did not have a particularly good grasp of Scottish Gaelic himself. In the High Court case of R v Wilson; ex parte Kisch, the court found that Scottish Gaelic was not within the fair meaning of the Act, and overturned Kisch's convictions for being an illegal immigrant. The failure to exclude Kisch brought the dictation test into widespread public ridicule.
In 1936, the dictation test was controversially used again to exclude Mabel Freer, a white British woman born in India. She was twice set the test in Italian, which she failed.[5] In the face of a long press and legal campaign for her admission, the government was unable or unwilling to provide a convincing reason for her exclusion and eventually she was admitted, welcomed by a huge crowd at the quay in Sydney. Interior MinisterThomas Paterson resigned from the Lyons Cabinet in 1937 as a result of the controversy.
Amendments
At first the dictation test had to be given in any European language and the dictation test could be administered any time within the first year of a person's arrival to Australia. In 1905 the Act was amended so that the dictation could be submitted in "any prescribed language", the restriction to European languages remaining active until such prescribed language be chosen by the Parliament.[8] This wording was used to placate the objection from Japan that only European languages could be used. As the Parliament never prescribed any language, the dictation case remained limited to European languages only—and more specifically to the main language of any European nation, as illustrated in the infamous attempted exclusion of Egon Kisch from Australia.[9]
In 1932 the period during which the test could be given was extended to the first five years of residence and officials could give the test to an individual an unlimited number of times.
The Act was replaced by the Migration Act 1958,[10] which replaced the dictation test with a universal visa system (or entry permits), and removed many of the other restrictions, although many migrants from southern Europe and Asia were already living in Australia, some of them having arrived as refugees during or after World War II.
^ ab"Immigration Restriction Act 1901 (Cth)". Documenting a Democracy. Museum of Australian Democracy. Retrieved 7 November 2016.
^A. H. Charteris, "Australian immigration laws and their working", in Norman MacKenzie (ed.), The legal status of Aliens in Pacific countries, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1937, p. 30.
^. Australian Broadcasting Corporation: Australia's Centenary of Federation. Archived from the original on 12 December 2004.
^A. H. Charteris, "Australian immigration laws and their working", in Norman MacKenzie (ed.), The legal status of Aliens in Pacific countries, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1937, p. 30.
^In 1905, following Japanese reclamations, the Act was amended to "any prescribed language", with European languages remaining the only one authorized pending the selection of such prescribed language by the Parliament, which was never done. [3]
^Section 3 (a) dictation test, (d) diseases & (e) imprisonment "Immigration Restriction Act No. 17 of 1901 (Cth)". Federal Register of Legislation.
Charteris, A. H. (1937). "Australian immigration laws and their working". The Legal Status of Aliens in Pacific Countries.
Robertson, Kel; Hohmann, Jessie; Stewart, Iain (2005). "Dictating to One of 'Us': the Migration of Mrs Freer". Macquarie Law Journal. 5.
Further reading
. Tenpoundpom.com. Archived from the original on 1 March 2014. Retrieved 27 April 2014. Real examples to see if you can pass the test.
. Immigration Museum. Archived from the original on 29 August 2008. Retrieved 13 July 2005.
. Dept of Immigration and Citizenship. Archived from the original on 1 September 2006. Retrieved 5 January 2010.
May 19, 2023
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The Immigration Restriction Act 1901 Cth 1 was an Act of the Parliament of Australia which limited immigration to Australia and formed the basis of the White Australia policy which sought to exclude all non Europeans from Australia The law granted immigration officers a wide degree of discretion to prevent individuals from entering Australia The Act prohibited various classes of people from immigrating and provided for illegal immigrants to be deported 2 Immigration Restriction Act 1901Parliament of AustraliaLong title An Act to place certain restrictions on Immigration and to provide for the removal from the Commonwealth of prohibited ImmigrantsCitationNo 17 of 1901Enacted byAustralian House of RepresentativesRoyal assent23 December 1902Repealed1 jan 2023Legislative historyBill titleImmigration Restriction Bill 1901Introduced byEdmund BartonFirst reading5 June 1901Amended byImmigration Acts 1905 1949Repealed byMigration Act 1958Status Current legislationBecause of opposition from the British government a more explicit racial policy was avoided in the legislation with the control mechanism for people deemed undesirable being a dictation test which required a person seeking entry to Australia to write out a passage of fifty words dictated to them in any European language not necessarily English at the discretion of an immigration officer a The test was not designed to allow immigration officers to evaluate applicants on the basis of language skills rather the language chosen was always one known beforehand that the person would fail The initial bill was based on similar legislation in South Africa 4 The Act was replaced by the Migration Act 1958 Contents 1 The Act 1 1 Dictation Test 1 2 Offences 2 Controversies 3 Amendments 4 See also 5 References 5 1 Citations 5 2 Notes 6 Bibliography 7 Further readingThe Act EditDictation Test Edit The Act provided that any would be immigrant could be subjected to a 50 word dictation test Any person who when asked to do so by an officer fails to write out at dictation and sign in the presence of the officer a passage of fifty words in length in a European language directed by the officer b was deemed a prohibited immigrant 5 and was to be prevented from landing c This was similar to tests previously used in Western Australia New South Wales and Tasmania It enabled immigration officials to exclude individuals on the basis of race without explicitly saying so After 1903 the passage chosen was not important in itself as it was already decided the person could not enter Australia and so failure was inevitable Although the test could theoretically be given to any person arriving in Australia in practice it was given selectively on the basis of race and others considered undesirables 6 7 Between 1902 and 1909 52 people passed the test out of 1 359 who were given it 2 Offences Edit The Act established a range of federal crimes relating to immigration Illegal immigrants could be imprisoned for up to six months and then could be deported Both the captain and the owners of ships which transported illegal immigrants to Australia could be fined GBP 100 for each immigrant unless the immigrant was European The Minister for Foreign Affairs was also able to detain ships which were suspected of carrying illegal immigrants People who brought ill or insane immigrants into Australia were also liable for the costs of caring for them on top of other penalties Controversies EditThe dictation test came into disrepute when it began to be used to exclude and deport individuals which the government considered undesirable Jewish political activist Egon Kisch from Czechoslovakia who was exiled from Germany for opposing Nazism arrived in Australia in 1934 The Government of Joseph Lyons went to extraordinary lengths to exclude Kisch including using the dictation test Kisch was fluent in a number of European languages and after completing passages in several was finally failed when he declined to be tested in Scottish Gaelic The officer who tested him had grown up in northern Scotland but did not have a particularly good grasp of Scottish Gaelic himself In the High Court case of R v Wilson ex parte Kisch the court found that Scottish Gaelic was not within the fair meaning of the Act and overturned Kisch s convictions for being an illegal immigrant The failure to exclude Kisch brought the dictation test into widespread public ridicule In 1936 the dictation test was controversially used again to exclude Mabel Freer a white British woman born in India She was twice set the test in Italian which she failed 5 In the face of a long press and legal campaign for her admission the government was unable or unwilling to provide a convincing reason for her exclusion and eventually she was admitted welcomed by a huge crowd at the quay in Sydney Interior Minister Thomas Paterson resigned from the Lyons Cabinet in 1937 as a result of the controversy Amendments EditAt first the dictation test had to be given in any European language and the dictation test could be administered any time within the first year of a person s arrival to Australia In 1905 the Act was amended so that the dictation could be submitted in any prescribed language the restriction to European languages remaining active until such prescribed language be chosen by the Parliament 8 This wording was used to placate the objection from Japan that only European languages could be used As the Parliament never prescribed any language the dictation case remained limited to European languages only and more specifically to the main language of any European nation as illustrated in the infamous attempted exclusion of Egon Kisch from Australia 9 In 1932 the period during which the test could be given was extended to the first five years of residence and officials could give the test to an individual an unlimited number of times The Act was replaced by the Migration Act 1958 10 which replaced the dictation test with a universal visa system or entry permits and removed many of the other restrictions although many migrants from southern Europe and Asia were already living in Australia some of them having arrived as refugees during or after World War II See also EditGeorge Kwok Bew an anti Act campaigner War time Refugees Removal Act 1949 Migration Act 1958References EditCitations Edit Immigration Restriction Act 1901 Federal Register of Legislation Office of Parliamentary Counsel Australia a b Immigration Restriction Act 1901 Cth Documenting a Democracy Museum of Australian Democracy Retrieved 7 November 2016 A H Charteris Australian immigration laws and their working in Norman MacKenzie ed The legal status of Aliens in Pacific countries Oxford Oxford University Press 1937 p 30 The Establishment of the Immigration Restriction Act Australian Broadcasting Corporation Australia s Centenary of Federation Archived from the original on 12 December 2004 a b Robertson Hohmann amp Stewart 2005 p 241 Australia and Refugees 1901 2002 Parliament of Australia Library Retrieved 7 March 2015 Immigration Restriction Act 1901 Parliamentary Education Office Archived from the original on 22 October 2005 Immigration Restriction Amendment Act 1905 Federal Register of Legislation Office of Parliamentary Counsel Australia 1905 Retrieved 6 March 2023 A H Charteris Australian immigration laws and their working in Norman MacKenzie ed The legal status of Aliens in Pacific countries Oxford Oxford University Press 1937 p 30 Migration Act 1958 Federal Register of Legislation Office of Parliamentary Counsel Australia 8 October 1958 Retrieved 6 March 2023 Notes Edit In 1905 following Japanese reclamations the Act was amended to any prescribed language with European languages remaining the only one authorized pending the selection of such prescribed language by the Parliament which was never done 3 Section 3 a dictation test d diseases amp e imprisonment Immigration Restriction Act No 17 of 1901 Cth Federal Register of Legislation section 14Bibliography EditCharteris A H 1937 Australian immigration laws and their working The Legal Status of Aliens in Pacific Countries Robertson Kel Hohmann Jessie Stewart Iain 2005 Dictating to One of Us the Migration of Mrs Freer Macquarie Law Journal 5 Further reading Edit The Australian Dictation Test Tenpoundpom com Archived from the original on 1 March 2014 Retrieved 27 April 2014 Real examples to see if you can pass the test Administering the Dictation Test 1950s Immigration Museum Archived from the original on 29 August 2008 Retrieved 13 July 2005 Abolition of the White Australia Policy Dept of Immigration and Citizenship Archived from the original on 1 September 2006 Retrieved 5 January 2010 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Immigration Restriction Act 1901 amp oldid 1152748210, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
