CANBERRA, Australia (AP) – Australia’s new government, sworn in on Wednesday, includes a record 13 women, including the first Muslim woman to take office and the second Indigenous -appointed Minister of Indigenous Affairs.
The ceremony, held by Governor-General David Harley in the capital Canberra, took place 11 days after new Prime Minister Anthony Albanese led the left-center Labor party ahead of the electoral victory against the current Conservatives.
“I am proud to lead a government that is as inclusive and diverse as Australia itself,” Albanes tweeted. “Welcome to all new members of the Labor Party.”
Youth Minister Ann Ali was Australia’s first Muslim female prime minister, while Industry and Science Minister Ed Husich was the first Muslim to serve in the cabinet.
Linda Bernie became the first woman and only second resident to serve as a minister for indigenous affairs.
Albanian Foreign Minister and Penny Wong promised earlier this week that they could travel to Tokyo for a summit with President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Nearly half of the 30 ministers appointed to the new government are women. The women also hold a record 10 seats in the 23-member cabinet.
Since some votes have not yet been counted from last month’s elections, the Labor Party has won enough seats in the 150-seat House to win an absolute majority.
Albania’s cabinet includes several new faces, as well as several lawmakers who served in the previous Labor government, which last came to power 9 years ago.
“We have talent from our parliament,” Albanes said, adding that “this is the most experienced Labor government in our history since the federation.”
The Albanian has the support of an unusual background: the British singer and songwriter Billy Bregg.
Bragg tweeted that he woke up and found out that “Australia’s new Prime Minister quoted my poems at the first press conference.”
Bragg added that he was not surprised because Albane became his friend for more than 20 years after they met at the Sydney Theater and associate a common love and understanding of politics with music.
“The challenges he faces are daunting and I am not envious of his success,” Breg wrote. “Some of us sing just to make the world a better place – now we have a responsibility to keep that promise.
Source: Huffpost
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.