Paper details
Transnational lives: the operation of the White Australia Policy in the Riverina
The paper draws on research work undertaken in connection with an exhibition on the Chinese in the Riverina, which was launched in Wagga Wagga on 12 December 2011. It examines the practical operation of the White Australia Policy on the lives of the Chinese people in the Riverina, with particular attention to the procedures involved in applying for Certificates of Exemption from the Dictation Test (CEDTs) and the operation of the student entry provisions. Particular attention is given to the strategies adopted by the Chinese people to circumvent some of these restrictions, for example, those applying to Chinese women married to Chinese Australian men. The provincial nature of life in the Riverina resulted in close links between various Chinese families and these linkages were used to full advantage to circumvent the restrictions.