Dutiful parenthood

BY NOEL G DE SOUZA

Indian migrants who came to Australia between the 1970s and 1990s were typically middle-class, well educated and with young children. They migrated to give themselves and their children a better life. Australia’s attractiveness lay in its prosperity, democracy, rule-of-law, religious freedom and cultural tolerance.

A good number of those migrants are now either retirees or nearing retirement. Many of them have fulfilled their material needs like having good homes and well educated children who have good jobs. The spectre of retirement has shifted their focus to obtaining a sustaining retirement income, good healthcare and maintaining cultural continuity. The Indian retiree has several cultural dilemmas to sort out.

The Australian government provides several benefits to those above 65 years of age. However, the percentage of those above 65 is growing and this implies that in the coming years, there is going to be a heavy financial burden on the public purse for pensions and healthcare for seniors. Whilst the over-65 group is only 4.9% in India, it is 13.9% in Australia and a burdensome 22.6% in Japan. By 2030, the figures are estimated to escalate to 8.4% for

India, 20.7% for Australia and a staggering 30.8% for Japan.

There are strong cultural contrasts with caring for the old in European and Asian societies. Europeans and Australians have grown with the belief that it is the state’s responsibility to care for the aged; thus seniors who do not have sufficient income are given welfare pensions.

The Asian way is radically opposite. In typical Confucian style, China in 1996 passed the Protection of the Rights and Interests of the Elderly Act, which made families responsible for looking after the elderly. Singapore ensures that adult children have the moral and legal responsibility to look after their parents. However, most elderly Singaporeans live with an adult child and the government encourages this through tax incentives and offering housing priorities.

In India, the central government passed the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act in 2007, leaving its implementation to the states. Adult children are made financially responsible for the maintenance of parents and where there are no children, the relative who is slated to inherit the person’s property, can be made responsible. This Asian way reduces the government’s burden on aged care unlike in Western societies. In Australia, children bear no such responsibility.

Indian migrants have strong cultural “duties”. They have two major preoccupations which are ensuring that their children learn their parents’ language and follow their parents’ religion. Like many other migrants, Indians discover that teaching children one’s native tongue is no easy matter. As children grow up, ensuring the continuation of their parents’ original faith and beliefs is likewise difficult. Many Indian parents might also wish their children to marry within their own language group and religion and even caste or sect. University-trained children, however, tend to fall in line with their mainstream contemporaries with regard to food, music, films and lifestyles. They also develop broader views with regard to cultural interactions. This could become disillusioning for parents. parents’ responsibility. That is why parents factor in expenses for higher education and marriage celebrations. If these events can be achieved before retirement, the Indian retiree feels that their major responsibilities have been completed. However, if these events have to be completed after retirement, these can become additional demands on the finances of the retiree.

Australia, like India, is secular. But Indian secularism implies the freedom to practice one’s religion and the majority of Indians practice their faiths quite strongly. In Australia, secularism has a European meaning which involves a shift from old religious practices to a rational view of life. Whilst many mainstream Australians have religious beliefs, only a minority regularly follow religious practices.

The current trend in Australia is for simple marriage celebrations. However, some ethnic groups like Italians, Greeks and Lebanese have elaborate celebrations and Indians do like likewise. This means that Indians close to retirement or already retired need to have adequately saved for this purpose.

Another contrasting cultural factor is that Indians consider that their children’s higher education and marriage is very much the parents’ responsibility

Another contrasting cultural factor is that Indians consider that their children’s higher education and marriage is very much the