Multiculturalism and Diversity

Abstract

There is general agreement on the enrichment that cultural diversity adds to society. The 1991 Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi praised cultural diversity as follows: ‘It is precisely because of the cultural diversity of the world that it is necessary for different nations and people to agree on those basic human values which will act as a unifying factor.’ This theme is continued by Felipe Fernandez-Armesto (2000), who champions the value to society of migration: ‘All history is the history of migration. All of us get to where we are because we or our ancestors moved there.’ He argues that migration has enriched recipient cultures, brought new ideas, challenged traditional assumptions and, apart from being generally beneficial, has, in many cases, been of vital importance to their future development, emphasizing that: ‘Societies with high rates of immigration find that newcomers do more good than harm.’