Person: Michael (James) Malouf

Businesses Owner

Spouse

Story

Between 1910 and 1920, Michael Malouf made four applications for naturalization but because of his birthplace, these were refused. Born in Zahle, Lebanon in 1889, Michael arrived in Queensland as a one year old. By 1918, he had moved from Gatton, where his parents were in business, to Brisbane and was the proprietor of a Motor Importing and Engineering business. He believed he was a suitable candidate for naturalization because: he had lived all his life in Australia and was married to an Australian; he and his parents were Christians from Lebanon, whose sympathies had always been British and never Turkish; his parents had been British subjects since 1902; he was the sole proprietor of a successful business which provided considerable employment and he had offered his services for both overseas and home defence and, despite having been rejected because of his nationality, he had made donations to the war effort. Additionally, Michael questioned the accuracy of the label ‘Asiatic’ and strongly objected to being classified ‘an aboriginal native of Asia’.

Despite the setbacks, Michael continued his quest to gain citizenship and was finally successful ten years after his first application. Importantly, the Department acknowledged his case came under section 10 of the Naturalization Act whereby as the child of naturalized British subjects, Michael had in fact been a British subject since his twenty-first birthday on the 29th of March 1910. The initial failure to recognise Michael’s actual status under section 10 of the Act was, at the very least, a serious oversight; yet, his file contains no evidence of an apology for the ten year delay or any acknowledgment of the consequent difficulties he experienced.

References

NAA: A1, 1930/1083, Michael Malouf, Naturalization Application.