Almost half of young Australians would rather flee the country than fight for it, according to a new survey.
The poll of 1,003 Australians was commissioned by independent think tank, the Institute of Public Affairs, was released on Wednesday 18 September.
Responding to the question, ‘If Australia was in the same position as Ukraine is now, do you think that you would stay and fight or leave the country?’ 48% of those in the 18-24 age group said they would leave the country. Just 27% said they would stay and fight, while a similar number (25%) said they were unsure.
The figures represented a decline in the number of young people willing to fight for Australia compared to 2022, when 32% of 18–24-year-olds were prepared to take up arms in defence of their country.
“After years of relentless attack on our values by the cultural and media elite, a growing number of young Australians are now so ashamed of themselves, and their country, that they would rather flee Australia than stay and fight for it,” Daniel Wild, Deputy Executive Director at the Institute of Public Affairs, said.
“It tells you all you need to know about the values our education system, including the national curriculum, are instilling in young Australians if almost half of them would rather flee than stay and fight for their country if we were under attack.”
Most Australians surveyed agreed that the Federal Government should do more to teach school children to be proud of Australia’s history, with 67% of respondents agreeing, 7% disagreeing and 26% saying they were unsure.
Wild said Australia is in “desperate need of cultural rearmament” if it ever hopes to defend its shores should the worst happen.
“Young Australians do not want to fight for their country because the cultural elites in schools, universities, and the media have convinced them that there is nothing worth fighting for,” Wild said.
“Australia is a force of good in the world and the results show more than two-thirds of Australians want future generations to be proud of our achievements, rather than constantly be berated and shamed by the noisy minority of elites.”