Join the celebrations
July 31, 2008
After campaigning with others on refugee and asylum seeker issues since 2001, TEAR, UCA, RAC, GetUp and all the rest can join the celebrations.
(Ben’s take from the tear network below)
The Immigration Minister has proposed changes to make detention of aslyum-seekers a last resort and put in place clear boundaries so that it cannot be indefinite and unreviewable.
Asylum seekers coming by boat to one of the places that the previous Government excised from Australia’s migration zone will now also have access to assistance and review of their cases – rights the former
policy stripped them of.
We are very supportive of the Government’s proposed changes. We hope and pray that we will never again see people (including many children) locked up for years, with all the associated mental and physical harm,
while they seek protection in Australia.
A new, humane policy
The Government has decided to take a risk-based approach to deciding whether an asylum seeker should be detained or not. If a person poses no danger to the community, they will be allowed to remain in the
community until their status is determined.
You can read the Minister for Immigration’s entire speech here
http://www.minister.immi.gov.au/media/speeches/2008/ce080729.htm
The Minister outlines the values that will inform the new policy as well as some of the practical details.
Children will not be detained in an immigration detention centre. People who arrive by boat at excised places, which include Christmas Island and Ashmore Reef, will be detained soley for health, identity and security checks. People who arrive by boat at excised places will now have access to legal assistance and an independent review of unfavourable decisions. Only people who pose a risk to the community or who have repeatedly refused to comply with their visa conditions will be detained. Once in detention, a detainee’s case will be reviewed every three months to ensure that further detention is justified.
Thank the Immigration Minister
Send an email now
Senator.Evans@aph.gov.au
thanking the Immigration Minister for these changes. Ask him to
make these policy changes law so that no future Government can return
to detaining children, or keeping people in detention indefinitely and
without review.
RAC- Rhythms for refugees
July 21, 2008
| July 25, 2008 | ||
| 7:00 pm | to | 11:00 pm |
a refugee action collective fundraiser • www.rac-vic.org
BAR 303
303 High St Northcote
$8 unwaged - $12 waged
Featuring…
THE CONCH
11 piece Cuban ensemble!
PATAPHYSICS
Melbourne hip hop group
and more - from 7pm til late…
RAC ACTION - Suitcases in the City
June 18, 2008
| June 28, 2008 | ||
| 11:30 am |
THE CASE FOR REFUGEES
Playing with an instantly recognisable symbol for refugees and displaced
persons, RAC invites you to join in a ‘Happening’at 11.30am, Saturday
28th of June.
A pile of old suitcases will appear in the middle of the city.
Each suitcase represents the human suffering experienced by refugees,
their need for a safe place to call home, as well as the riches they
bring to our community
WHEN: Saturday 28th June. Meet @ 11.30 am SHARP!
It will all be over by 12.30pm.
WHERE: Meet at Atrium at Federation Square (opp. the Forum Theatre,
Flinders St).
BRING: Old unwanted suitcase (they are very cheap at op shops) with a
slogan painted on it. Wear a long coat.
Refugee Week: A Place to call home
June 5, 2008
| June 15, 2008 | to | June 21, 2008 |
Australia’s Refugee Week theme of A Place to Call Home encourages people to think about the global themes of protection and human rights by focusing on the fundamental right to a secure place to call home. It encourages us to think about our common obligations to people who have no secure home, as well as to acknowledge the 700,000 refugees and humanitarian migrants over the past 60 years who have made Australia their home.
There are lots of different ways to mark the week from the simple to the elaborate. Here are some suggestions:
Organise a cultural celebration with traditional food, dance and music to bring together refugees and non-refugees and share their stories
Run a workshop to provide information and raise awareness on some issues that refugees might face
Organise an art competition or an exhibition using this year’s Refugee Week theme
Invite a speaker to come and present. It can be a person who works with refugees or someone who has been through the refugee experience.
Organise a screening of a refugee related documentary and movie
Send a positive story for Refugee Week to your local newspaper
Attend any of the many events during Refugee Week.
For more ideas refer to the 2008 Refugee Week Resource Kit which is a great resource and can be downloaded from the Refugee Council of Australia’s Refugee Week webpage
Job - Asylum Seeker Community Liason (Hotham)
June 3, 2008
POSITION DESCRIPTION
Employer: Hotham Mission Asylum Seeker Project
Responsible To: Project Director
Responsible For:
The coordination community awareness with key ASP stakeholders, such as churches, schools, community organisations, and the general community. Coordinating the ASP Women’s Group social support program, and working with the Project Director on community advocacy initiatives. Community Development SACs Award Class IIa (Year 5) $20.56 per hour. Salary packaging available. Hours of work: 0.4 EFT or 0.6 EFT position, flexibility available.
Position details:
The position is to begin June 25th, 2008 and is a 9 month part-time maternity leave position. Application closes mid June. For more details about our work, please see our website: www.hothammission.org.au or Contact: Caz Coleman (Project Director) on (03) 9326 8343 or via e-mail at asp@sub.net.au
RAC - Open the Gate
April 2, 2008
| April 22, 2008 | ||
| 6:30 pm |
Refugee Action Collective - Victoria presents
PUBLIC MEETING: OPEN THE GATE IN 2008!
Moving beyond refugee detention.
When: 6.30pm, Tuesday 22 April
Where: RMIT Kaleide Theatre, 360 Swanston Street, Melbourne.
Hear what’s changed and what hasn’t in refugee policy under the new Rudd
government. And, how we can go forward from here.
Speakers include:
ANNA SAMSON - National Policy Director, Refugee Council of Australia.
Anna has seen first hand Australia’s new $500 million detention centre
on Christmas Island.
DAVID MANNE - Coordinator, Refugee and Immigration Legal Centre. David
has represented refugees on Nauru and at other detention centres.
Help us spread the word:
- Download a flyer at www.rac-vic.org
Festival of Refugees
August 20, 2007
| August 25, 2007 | ||
| 11:00 am | to | 3:00 pm |
Box Hill Town Hall, 1022 Whitehorse Road
Guest of honour: His Excellency the Governor of Victoria, Professor David de Kretser AC
Program
Singing and dancing by groups from Sudan, Burma, Vietnam, Congo and more
Guest performance form Kavisha Mazella
Lunch: Middle East and West African meal provided
Admission: - Free – donations accepted.
Booking essential by 17 August to Visier or Glenys on 9650 4511 or Leonie 9262 6101 or 0438 581 019 or e-mail vcc@vcc.org.au or Leonie.Boyle@whitehorse.vic.gov.au
Sponsored by Christian World Service, Victorian Council of Churches in partnership with the City of Whitehorse.
Uniting Justice-(Refugee Sunday, NT Action, Fed Election)
July 29, 2007
| August 26, 2007 |
Refugee and Migrant Sunday: 26th august 2007
On Refugee and Migrant Sunday, thousands of Churches around Australia will celebrate the contribution refugees and migrants have made to Australia. The National Council of Churches has produced a free education kit with a poster, liturgy and education sheets for congregations and schools. You might:
- Use the liturgy to celebrate refugees in your church
- Use the education kit to give a talk or hold a discussion
- Arrange a refugee speaker or organise a movie night
- Raise funds to help Christian World Service support refugees in camps overseas.
Download the free education kit at www.ncca.org.au/cws/rdp/rms
Read up on the Uniting Church’s views on refugees and asylum seekers at our website
Northern Territory Indigenous Communities Intervention
The Justice and International Mission Unit in the Synod of Victoria and Tasmania has produced a letter writing action on the Government’s plans for the Northern Territory, based on the initial plan of action announced by the Minister for Indigenous Affairs, Hon. Mal Brough. You can download this material from the UnitingJustice website.
Download the letter writing action from our website
Federal Election 2007
UnitingJustice has been working hard coordinating the Church’s Federal Election Resource, which will be available progressively from the middle of August, with both web-based and paper components. It includes issues papers, hot issues briefs, and an election toolkit with ideas for Church members and communities to become more involved in the electoral process, and has been very popular in the past.
The resource is a collaborative project contributed to by National Assembly and Synod agencies. It is not party political. It seeks to raise issues and engage Church members in exploring the implications of gospel values for different aspects of national life/
World Refugee Day Rally June 17
June 6, 2007
| June 17, 2007 | ||
| 12:00 pm |
Say NO to Christmas Island Detention Centre - Howard’s Guantanamo for refugees.
So, you think Australia has relaxed its brutal refugee policies?
Think again. A new 800 bed, $500 million refugee prison is due to open on Christmas Island this year. Leaked plans show it includes a babies’ compound and class rooms, despite promises that children will no longer be locked up.
Join the Refugee Action Collective’s march for justice - 12 noon on June 17 at Melbourne Museum. March with us to Multicultural Arts Victoria’s Emerge Festival at Fitzroy Town Hall, then relax and enjoy food, music and dancing from all over the world.
Bring you friends and family. Invite your colleagues at work. Download the poster and flyer at www.rac-vic.org and pin it up at work, your local café and library.
Posters and flyers for the rally are available at the New International Bookshop at Trades Hall.
Say NO to Howard’s Guantanamo for refugees.
Let’s tell the politicians that refugees should be welcomed, not jailed.
For further information go to www.rac-vic.org , email: refugeeaction@hotmail.com
AI - Refugee Actions
April 30, 2007
Australia’s plans to offload refugees
On 17 April 2007 the Australian Government announced plans for a ’swap’ of refugees between the United States and Australia.
As part of the plan refugees detained by Australia on Nauru would be sent to America and, in return, Cuban or Haitian refugees detained by the American Government at Guantánamo Bay in Cuba would be resettled in Australia.
Immigration and Citizenship Minister, Kevin Andrews announced that the exchange could involve up to 200 refugees per year.
There are still many details of the proposal that are not yet known to Amnesty International Australia, however the plan appears to be unnecessarily harsh and is a further move to keep families separated.
Speak out about plans to ’swap’ refugees
Speak out about plans to ’swap’ refugees as though they are a commodity, not individual humans. A simple way to do this is to make a call to a talkback radio station or to write a letter to the editor or opinion section of your local paper.
Here’s some tips about what you can say:
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