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Christmas Island immigration Detention Centre
Some people, as a by-product of free speech, write really stupid articles about things they know very little about. They base these articles on emotion, fear and unfounded stereotypes. Unfortunately these people are not immediately dismissed, sometimes these people are published on websites that attract hundreds of people who then form their opinions on these issues by reading these articles.
Here is a classic example of this happening.
Unfortunately in this example we read the following line:
“Automatic detention of boat people was scrapped. From now on, those cleared of security risk would be freed while the Government worked out if they were really refugees. And the burden of proof would be switched: rather than make boat people prove they were no threat, the Government would have to prove they were to keep them detained.”
Firstly, mandatory detention has not been scrapped. Anyone – regardless of age, race, religion, sex, mental health state, or history of torture and trauma, is detained in a detention centre in Christmas Island if they come to Australia via a boat. These people are not released if they have passed their security checks, they should be, but they are not.
Secondly, seeking refugee status is not a crime, it is completely legal. Moreover over 95% of people who are detained on Christmas Island are found to be refugees.
Thirdly, if you are suspected of doing something wrong you are innocent until proven guilty. The onus is not on you to prove your innocence but on the police to prove your guilt – as it should be. So why should it be the opposite for asylum seekers. Why should we automatically assume that asylum seekers are a threat and lock them in a detention centre until they can prove they are not? How can we not forward to them the same right that you and I get?
- Especially when you consider that over 95% are given refugee visas.
- Especially when this includes over 700 children.
This is why I have always been uncomfortable with free speech.
Also, make sure you look at the picture that they have used.
So below is a very, very cool resource that was sent to me by a colleague at work. That colleague found out about it from her friend who works at Anglicare, who found out about it from an Anglicare colleague called Alison, who is a very good friend of mine. Alison is also the person that won the competition to name the inspiration behind Chris Bowen’s parliamentary speech. She won an awesome Luther/Obama shirt as her prize!
It is indeed a small world!
This resource shows global refugee movement – what countries refugees flee from and what countries they go to. You can see where refugees to Australia come from and you can compare stats all the way back to the 80s!
Here is the blurb:
Since 1950, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees is mandated with the coordination of aid and assistance for refugees worldwide. According to its self-description, its primary purpose is to safeguard the rights and well-being of refugees. Over 6,000 people in more than 110 countries work for the UNHCR. Founded in 1951 as a means to assist the more than one million people who were still uprooted after World War II, the agency’s mandate covered about 10 million refugees in 2009. This visualization attempts to give a comprehensive overview of the phenomenon of flight and expulsion, an ongoing issue of global scale and extreme complexity.
It is lots of fun! Check it out at:
http://www.niceone.org/lab/refugees/
The Australian Red Cross is a neutral, independent, non-political, humanitarian movement that works closely with asylum seekers, people who are trafficked, immigration detainees and people who have lost contact with their family overseas because of war or a natural disaster. They do much more than collect blood and respond to disasters.
They have just released their policy on migration – which is a big deal considering the current political climate and the role Red Cross plays within the sector. So much so that I have decided to reproduce it here for you to read. Enjoy
“Australian Red Cross assists people who are made vulnerable through the process of migration and whose survival, dignity, physical or mental health is under threat, irrespective of their legal status. While recognising the rights of different categories of migrants under international law, Red Cross works with vulnerable people including, but not limited to, migrants, asylum seekers, refugees, immigration detainees, stateless persons, people who are trafficked and irregular migrants, according to their needs.
Australian Red Cross works to prevent and reduce the vulnerability of migrants and to protect them against abuses, exploitation and denial of their rights. Australian Red Cross supports and assists vulnerable people who have been impacted by migration, to gain opportunities and to access sustainable solutions for themselves and their families.
1: Restoration of family links
2: Humanitarian support while immigration status is being resolved
Australian Red Cross believes that people who are made vulnerable through the process of migration, whose survival, dignity, physical or mental health is under threat, should receive the humanitarian supports they need while their immigration status is being resolved. Assistance should be based on need regardless of their mode of arrival or their stage in visa determination processes. In no circumstances should vulnerable people be left destitute. Australian Red Cross believes that the provision of appropriate humanitarian support at the earliest possible point and throughout the process assists in resolving the immigration status of vulnerable people.
(AAP: Mick Tsikas)
While governments may determine that immigration detention is necessary for initial health and security checks, Australian Red Cross believes that it should otherwise only be used as a last resort and always for the shortest practicable time. All people in immigration detention are entitled to the maintenance of good health and wellbeing and to be treated with dignity and respect, regardless of the reason for their detention. All efforts must be made to avoid and mitigate the negative impacts of immigration detention.
4. Upholding Red Cross Principles
While Red Cross may provide humanitarian support for people in immigration detention (including community detention) and other vulnerable migrants in the community, it will not take responsibility for security monitoring, surveillance or other immigration compliance related activities in order to fully preserve its Principles and capacity to monitor the treatment of people in detention.
5: Protection Visa Processing and Independent Legal Advice
Australian Red Cross recognises the right of people seeking asylum in Australia to access independent legal advice and have their claims for protection properly processed, regardless of the means by which they arrive in Australia.
6: Support and capacity building for migrants
Despite the many hardships and barriers they have experienced Australian Red Cross believes that individuals and communities made vulnerable through the process of migration generally retain the strength, skills and capacity they need to re-establish their lives so long as they are provided with support and are given access to the services and programs they need. Australian Red Cross works to support individuals and communities to shape their own futures.
7: Advocating for people made vulnerable through the process of migration
Australian Red Cross believes that advocacy is required in order to persuade and remind decision makers and opinion leaders of the need to ensure and maintain a humanitarian approach to people made vulnerable by the process of migration, to protect them from abuses, exploitation and denial of rights, to reduce discrimination against them, and to increase awareness, sensitivity and understanding of their situation and backgrounds with the general population.”
Most Australians don’t know much about asylum seekers and refugees, how many are coming, what they get when they get here, are there security and health checks, are they all put into detention etc.
The result is that a lot of opinions (and unfortunately policy) is based on misconceptions and from that fear. The media does their fair share of fear mongering (yes Daily Telegraph, we’re looking at you). This is a worry for a lot of people who work in this area or are simply have a desire to know the facts. While lots of people have been trying to get the truth out there it is interesting to see that the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) have also decided to throw their voice into the mix. It is a public news release from a few weeks back but it gives clear answers to some of the important questions (though unfortunately not all of them). Worth a read if you want to be more informed on this issue.
Plus I usually try and get an interview up on Fridays and didn’t get round to it, so this will have to suffice.
Enjoy.
What do refugees get when they arrive in Australia?
The Australian Government provides settlement support to about 13 750 refugees and others in humanitarian need who arrive under the Humanitarian Program each year. This support could include meeting them when they arrive, help finding suitable accommodation, initial orientation and a package of basic household goods such as simple furnishings, linen, some white goods and kitchen equipment. Refugees are helped to gain access to Centrelink, Medicare and banking, helped to understand Australian laws and culture, and to gain employment. They are provided with English language classes through the Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP) and may be referred, if required, to torture and trauma counselling services Many of these services are delivered under the Integrated Humanitarian Settlement Strategy (IHSS), for about six months, but can be extended for up to 12 months for particularly vulnerable people. This program is funded by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC). After IHSS, refugees can be referred to migrant resource centres and other organisations funded under the Settlement Grants Program (SGP), also funded by DIAC. These programs help newly arrived refugees become self-reliant and participate in the Australian community as soon as possible. The government allocated $316 million in 2009-10 towards these direct settlement programs.
What do they NOT get?
There have been a number of concerns raised within parts of the Australian community that more assistance is provided to refugee entrants than to other Australians, such as pensioners. There is no truth to these claims. Refugees do not receive higher benefits than other social security recipients. They have the same entitlements as all other Australian permanent residents. Refugees do not have their rental bonds automatically paid for by the government, nor do they receive a lump sum payment from the government upon arrival.
What income support do they receive?
When they arrive in Australia through the Humanitarian Program, refugees can immediately gain access to income support payments under the same eligibility criteria as any other Australian. At present, the maximum fortnightly rate for Age Pension, Disability Support Pension and Carer Payment is $644.20 for a single person. The maximum fortnightly rate for Newstart Allowance and Special Benefit is $462.80 for a single person with no children.
Where do they settle?
Refugees are often located close to family members or their proposers living in Australia. If they do not have links in Australia they are settled where possible in regional locations that often provide the best access to reasonable housing and work prospects. Locations are carefully chosen to take into account employment opportunities and affordable housing that is reasonably close to key facilities such as retail shops, medical facilities, schools, public transport and community services.
Do they get priority for public housing?
Humanitarian entrants must also meet the same requirements as other Australians to be eligible for public housing. They are not given preferential treatment and must remain on waiting lists, as do other Australians in need of public housing.
Are they taught English?
Adult migrants and refugees are entitled to up to 510 hours of tuition under the AMEP. This helps them settle more effectively in Australia by giving them skills to engage with the community at large, and to find work. Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS National) provides free interpreting services to non-English speaking Australian citizens and permanent residents communicating with approved groups and individuals including doctors in private practice and pharmacies.
Why do we bring them here?
Many refugees arriving in Australia have been traumatised by the experiences that have caused them to leave their home countries. As a member of the international community, we share responsibility for protecting such vulnerable people. Our help does not end at providing them with a new life in Australia. The Australian Government is committed to ensuring that people settling here have the help they need to rebuild their lives and become fully functioning members of the community.
What about refugees who arrive by boat?
Some people confuse asylum seekers who arrive in Australia by boat, currently mainly at Christmas Island, with those refugees who are resettled in Australia under the Humanitarian Program. There is a difference. Australia accepts about 13 750 refugees and others in humanitarian need each year under the Humanitarian Program. The majority are selected for resettlement from tens of thousands of overseas applicants, who have fled persecution from their country of origin and waited years in refugee camps for a solution to their plight. Boat arrivals who are found to be owed protection are also accepted under the Humanitarian Program and are provided with the same entitlements as any other newly arrived refugee. It is important to note the number of refugees arriving in Australia to seek asylum remains low by world standards. Our share has averaged about 1.5 per cent over the past two decades. The overwhelming majority of asylum seekers still head towards Europe.
What do asylum seekers get?
Asylum seekers who have not yet had their protection claims decided have no access to Centrelink benefits. The Australian Government established the Asylum Seeker Assistance Scheme, administered by the Australian Red Cross. This provides financial help to those unable to meet their most basic needs for food, accommodation and health care, as well as meeting torture and trauma counselling costs.
Are they given health checks?
All refugees resettled in Australia are subject to strict health, character and national security requirements, which all Australian permanent visa applicants must meet.
What do refugees contribute?
Refugees arriving in Australia face challenges in adjusting to the Australian way of life. Despite these challenges, most refugees and their families settle successfully and make a positive contribution to the Australian community. Some of Australia’s more prominent former refugees include research biologist Sir Gustav Nossal, stand-up comedian Anh Do and his filmmaker brother Khoa Do, artist Judy Cassab and 2009 Victoria Australian of the Year African-Australian community leader, Dr Berhan Ahmed.
For more information visit: www.immi.gov.au
This is an article that was forwarded on to me by a colleague. It is a very interesting read and I encourage you all to read it when you have the time. It is an essay that was written by David Marr for the Monthly in September last year on Christmas Island. But it is not just on Christmas Island, it also talks about the Australian politics of immigration, how we like to keep immigration determination at a good arms length.
Christmas Island is far closer to Indonesia than it is Australia.
Some excerpts
“In a tin shed on Phosphate Hill, a brisk woman from the Department of Immigration and Citizenship sits facing a slight kid of 17. Though Ali Jaffari knows something of what is coming, he is battling nerves. His face is grey. One leg is trembling. His father, Sharif, sits quietly beside him, his head bowed. An air-conditioner thunders in the background. Both men keep an eye on the envelopes the DIAC officer has on the table: brown envelopes that hold the answer to the rest of their lives.”
” What is the audience for this operation? Evans concedes everything done here could be done on the mainland: “It was in the past.” It would be cheaper: “There’s no doubt that the cost of supplying labour and materials to Christmas Island makes it more expensive than such an operation on the mainland.” And he makes no big claims that processing on the island deters people smuggling: “I think it offers a message about excision and a strong commitment to ensuring people who seek to come to Australia arrive lawfully.” So who is that message for? Isn’t this operation really about reassuring us back home that only the chosen will reach Australia? That the boats are under control? That these people are being held, checked and sorted at a safe distance before they’re let loose on the mainland? “That’s not part of our rationale,” replies the minister. “But I think there probably is something in that.” “
“Canberra could send all boat people intercepted near the 4000 or so reefs and islands “excised” from the nation’s “migration zone” straight into the Pacific Solution. But it could not fiddle its legal obligations to those who slipped through the net of air and sea surveillance to reach the mainland. These people had to be dealt with on Australian soil by Australian tribunals and courts. So in July 2003, when a fishing boat called the Hao Kiet almost sailed into Port Hedland, the 53 Vietnamese on board were taken by HMAS Canberramore than a thousand kilometres and dumped on Christmas Island, where they languished for two years.”
“I remember as a kid being taught that this country’s survival depended on putting a wall between us and the hordes to the north. How I absorbed that lesson, I don’t remember. In my mind’s eye, I see big canvas maps on a classroom wall. It was taken for granted then that everyone up there wanted to come down here. They would not be led by armies; they didn’t have much in the way of military forces back then. They would come in little boats. I’m of the generations who can see boat people as the advance party of unimaginable numbers. Let even a few arrive and, God knows, Australians could end up looking like the people of Christmas Island.”
Some food for thought …
Its now time for our weekly segment here at Micaiah Sells Out called:
“4 quick questions and 1 strange one with…”
Our next ”4 Quick Questions and 1 Strange one with…” is with Alison Moffitt. Alison works for Anglicare collecting and analysing demographic information to find areas of need and help with strategic planning (read more about that below). Alison is lively and vivacious and is also known by hundreds of people as “Spally” or Spal (the roots of which and reason for I think are lost in time). Alison has a great for heart for cross cultural ministry as well as international student ministry. Alison is also the author of Ακροκορινθος and is a guest contributer to absurdity of absurdities. Alison attends St John’s Anglican Church in Ashfield and is married to Matthew Moffitt.
Alison and her husband Matthew
1/ You work for Anglicare? What do you do with them?
I work for the policy unit, which is a small team responsible for writing policy and doing research to support all the work that Anglicare does. We also do research to support mission in the Anglican Diocese of Sydney, and to support the National Church Life Survey (NCLS), 
which is an interdenominational research organisation that supports a range of churches in Australia.
I particularly focus on gathering information from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) and other government departments and organisations that provide demographic data online. Then I get to represent data in a whole lot of fun and fantastic ways, including maps (fun and fantastic) charts/graphs (somewhat fun and fantastic) and tables (more boring than fantastic). The demographic data I collect and analyse is used to identify areas of need in Sydney, to assist in strategic planning both in Anglicare and in the wider church, to evaluate projects, and to help Anglicare apply for tenders.
2/ What do you see as the main demographic trends in Sydney?
Here are a few that have stood out to me from my research with Anglicare:
- The population is getting older
There is increasing religious diversity, with more and more migrants coming from non Christian countries- There is rapid clustering of immigrants on humanitarian visas in west and south west Sydney, particularly migrants from Iraq and Sudan
- Middle income families are flying to fringe suburban areas where larger houses are cheaper, particularly in the north west, west and south west
- Sydney’s multicultural communities are clustered to form an arc that reaches from Hurstville in the south, then north west to Parramatta and then west and south west to incorporate the area from Blacktown to Liverpool (try tracing that out in your street directory)
- Areas with low median family incomes (earning less than $1000 a week) are clustered in pretty much the same pattern
3/ How can the church respond well to these trends?
Most of these trends concern populations that the church is already struggling to reach out to. Elderly people or refugees who don’t speak English don’t come streaming through our church doors on Sunday. A good place for the church to start responding is to realise that if it going to minister to elderly people, persons from non Christian countries, newly arrived refugees and low income families, it needs to take more initiative in reaching out.
Two people groups that I think the church can definitely do more for are the ageing population and refugees.
Sydney’s ageing culture is something like this. People get old, and they realise that they won’t be able to live independently forever. If they are asset rich, they sell their home and move to a trendy retirement village. If they are not, the stay where they are and struggle until they HAVE to move. Then they go to a hostel or nursing home, where they live until they die. To pay for the fees they must sell their family home. If they don’t own their home, they have to find money from elsewhere, or go to a very poor quality nursing home where they can pay fees with their pension.
As far as I can tell, churches are doing alright at caring for elderly people in nursing homes, but Christians need to be doing more to ensure that quality care for elderly people is available to all, not just people who can afford it. The church needs to model what it means to care for people regardless of their personal resources, by caring for all elderly people, in all sorts of aged care facilities and from all kinds of cultural backgrounds.
Regarding refugees, I think the church can do much much more to serve this people group. Refugees come to Australia having gone through trauma that we can’t even imagine, and are then expected to negotiate their way through a foreign culture. However most of the people helping them are persons employed by the government or not for profit community organisations. A large number of these migrants are Christians, yet the Australian church largely ignores them. We find it daunting to care for people who have such complex social and psychological needs, but I don’t think that is justification for us to do nothing. Churches need to be bold, to take strength from the Spirit and show God’s love to newly arrived refugees, whether it be by setting up formal programs to counsel and assist migrants, or just to make en effort to meet, befriend and help people who are struggling to settle in Australia.
4/ What can individual Christians do to respond to this? How can we take initiative in our own church community?
Does your church reflect your suburb?
Firstly, we each need to reflect on the culture of our church and the cultures of the people that we want to reach out to. Are there any serious discrepancies? Do you go to a church full of wealthy aspirational types in an area where many people live in state housing, or earn low wages? Do you go to a church full of white people in an area where most of the population has migrated from a non English speaking country? Talk to your brothers and sisters at church and get people thinking about these issues.
Secondly, we need to work out who the people are that we should be ministering to. This can be as simple as walking through the neighbourhood and looking. It can involve investigating some data for yourself. The ABS has a free service called CData which lets you view a range census data in any area that you choose. You can access it here:
http://www.abs.gov.au/CDATAOnline.
Also try checking out your local council websites, they normally have information on who lives in the area.
Thirdly, talk to your leaders at church. It might be that your pastor or minister has already started thinking about reaching out to people in your area – be the person who encourages them. Encourage your leaders to engage with resources put out by the ABS, local councils and community groups. NCLS produces a resource called the Community Social Profile, where your church can nominate a location and the research team will produce a customised profile of the community within 5km of that point. Encourage your pastor or minister to look into the resources that NCLS provides. If you are going to talk about the challenges of demographic trends, you should be prepared to support your leaders when they take these challenges seriously. Pray and offer to be involved in new ministries.
5/ “Geography can be so much more than the simple learning of facts that will impress friends at the local quiz night.” This is a quote from the Geography Teachers Association of Australia.
Do you know any facts that would impress us?
Well Australia is the second driest continent on the planet, and over 2000 migrants from mainland China have settled in Hurstville in the last 5 years. Also there are lots of Presbyterians in Ashfield. Check out my map:
Number of Presbyterians affiliated with the Presbyterian Church by Suburb
