Roadside demonstration report
Next market: Saturday 19th January at
Bellingen market
Accommodation urgently required
An afternoon of jazz and classical music
Roadside demonstration report
There was a good turnout of supporters for our
demonstration in Bellingen last Thursday, and we received enthusiastic support
from the great majority of passing motorists. You might reasonably ask why we persist
with these regular demonstrations. Simply put, it’s because we passionately
believe that it is really important to keep the issue of offshore detention in
the public eye as the federal election approaches. There can be no doubt that
the issue of detention and “border protection” will feature prominently as the
election approaches, and as the major parties compete over which of them can be
best relied on to be tough on asylum seekers and to “keep us safe”.
Our next roadside demonstration will be on Hogbin
Drive, Toormina, on Thursday 24th January from 2.30 to 4.00
pm. Please join us if you can. It would be great to welcome some new
people to these demos.
Next market: Saturday 19th January at
Bellingen market
Our first market of 2019 is this Saturday, 19th January,
from 9.00 am until 1.30 pm. We have updated our leaflets, created a new open
letter to Minister Dutton for people to sign, and we have lots of merchandise
to sell on behalf of the Asylum Seekers Centre in Newtown. The markets present
a great opportunity to get our message about asylum seeker policy across to
market-goers, many of whom are very interested to learn more and to support our
efforts to bring about change. We know from our campaigning that public
pressure does work. Just a few months ago, there were more than 200 children
trapped on Nauru. Following the national campaign to get children off Nauru, in
which we played an energetic part, the number of children remaining on the
island is down to single figures. We now need to redouble our efforts, both
locally and nationally, to evacuate the remaining 1000+ asylum seekers and
refugees from Nauru and Manus. If you can help out at the market for an hour or
two, then please let Mike know by emailing him at: mandm.griffin2@bigpond.com.
We will be located in Section E, which is accessed by the Ford Street entrance.
Accommodation urgently required
An asylum seeker mother and her three young children
are in urgent need of
suitable rented accommodation in the area. They have
spent some time in Coffs Harbour, and more recently in Bellingen, since
arriving in Australia some months ago. For the past several weeks they have
been living temporarily in a one-bedroom cabin, thanks to the generosity of one
of our supporters, but the accommodation is clearly not suitable for a family.
The family are supported by the Red Cross, and have a case worker, but to date
they have not been successful in securing suitable rented accommodation.
The mother, who speaks English quite well, does not
drive. Her eldest child is seven years old and therefore needs to be in school
before the end of this month. For these reasons, they really need accommodation
in a town rather than in a rural setting.
If you have suitable accommodation available for rent,
or if you know anyone who might be able to help, then please contact Sue Kitson
urgently at: skit1949@gmail.com or phone her
on: 0434 013 010.
An afternoon of jazz and classical music
Many of you will recall that in June last year, local
pianist Heather Rose staged a fundraiser for us in the Nambucca Community and
Arts Centre, which raised $1,000 for the Asylum Seekers Centre. Heather is
planning to return to the NCAC on 17th February with some
musician friends to play jazz and classical pieces. Whilst this concert is not
a RAR fundraiser, Heather has kindly offered to let us have a presence, which
will enable us to hold a raffle, sell our merchandise and encourage people to
sign our open letter to Minister Dutton. We are therefore looking for items to
raffle and for support on the day to sell raffle tickets and to help with the
stall. Please let Mike know if you can contribute something for the raffle or
if you can help out at the concert by emailing him at: mandm.griffin2@bigpond.com.
And of course, it would be great if you could come along to the concert to
enjoy the music and show appreciation for Heather’s support for our cause.
Details: Sunday 17th February, 2.00 pm
to 4.00 pm at the Nambucca Community and Arts Centre, Ridge Street, Nambucca
Heads.
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