Valla
Beach,
1st
May 202
Dear Prime Minister,
Please find enclosed an open letter,
addressed to you, and signed by 251 people at our Rural Australians for
Refugees market stalls earlier in the year before restrictions on public
gatherings were imposed. The letter reads:
“We,
the undersigned, are deeply concerned about the plight of the refugees and
asylum seekers who remain in PNG, and in particular about the fate of the men
held until recently in Bomana prison. This facility, built at a cost of $20
million by the Australian government, was clearly designed to finally crush the
spirits of those detained, with the specific aim of persuading them to return
to their homelands. That the 52 detainees have finally signed agreements to be
“voluntarily” returned to their countries of origin is a direct and intended
consequence of their deliberately punitive treatment in Bomana prison. Forcing
them to return home to danger is in clear contravention of our international
obligations.
We
call on the Australian government to ensure that these malnourished and
mentally unwell men receive the medical treatment that they so urgently need.
We further call on the government to undertake not to permit their repatriation
to face imprisonment or worse in their home countries. The Australian
government must find a safe country for their resettlement.”
It is
clear from a number of reports that PNG is not a safe place for refugees.
Locals have attempted on more than one occasion to break into the accommodation
where some refugees are housed, and have threatened to kill them. They are
fearful to venture out into the community, where they regularly face assaults
and robbery at the hands of local people, who want them to leave their country.
These
people are the responsibility of the Australian government, and we owe them a
duty of care. We therefore call on the government to do two things. Firstly, to
take all the necessary steps to ensure that asylum seekers and refugees in PNG
are properly protected whilst they remain there. Secondly, once the COVID-19
pandemic recedes, and it becomes safe to travel, we ask that all these people
are resettled in safe third countries, including Australia and New Zealand, so
that they can begin to rebuild their shattered lives. We owe them nothing less.
Yours
sincerely,
Mike XXXXXX
Bellingen
and Nambucca District RAR
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