Our RAR Planning Meeting, March 2022

 

RAR PLANNING MEETING:  MONDAY 15^TH MARCH 2022

 

Present: Sue, Susan, Jill, Hilary, Marlene, Paul and Mike.

Apologies: Margie, Georgie, Peter, Barbara, Maureen and Gillian

 

Our key objectives:

To seek an end to the current inhumane treatment of refugees and asylum seekers. We want the next government to comply fully with our international obligations under the Refugee Convention. We want an end to the arbitrary detention onshore and offshore of refugees, with permanent protection visas for all those who have been found to be entitled to protection under our international obligations. We want a fair and just process for people seeking asylum who are currently living in our community, with appropriate support and a reasonable timeframe for the resolution of their protection claims. We want the NZ offer of an annual intake of 150 refugees to be taken up urgently, with priority given to the men still stuck offshore in PNG and Nauru. We want an immediate, significant, increase in our annual refugee humanitarian intake. Currently our intake numbers are the lowest in 45 years, in spite of the ever-growing number of refugees globally.

 

Issues and actions:

 

 ·      Agreed that we would try to put a roster of letter writers together for the next two months. Paul will take care of the Coffs NOTA and Hilary will take the lead for the Bellingen paper. (Jill adds: We should consider also the Port Macquarie NOTA? Are there any others in Cowper?). Mike is happy to provide talking points, and where possible, photos. We will ask Margie if she is willing to coordinate the operation.

 

·      Agreed that we will produce written questions to send to candidates. Mike will draft and circulate for comment.

 

·      We agreed that wherever possible we would attend Meet the Candidates events once we know where and when they are scheduled. Jill will try to find out and report back.

 

·      Agreed that we would not hold a rally for refugees, but that we would make the next Coffs Harbour market (24^th April) an election-focused event.

 

·      Mike will produce a draft election leaflet and will circulate for comment.

 

·      We have five new placards with an election focus. Mike will make a new banner. The consensus was for: “Vote fair go for refugees”.

 

·      We will seek opportunities to gain media attention for our activities leading up to the election.

 

·      Given the new location of Conaghan’s office, we agreed that a demo was not practical.

 

·      We are not politically aligned, so we can’t offer a platform to any one candidate. We will, however, be supportive of any candidate who supports our objectives, as outlined above.

 

·      We agreed to hold a second and final meeting in early April. Mike will circulate some possible dates to all the people listed above. 

 

·      We need someone to volunteer to liaise with other groups in Cowper, including, but not limited to, Amnesty International and Port Macquarie refugee support group.

 

·      We are not politically aligned, so we can’t offer a platform to any one candidate. We will, however, be supportive of any candidate who supports our objectives, as outlined above.

 

·      We agreed to hold a second and final meeting in early April. Mike will circulate some possible dates to all the people listed above. 

 

·      We need someone to volunteer to liaise with other groups in Cowper, including, but not limited to, Amnesty International and Port Macquarie refugee support group.

Mike

15.3.22

 

Newsletter for 5 December 2017 Rural Australians for Refugees Bellingen and Nambucca Districts

_{Market report}

_{Supporters meeting report}

_{Next Roadside Demo - Big Banana Coffs Thursday December 7th 2:30pm}

_{Where does our money go?}

_{Manus Island update}

_{NZ deal nearly gets up in Parliament}

_{Valla Beach market report}

_{Another good market at Valla Beach on Saturday. We had  a happy band of supporters handing out leaflets and talking to market-goers, and collected a fair number of signatures on our petition. This was our final market for 2017. A big thank you to all the supporters who have helped out this year. A great team effort! We’ll publish the details of our planned markets for 2018 early in the New Year.}

_{Meeting and lunch for supporters report}

_{Our meeting and lunch for supporters on Sunday was a great success, with 28 people taking part. We had  lots of lively and constructive discussion about our activities this year and plans for 2018. There was strong support for the key elements of our current advocacy work, and a clear determination to keep up the fight to bring about an end to the cruel policy of offshore detention – a policy supported by the Liberals, the Nationals and Labor. We are completely committed to continue with our campaigning , and we hope that, in 2018, more of our supporters will participate in our many and varied activities.}

_{Lunch on the deck, in beautiful sunshine and with delicious food that people had brought along, was enjoyed by all. And the raffle raised $140!}

_{Roadside demonstration: The Big Banana: Thursday 7th December}

_{Our final roadside demonstration for 2017 will take place this Thursday, 7th December for 2.30 to 4.00 pm by the Big Banana in Coffs Harbour. It would be great to end our demos on a high note with a big turnout at this popular location. The government is now under significant pressure in relation to the terrible situation on Manus island, so it is more important than ever that we keep the issue in the public eye. Please consider coming along to join us if you can. We have lots of banners and placards to share.}

_{Where does our money go?}

_{At our meeting on Sunday we were presented with the details of our  income and expenditure for the past twelve months.  Our income amounted to $7,010 from market sales, donations and fundraising. We donated $2,150 to the Asylum Seekers Centre and $2,537 to the Refugee Advice and Casework Services. Both organisations rely very heavily on donations and volunteers to carry out their vital work in assisting asylum seekers and refugees currently living in Australia. They could not  do their work without generous support from groups like ours.}

_{Manus Island update}

_{The cruelty on Manus island goes on, whilst Minister Dutton ties himself in knots whilst attempting to convince us that there is plenty of adequate accommodation  on Manus for the remaining detainees. Amidst denials that any detainees were mistreated in their forcible transfer to the three locations around Lorengau, a group of doctors from Medecins Sans Frontieres have been denied access to the centres. They report that the medical and mental health needs of the detainees require urgent intervention,  that there are medical facilities in only one of the three centres, and that, furthermore, these facilities are basic, and not adequate to deal with the detainees’ complex and serious needs. To add to the problems, it has been reported that key support staff in the new compounds have been evacuated amid concerns for their safety, due to opposition to their presence from locals.}

_{Let’s keep up the pressure to bring this catastrophe to an end. Give Malcolm Turnbull a ring on: (02) 6277 7700 or (02) 9327 3988.  Give Bill Shorten a ring on: (02) 6277 4022 or (03) 9326 1300.}

_{Proposal to Accept NZ refugee offer almost gets up in parliament}

_{Yesterday in Parliament the Senate agreed a resolution to accept the New Zealand government’s offer to take 150 refugees from Manus and Nauru. The issue then went to the House of Representatives, where the Greens MP Adam Bandt tabled the resolution, which was supported by Labor. The  initial vote was 73 to 72 in favour, but later two  Coalition absentees returned to the chamber and the matter went to a second vote and was narrowly lost by 74  votes to 73.}

_{It is beyond disgraceful that our government refuses to accept this humanitarian gesture on the part of the NZ government which would have alleviated the terrible suffering for some of the refugees languishing in offshore detention. However,  we should be encouraged that the Labor opposition, for the first time, has actually opposed the government’s cruel policy, given that, until today, it has been totally complicit in inflicting terrible suffering on innocent people.}

_{Please telephone the Prime Minister  to condemn the government’s actions. Please also telephone Luke Hartsuyker on 6652 6233 to express your dismay that he voted against the resolution.}

_{Check out the index of subjects on our blog  http://bellorar.blogspot.com.au} 

_{It includes articles from many sources and letters to politicians and newspapers.}

_{This newsletter is sent to >500 recipients}

_{Our Face book is at https://www.facebook.com/Rural-Australians-for-Refugees-Bellingen-and-Nambucca-Districts-269696303205083/timeline/}

_{(482 likes)}

_{Twitter Account @RARBellingenNam}

_{Email address bellingen.rar@gmail.com}

_{The National RAR web site is at  www.ruralaustraliansforrefugees.org.au} 

_{The National RAR facebook site is at  RAR Facebook}

Newsletter for 28 November 2017 Rural Australians for Refugees Bellingen and Nambucca Districts

_{Next Roadside Demo - Big Banana Coffs Thursday December 7th 2:30pm}

_{Next Market Stall - Valla Beach 2nd December}

_{RAR annual get together Sunday 3rd December}

_{Congratulations to Violet Roumeliotis}

_Nauru

_{Bennelong - Trumble plays the race card}

_{Manus Island tragedy continues}

_{Roadside demonstration report}

_{Another really successful demonstration in Toormina last week, with eleven supporters turning up to remind the public about the plight of our asylum seekers in offshore detention centres. A big thank you to all involved. The response from motorists was overwhelmingly positive, as always.}

_{Our final roadside demonstration for 2017 will be on Thursday 7th December}

 _{next to the Big Banana in Coffs Harbour, from 2.30 until 4.00 pm. Let’s make the last one a big one, so please put the date in your diary!}

_{Our next market: Saturday  2nd December at Valla Beach}

_{A reminder that our final market stall for the year is this Saturday at Valla Beach market from 9.00 am until 1.30 pm. A great opportunity for people to buy our asylum seeker T shirts, bags and tea towels for Christmas! We’ll be handing out leaflets, engaging with market-goers and collecting signatures on our petition, as usual. If you can help out for an hour or two (no previous experience required), then please email Mike at:mandm.griffin2@bigpond.com to let him know.}

_{Meeting and lunch: Sunday 3rd December, starting at 10.30 am}

_{A final reminder that  our end of year meeting and lunch will be held at 39, Rogers Drive, Valla Beach next Sunday. We can still squeeze a few more people in, so if you would like to attend, then please let Mike know bySaturday at the latest by emailing him at: mandm.griffin2@bigpond.com.  There are two options for parking, either in Rogers Drive or the Robert Louden car park, which is just 80 metres from the house. In Rogers Drive, you can park in the driveway at number 39,  on the nature strip at the end of the drive, or the hard standing parking area opposite the house. Please don’t drive onto Mike’s newly-laid lawn!}

_{Directions to Rogers Drive: Turn off the recently-named Giinagay Way into Valla Beach road. Proceed for 500 metres and, just before the water tower, take a left turn into Kuta Avenue. Proceed along Kuta Avenue for 450 metres, and  Rogers Drive is the third turning on the left. Proceed down Rogers Drive and you will find number 39 almost at the bottom of the hill on the left.}

_{Directions to the Robert Louden car park.  Proceed along Valla Beach Road as above, but continue past Kuta Avenue  and take the next left into Henderson Street. Proceed down Henderson Street into Cockburn Street and at the bottom of the hill you will arrive in the car park. Take the path by the side of the house next to the car park, cross over a small footbridge and you will emerge into Rogers Drive. Number 39 is just a few metres up on the right.}

_{We look forward to seeing you there.}

_{Congratulations to Violet Roumeliotis}

_{Last week, Violet Roumeliotis, the child of immigrant parents who came to Australia with nothing, was awarded the Telstra Australian Business Woman of the Year for 2017.  She is the CEO of the not-for-profit organisation Settlement Services International, and under her leadership, the organisation aims to give voice to vulnerable Australians and raise awareness of the economic value of migration.Through its employment and enterprise efforts, 1185 people have gained work in the past 18 months.}

_{Warehousing people on Nauru to cost   a million dollars a day}

_{The latest government estimates show that Canstruct, the building company and Liberal party donor now engaged to run services for refugees and asylum seekers on Nauru, will be paid $385 million over the next twelve months to continue the indefinite detention of the people who fled violence  and persecution in their home countries to seek a place of safety in Australia. It is clear that our government has every intention of continuing its policy of punishing innocent people, at great expense, for political ends. We must keep up our fight to bring this cruel and inhumane policy to an end.}

_{Turnbull plays the race card in Bennelong}

_{Unsurprisingly, but disgracefully, our Prime minister, just like John Howard before him, sought to gain some electoral advantage at the weekend in the Bennelong byelection by playing  the race card in an attempt to scare the voters. In Sydney he stated: “ Kristina Keneally wants us to bring all of those asylum seekers from Manus to Australia........When the boats start again, if Labor were ever to get back into government, how many of those asylum seekers is she going to bring to Bennelong?” It’s surely a sad indictment of the state of our nation when our political leaders think it appropriate to encourage voters to fear that the arrival of small number of people from Nauru and Manus  will change the world as we know it.}

_{The Manus tragedy continues}

_{The tragedy of lies, propaganda, and punishment continues on Manus, as the detainees are forcibly moved into new detention centres in the township of Lorengau. The evidence from phone footage and from witnesses makes it clear the the detainees offered no violence, and that they were mistreated by the police who removed them from the now-closed centre. We have been repeatedly told by Minister Dutton that all three relocation centres were ready for occupation, whilst conceding that perhaps the BBQ areas were not yet complete in one centre. It took the stark reality of Tim Costello standing in front of the building site which is the third centre to force a partial back down. By now we are all used to the blatant untruths from the minister, and to his regular vilification of all those who seek  to get to the truth and to hold the government to account for its brutal offshore detention regime. Following hard on the heels of the appeal from Doctors for Refugees, from former Australians of the Year, from the Australian Medical Association, we now have this week a group of some of Australia’s most senior clinicians offering to conduct free health assessments of the men held on Manus to ensure that they are not being deprived of their human rights. In their open letter, the eighteen clinicians say: “ We believe that the humanitarian issues take precedence over politics. This is a matter beyond immigration and border control but one that affects the health of people and others’ perceptions of our great nation.” The letter goes on to say: “All politicians regardless of their political party should respect the human right to health and themselves be advocate of “health for all” without discrimination.”}

_{We congratulate these clinicians for standing up for the detainees on Manus.}

_{Check out the index of subjects on our blog  http://bellorar.blogspot.com.au} 

_{It includes articles from many sources and letters to politicians and newspapers.}

_{This newsletter is sent to >500 recipients}

_{Our Face book is at https://www.facebook.com/Rural-Australians-for-Refugees-Bellingen-and-Nambucca-Districts-269696303205083/timeline/}

_{(482 likes)}

_{Twitter Account @RARBellingenNam}

_{Email address bellingen.rar@gmail.com}

_{The National RAR web site is at  www.ruralaustraliansforrefugees.org.au} 

_{The National RAR facebook site is at  RAR Facebook}