Two Letters to Senator Lambie

Dear Senator Lambie

I write to you for the 1st time to ask you not to back the appeal.

I truly believe that Peter Dutton's claims are simply not true: that by allowing the legislation to stay we are compromising our security and letting "bad people" into Australia.

I am a mother, grandmother and great grandmother and the daughter of holocaust survivors. I have worked for 54 years, since I was 15. I have seen a lot, learnt a lot, been through some bloody hard times and I am not perfect but I do know this: that our humanity as individuals and as a nation must be upheld regarding the welfare and well being of other humans.

No-one asks to be a refugee. No one wants war or to lose their loved ones, to have to leave their country but when these things happen people do the same as we would do if we were in this situation: they get away, they seek safety and a better life. That doesn't make them bad people.

My family came here with nothing and made a good life (my father started the 1st credit union in Australia) but the mental scars of their trauma continued for the rest of their lives.

I simply cannot not write to you Jacqui and I ask from the depth of my being that you do not support this appeal.

For the life of me I cannot understand how people who call themselves Christian can make a virtue out of being cruel, of lacking empathy and don't have the capacity to put themselves in other people's shoes.  And yet they are making these decisions and turning our wonderful country into a very dehumanising place.

People are suffering mental and physical anguish by being kept indefinitely in detention but to then not even get medical attention is just not acceptable in my view.

I realise you are in a very difficult situation and must be having a lot of pressure put on you. I hope that you are getting the support you need and are being treated respectfully. I wish you well.

warm regards

Dianne ...........
Bellingen
October 22  2019

Dear Senator Lambie,

I listened with interest to your interview on RN this morning, and I

was very pleased to hear you say that you would not be seeking any special deals for Tasmania in return for your vote, and that you will cast your vote based on your assessment of the merits of the legislation.

I strongly urge you to resist the government’s demands for the repeal of the Medevac legislation.  The arrangements are doing exactly what they were intended to do, that is to put the medical needs of sick people before the political interests of the governing parties. It is surely doctors, rather than bureaucrats, who should make decisions in relation to sick people.  The medical panel set up by the government is operating effectively, and the Minister reserves the right to reject a medical transfer on security grounds.

Many hundreds of people have been brought to Australia from offshore detention for urgent treatment. The arrangements have not resulted in the people smugglers renewing their trade. Likewise, the resettlement of hundreds of refugees from Manus and Nauru in the US has not created a “pull” factor.

Please resist Minister Dutton’s scare tactics. Do the right thing, and vote against this utterly unnecessary piece of legislation.

Yours sincerely,

Mike ......

......

Valla Beach NSW 2448

Newsletter for Tuesday 14 November 2017 Rural Australians for Refugees Bellingen and Nambucca Districts

Next Roadside Demo - Hogbin Drive Toormina Thursday November 23rd 2:30pm

Next Market Stall - Bellingen Sat 18th November

RAR annual get together Sunday 3rd December

Manus Island standoff

Roadside demonstration report

A great turnout for last Thursday's roadside demonstration, and lots of positive responses from passing motorists. Sadly, the weather gradually deteriorated and our soggy crew had to finally call it a day a short time before the scheduled finish time. Our next roadside demo will be on Thursday 23rd Novemberfrom 2.30 to 4.00 pm on Hogbin Drive, Toormina, opposite what used to be the Sawtell nursery. Please come and join us if you can.

Next Market: Bellingen, Saturday 18th November

Our next market stall will be this coming Saturday at the Bellingen Community market, from 9.00 am until 1.30 pm. As usual, we'll be handing out leaflets, encouraging people to sign our petition and selling our merchandise. If you can join us on the stall for an hour or two, then please let Mike know by emailing him at: mandm.griffin2@bigpond.com.

Meeting and social: Sunday 3rd December from 10.30 am.

A reminder (see last week's newsletter), that we are planning a meeting and social get-together on Sunday 3rd December at 39, Rogers Drive, Valla Beach, starting at 10.30 am. The event is open to all our 500+ supporters, and we do hope that we will get a good turnout. We'll discuss what we've achieved in 2017, plan what we'll do in 2018, and then enjoy one another's company over lunch. It would be helpful if you could bring a plate to share. If you are planning to attend, then please let Mike know by email at: mandm.griffin2@bigpond.com.

Manus island stand-off

At the time of writing, more than four hundred detainees continue to refuse to leave what remains of the detention centre. The PNG government is determined to remove them to the three East Lorengau facilities, whilst our government continues to blame everyone but itself for this humanitarian catastrophe. In recent days, the Doctors For Refugees organisation has sent a detailed letter to every member of parliament, setting out the realities of the terrible state of affairs, and making clear that is the government's responsibility to care for the refugees and asylum seekers. They say: "On the evening of 4th November 2017, a man with a suspected heart attack in the former RPC (refugee processing centre) sought assistance in the Lorengau hospital. This man was discharged from the facility without having an ECG or blood tests....Thirty six hours later these essential investigations still had not been performed. With this level of medical support, it seems there is little hope for any refugee who becomes seriously unwell on Manus island, whether they are in the former RPC or relocated to East Lorengau."  The letter goes on to point out:" The situation is a direct consequence of the government's arbitrary, indefinite incarceration of hundreds of innocent men in a hostile environment on a remote island in a poor country, unequipped in all respects to look after them. It must finally take adequate responsibility for the welfare of these men."

The full text of the letter will be available shortly on our blog. Please consider phoning politicians to protest at this ongoing catastrophe of our government's making. 

Telephone numbers:

Prime Minister Turnbull: (02) 6277 7700 and (02) 9327 3988

Opposition leader Shorten: (02) 6277 4022 and (03) 9326 1300

Minister Dutton: (02) 6277 7860 and (07) 3205 9977

Luke Hartsuyker: (02) 6277 4482 and (02) 6652 6233

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 3 October 2017 Rural Australians for Refugees Bellingen and Nambucca Districts

_{Next Market Stall -Valla Beach Sat 7th October}

_{Another death on Manus}

_{Duttons latest attack on refugees}

_{Our new petition}

_{Next Roadside Demo - Coffs Hospital Thursday October 12th 2:30pm}

_​

_{Our next market stall: Valla Beach, Saturday 7th October}

_{Please note that our next market stall will be this coming Saturday at the Valla Beach market. We’ll have the new petition to sign and as usual we’ll be handing out leaflets, talking to market goers and selling merchandise to raise funds for the Asylum Seekers Centre. If you can lend a hand between 9.00 am and 1.30 pm, then please let Mike know by emailing him at : mandm.griffin2@bigpond.com, or just drop by to say hello and to sign the petition.}

_{Another death on Manus Island}

_{A Sri Lankan Tamil asylum seeker, Rajeev Rajendran  32,  died on Manus overnight.  He is the 6th Manus Island detainee to die in the past four years.  This is another reason why we need to double our efforts in writing to politicians and attending the rallies this Sunday and also on the 15th in Sydney.}  

_{On and around  Sunday 8 October, around Australia, rallies and other protests will be held around Australia calling for the asylum seekers and refugees on Manus Island and Nauru to be brought immediately to Australia:   “Manus Island and Nauru – Not Safe for Refugees – Bring Them Here”}

_{There is extreme concern that the Manus Island detention centre is closed on 31 October, the asylum seekers and refugees will face real dangers if they are forced to live in the PNG community.  Some have already been attacked and the PNG authorities are not able to protect them. The situation on Manus is again reaching crisis point, as the situation there and on Nauru grows more desperate. Pressure on the refugees on Manus to leave the detention centre is growing daily, as Immigration bulldozes compounds, cut back activities and shuts off power and water. But it is not safe for refugees outside in the community on Manus Island. In late June a refugee was attacked with a machete and robbed, almost losing his arm. Both inside and outside the detention centre, the government's criminal neglect of the people it is responsible for has resulted in too many deaths already, most recently the death of Hamed Shamshiripour.}

_{Many of the people on Manus and Nauru have been detained for four years. Although we welcome the prospect that some will be resettled in the United States, it is not known how many will be accepted by the US, and there is no indication about how long it will take. The only certainty is that some of the people detained on Manus and Nauru will be left to fend for themselves..}

_{The Australian Refugee Action Network (ARAN) –a national network of scores of refugee activist groups – has called for these protests as matter of urgency. These are listed in a following section.}

_{Dutton’s latest attack on refugees}

_{Last week, some 52 refugees from Manus and Nauru finally boarded  planes to take them to safety in the US, following years of suffering in our offshore detention centres. Minister Dutton’s response to their departure, rather than acknowledging that this would be a new start for the refugees, was to vilify them on his favourite commercial radio station. He labelled them as “economic refugees” – a term that does not exist either in domestic or international law – and suggested, amongst other things, that the refugees on Nauru were in possession of  “the world’s biggest collection of Armani jeans and handbags”. He painted a picture of the Nauru and Manus island detention centres as akin to holiday camps and suggested that, once off the islands, the refugees would tell a different story. The evidence, of course, is very different. The harsh reality of our offshore detention centres has  been well documented, in spite of the government’s attempts at secrecy. They are places where the picture is one of physical violence, including murder, rape and sexual abuse of women and children, allegations of torture by guards, medical neglect leading to death, and catastrophic rates of mental health damage, self-harm and suicide attempts. For the Minister to attempt on national radio to portray these hell-holes as places where people are actually enjoying their stay is a disgrace. If you want to tell him so, then please email him at : minister@border.gov.au.} 

_{Our new RAR petition}

_{We have put together a new petition, which is in the form of an open letter to Shayne Neumann, who is the Labor Shadow Minister for immigration and border protection. The petition is supported by the national RAR committee and has been distributed to all RAR groups around Australia. Our plan is to launch it at our next market in Valla Beach. The text of the petition is set out below, and a petition sheet is attached to this newsletter for you to download and print. It would be wonderful if a significant number of our supporters could collect signatures from family, friends and colleagues. Details of what to do with completed petition sheets can be found on the form.}

_{Dear Mr Neumann,}

_{The Australian government has clear obligations under the Refugee Convention and international law to treat people seeking asylum with respect and humanity, to assess their asylum claims in a timely manner and to resettle in Australia all those arriving on our shores who are found to be refugees, regardless of their mode of arrival.  We therefore call upon the Labor Opposition to:}

_{·         make unambiguous its opposition to mandatory detention.}

_{·         demand the immediate  resettlement in Australia of all genuine refugees on Manus and Nauru who are not cleared for resettlement in the US.}

_{·         commit the Labor Party to working with other countries in the region and with UNHCR to provide alternative, safer pathways to eventual resettlement in safe  countries, including Australia.}

_{·         demand that people currently held in offshore detention who have close family  members living in Australia be able to rejoin them here as a matter of urgency.}

_{National Day of Action in support of refugees}

_{A number of rallies to protest about the government’s treatment of asylum seekers and refugees will be taking place across Australia in the days ahead. Details so far are as follows:
Canberra. 8th October. 1.00 pm. Garema Place
Geelong. 8th October. 11.30 am on the lawns at the Waterfront.
Melbourne. 8th October. 2.00 pm at the State Library.
Hobart. 6th October 5.00 pm. at the corner of Murray and Macquarie Streets.
Sydney. 15th October. 2.00 pm. Venue tbc.}

_{If you happen to be in one of these places at any of the above times, you might consider joining the rally to send a clear message to the government that we do not support its cruel and punitive asylum policies. If you have friends or families  living in these cities, you might want to encourage them to attend.}
 

_​

_{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}

_{Attachments area}