Kevin Rudd should refrain from killing asylum seekers
The deterioration of the racist and inhumane debate about the arrivals of boat people to the point of killing some of these asylum seekers is a very alarming development that needs a lot of investigation and exploring the responsible people.
It is very clear that the resort of Indonesian coastal patrol to shoot and kill asylum seekers is direct result of tremendous pressure from Australian Federal government on Indonesian government to stop the boats. This development is serious setback to promises from Rudd government to follow humane policy in this regard. It also constitutes serious violation to Australian commitments under international treaties and agreements.
The deterioration of support to Rudd’s government shown in the latest opinion polls should be considered as natural. Rudd’s government had made a lot of promises before the last election. The ordinary citizen could not feel any difference since that election on their lives, where Rudd’s government had resorted to the same tactics and policies of its regressive predecessor. The ordinary citizen’s hardships which include low government services, high inflation and expensive lifestyle and bad treatment by government’s department had not changed under the new government.
The Australians had voted n the last election for change. Now the Australians discover that they have voted for different names but for the same regressive racist policies that are impotent of helping marginalized communities to meet daily needs.
What makes it more depressing and disappointing is the lack of any progressive voice in the Federal parliament to stand up against these regressive moves. All politicians have practiced complete silence on yesterday’s crime of killing asylum seekers in cold blood. Even the small parties that claim to be progressive followed the same line of overlooking this serious setback to human rights in Australia.
The Social Justice Network condemns this inhumane crime, which is added to the long line of crimes against refugees and asylum seekers. The group demands full independent investigation to determine the responsibles, directly or indirectly, of this crime and bring them to justice.
The group also demands that Rudd’s government honour its commitments towards asylum seekers according to international treaties and agreements, especially the Geneva Convention on the status of refugees signed by Australia 1951. The group also demands that opposition from all parties to deal with this issue as humanitarian one and not as electoral issue. An issue where suffering of innocents people could be used to get more votes. We should remember that Australian participation in invading Afghanistan and Iraq had participated in creating the suffering of these people and enforced them to flee and seek asylum in different countries.
The group will continue its tireless efforts to highlight the suffering of refugees and asylum seekers by bringing it back to the front political issues in the country. The group will make the rights of refugees and asylum seekers an important issue in the next election to expose the politicians that used this issue to trade the suffering of refugees for some votes from progressive Australians.
For media comments, Jamal Daoud, the SJN spokesperson, can be contacted on 0404 47 272
Monday, November 16, 2009
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Dear Hon Sen.: your comments are "not in our name"
Dear Hon. Sen. Barnaby Joyce
I read your comments on your solution to the standoff onboard Oceanic Viking. I shockingly disbelieved that you could have suggested such deeply ridiculous solution to this highly humanitarian issue.
I do believe that every responsible person should make informed comments before opening their mouths and give public speech. These informed comments require one to search issues they do not know or have no idea about. But shockingly you even failed to make such research and went on with your ridiculous comments that not only had embarrassed you. We, all Australians, could become a matter of international joke as a result of these deeply naïve comments.
We understand that you want to attract all racist votes you can before the coming Federal election, to secure your re-election. But we think that you have sent the wrong message.
For a senator in the highset decision making body in this country you could have read the Geneva Convention relating to the status of refugees adopted 1951 before giving such ridiculous comments. If you have read this convention, you would have discovered that your comments are clearly violating many articles in the convention. These comments are especially violating article 33 of the convention.
The more ridiculous suggestion in your comments is the suggestion to send the asylum seekers to Sri Lanka to process their claims there. This suggestion is highly ridiculous because you are in fact trying to send them to their deaths. I am not sure if you have read recent reports about the massacres of ethnic Tamils in Sri Lanka and other abuses to their human rights. Secondly, and to qualify for refugee status, person should be outside the country of their nationality (according to article 1 (a) of the convention) to qualify to be refugee.
We know that you are so keen to play race card again to win some popularity. But we believe that you could play this card more intelligently, to avoid make Australia and its politicians laughing matter on international arena.
As we have plenty racists in politics at the moment, we are sure that Australians are looking to hear from the more compassion ones. This is why in the latest opinion poll, both the Government and the Opposition failed to win the support of the majority of voters on this particular issue.
While we deeply condemn your racist and ridiculous comments, we believe that they would not win you any popularity. Consequently, we promise to fight the redicularity of politicians like you, and most of our politicians at the moment.
At the mean time and to avoid more embarrassment in the future, we hope that you can access the UNHCR website and read more about this issue and legal aspects relating to them. We also hope that you can read more about the dire situation in Sri Lank to better understand why people are risking their lives to come by boats to this great nation.
At last we would like to tell everyone, in Australia and abroad, that your comments are “not in our name”. We would not hesitate to welcome these refugees and have no troubles with the way they arrived to save their lives (and the lives of their loved kids).
Yours truly,
Jamal Daoud
Spokesperson, Social Justice Network
I read your comments on your solution to the standoff onboard Oceanic Viking. I shockingly disbelieved that you could have suggested such deeply ridiculous solution to this highly humanitarian issue.
I do believe that every responsible person should make informed comments before opening their mouths and give public speech. These informed comments require one to search issues they do not know or have no idea about. But shockingly you even failed to make such research and went on with your ridiculous comments that not only had embarrassed you. We, all Australians, could become a matter of international joke as a result of these deeply naïve comments.
We understand that you want to attract all racist votes you can before the coming Federal election, to secure your re-election. But we think that you have sent the wrong message.
For a senator in the highset decision making body in this country you could have read the Geneva Convention relating to the status of refugees adopted 1951 before giving such ridiculous comments. If you have read this convention, you would have discovered that your comments are clearly violating many articles in the convention. These comments are especially violating article 33 of the convention.
The more ridiculous suggestion in your comments is the suggestion to send the asylum seekers to Sri Lanka to process their claims there. This suggestion is highly ridiculous because you are in fact trying to send them to their deaths. I am not sure if you have read recent reports about the massacres of ethnic Tamils in Sri Lanka and other abuses to their human rights. Secondly, and to qualify for refugee status, person should be outside the country of their nationality (according to article 1 (a) of the convention) to qualify to be refugee.
We know that you are so keen to play race card again to win some popularity. But we believe that you could play this card more intelligently, to avoid make Australia and its politicians laughing matter on international arena.
As we have plenty racists in politics at the moment, we are sure that Australians are looking to hear from the more compassion ones. This is why in the latest opinion poll, both the Government and the Opposition failed to win the support of the majority of voters on this particular issue.
While we deeply condemn your racist and ridiculous comments, we believe that they would not win you any popularity. Consequently, we promise to fight the redicularity of politicians like you, and most of our politicians at the moment.
At the mean time and to avoid more embarrassment in the future, we hope that you can access the UNHCR website and read more about this issue and legal aspects relating to them. We also hope that you can read more about the dire situation in Sri Lank to better understand why people are risking their lives to come by boats to this great nation.
At last we would like to tell everyone, in Australia and abroad, that your comments are “not in our name”. We would not hesitate to welcome these refugees and have no troubles with the way they arrived to save their lives (and the lives of their loved kids).
Yours truly,
Jamal Daoud
Spokesperson, Social Justice Network
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