How To Live Like An Asylum Seeker In The Australian Community

I see so many people cry that people seeking asylum in Australia get all the benefits! They get free housing! They get everything!

Well, that's utter bullshit.

Try this.

You have to flee your country, because there has been a threat to your life. Maybe your brother went missing last week, and there is no news about where he is, or if he is still alive.

There are phone calls to your family; there are scary, anxious moments when you go out to the market. This has been going on for months and months, but is escalating. You haven't been able to go out of the house for work for months.

You are scared. Really scared. Your life is in serious danger. So you decide to flee.

Maybe just you, and your family scrape together all the money they can, and what they can borrow, to send you. In the hope that you will be safe, and you may one day help them get to safety too.

So you find a way to pay for a passage to Australia - the "Lucky Country". A country where you will be safe, and free, and you can start a new life, get a job and start helping your family back home.

You need to go through so many steps to get to Indonesia, so many scary moments, before you are actually placed on that rickety boat in the middle of the night, with a heap of other people who have done very much the same as you to get there.

Since July 19 2013, it has been a randomised lotto about whether you were quickly sent to Nauru or Manus Island, or whether you remained on Christmas Island. And if indeed you were allocated to stay back, even when people from the boat you came on went sent offshore, you would now be living in the Australian community.

Our Minister of Immigration, and his Opposition, try to pretend this did not happen. But you will find anyone here in our community who arrived on the very same boats as those held without hope. So goes the many lies of this political football in our country.

Once you get out of detention, which could be months after you arrive, could be years - no rhyme or reason again about why there is a difference, you will either live with someone you already know here in Australia (a community link), or you will first be placed in a hotel for up to 6 weeks. Now, you must figure out how to live in Australia.

A totally foreign place, with more rules and regulations and paperwork than you can imagine. You need to open a bank account, with minimal acceptable ID and no history of living in Australia. Then you need to find somewhere to live. How do you find a rental property in Australia, with no rental history?

Once you have a bank account, and you have worked you way through the lines and processes at Centrelink, you now receive around 85% of the Newstart allowance, so about $429 per fortnight. You need rent and bond to get started. You will also need to find a place that fits within your allowance, so you can eat, travel around to appointments and hope to find work. You have no option but to find something very cheap, in outer areas, and with many other people. You certainly have no bargaining power to increase a bid for a rental property, as is the trend here in the cities of Australia!

But you are starting with nothing. So imagine you need to figure out how to furnish your new place with the bare necessities, usually with the help of charities in the community.

Once you have settled, you've found somewhere to live, and you are setting yourself up with further English classes to help with living in Australia, and you are starting to figure out how to find a job. How do you find a job in Australia with no work history in Australia? Maybe your schooling back in your home country was not recognised formally, because you were stateless, or simply because you need to go through many impossible steps to have it acknowledged in Australia. Maybe you didn't get to go to school, due to your family circumstances, or because you needed to work to help your family. Finding work is a very big challenge.

Depending on your visa, you should get an Interim Medicare card for medical assistance. But this doesn't cover everything, and many providers in the community have no idea what this means, You will need to pay full price for any medication, unless you have a support service set up an arrangement for you. For an emergency, of course, you can go to a hospital to be treated - but just hope you are not taken via ambulance, cos we all know how expensive that is!

And then you wait. Wait for your chance to be determined to be a refugee.

Oh! But because you have arrived by boat, even if you are deemed to be a genuine refugee, you still are not given permanent protection to stay in Australia. You will have to go through your refugee determination every couple of years, for the next visa temporary option. Under constant uncertainty about your future; never quite settled, really.

All the while, you have the shadow of Border Force and Immigration hanging over you. You know people back in detention that have been re-detained for the smallest things - for driving without a licence, for a drink driving charge, for being in a fight, for being in the wrong place at the wrong time, or for no good reason given at all. This fear hangs over your head, reminding you of the very fears you held for your life back home.

Not so easy now, is it?

Australia needs an amnesty on it's treatment towards people seeking asylum, who are here, and stuck in our offshore island set-ups. Before we can return to being a country we can be proud of.

Treating people like this is not saving anyone.

Know More About The Refugee Issue: Wrap Of Reads And Links

There are so many terms thrown around in the debate here in Australia, and indeed across the world at the moment, amid the numerous current refugee crises and movement of people seeking safety - but do you know what they all mean? Do you know who is talking about whom, and why? Be Informed, with this wrap up of links and lessons.

Know

Do you know the difference between an asylum seeker and a refugee? And a refugee or person seeking asylum, and an economic migrant?

The UNHCR discusses the difference here.

Here is another explanation from the UK, which is interesting in it's discussion about people seeking asylum, and the need for them to have entered a country where they then lodge an application for asylum, to be classified as asylum seekers.

What about the term 'illegal' - do you know that seeking asylum is not illegal, but a human right? Even the present government of Australia, who use the term "illegal" every chance they get, admits that this is use is not correct on their website - here.

Learn

Amnesty International are putting on a free worldwide course for all on Human Rights, starting November 16, running for 3 weeks.

It's the first global course of it's kind, and will cover The Right To Freedom Of Expression, which supports the right to express, assemble and associate - all areas of persecution in many parts of the world, and a reason many people flee for safety.

Read

Without coming across stories of why people leave their homes, everything they know, the culture and familiar places of home, it's hard to get a grasp on the issue. The Refugee Council of Australia have a great collection of personal stories here, on their website, from refugees now living in Australia. This is a list of links from many different experiences, and place, and many different paths to safety. Some pretty incredible, and inspiring stories of resilience and strength.

Write

There are still 88 children held in detention on Nauru, as at June 2015 according to government figures. There is a group here in Australia collecting letters, and indeed books and toys, to send to these kids, to give them hope that they are not forgotten about in all this political mess and rhetoric. Befriend A Child can be found here, with all the details including instructions on where to send letters, and gifts.

You can hear and read some of the words and responses shared between kids here in Australia and the children in Nauru, which is pretty awesome.

Dine

You can meet, and support the vocational development, of some people seeking asylum and refugees, while dining at the Empress in Melbourne on a Tuesday night from now until December 1st. The Scarf community social enterprise, provides training and support to young people who need a leg up into the hospitality industry, is currently delivering it's Spring season, and is one of my favourite social good things. It has such incredibly positive, and life changing outcomes, like these.


Know of anything else? Share it in a comment below.

Help Make The World A Little Better: Wrap Of Reads And Links

Since Nauru, I have been actively involved in advocacy in many ways. I am also working within the asylum seeker sector again, which means keeping up to date with policy, current issues and changes, and being aware of stories, conflicts and their impacts.

So I want to start sharing some of that reading, and knowledge. To help you, my readers, be more informed. To be aware of some of the issues, the current situation for the many people war, conflict and persecution impacts, both here in Australia and around the world.

So here is a snapshot of some things you can read, watch and do to stay informed, and help make the world a little better.

Read

The world media has been awash with the situation in Syria, and the impact the ongoing war there has on the flow of people seeking safety in Europe. But can you name the place where more people have been killed this year in conflict?
It's Yemen, where Saudi bombings are happening every day, for the past 200 days.

You can read the 200 Days Of War in Yemen, by UN Dispatch
and
the statistics that Explosions Hurt More Civilians In Yemen Than In Syria This Year.

Yemen is the place of safety and refuge for many asylum seekers and refugees from parts of Africa like Somalia, and so targeting them causes more stress and turmoil for these people.

Watch

Watch this pretty amazing video on Human Rights, by Rights Info:

Write

To your MPs!
Julian Burnside has shared these tips about keeping it short, and with a question, to gain a response and create some dialogue and thought.
Aussies writing to their Labor MP is particularly important between now and November 10, when the party is set to debate it's stance on offshore detention. So let them know what you think!

Join

A Welcome To Australia walk next weekend, October 31, all around Australia. Details of gathering events can be found here, on the Facebook page.

Give

The old bike that you no longer use, and is collecting dust, to the Australian Red Cross bike program - they will tinker with it to run like new, and provide it to an asylum seeker in the community in need. This gift of a bike may help a young person get to school every day, or to let someone ride to a potential new job for a new start at life. This makes a huge positive impact on people's lives!

Donate

Any spare change you can to the fund to support asylum seekers in the Australian community have access to legal assistance for their refugee claim process. Access to funded assistance has been cut, and so organisations who are helping in this most crucial process are doing so on the smell of an oily rag, and donations!

The Asylum Seeker Resource Centre legal support and Refugee and Immigration Legal Centre (RILC) both here in Melbourne, servicing Victoria
and
RACS (Refugees Advice and Casework Service) in Sydney


Know of anything else? Share it in a comment below!

How Did We Get Here, Australia? The Lasting Impact Of Politicising Tampa And SIEV X

It's 14 years this weekend since the sailing and subsequent discovery of the tragedy of the "SIEV X". This August it was the same anniversary of the Tampa affair. Both these events involving the boat journey of asylum seekers trying to reach Australia for protection have had profound effects on Australia's immigration policies and treatment of asylum seekers, and refugees.

The story of the Tampa affair is stepped out via these photos of the amazing Grandmothers Against Detention of Refugee Children Ballarat, on their Spring Stroll last month.  Each card held by a grandmother sets out the main points.

The SIEV X - or so called 'Suspected Illegal Entry Vessel X' as the Australian government of the day labelled it - was a boat that set off from a tiny fishing village in Indonesia with 421 passengers aboard. Overcrowded and unseaworthy, the boat sunk.

353 people are thought to have died in the water, including 146 children. These were reportedly families attempting to join other family members who had already made the journey to Australia. 45 people from the boat were rescued, and returned to Indonesia.

Evidence suggests that Australia knew the boat was there, in trouble, and did nothing to help the people on board.

You can read a full chronology of the SIEV X here.

These two on-water events happened amid an Australian election. John Howard used the Tampa story in his campaign, and whipped the media into a frenzy about 'boat people'. He then used another SEIV in the same October as his example of "children overboard", which was received by the boarder Australian community, but proved to be lies in later Senate Inquiry evidence.

Howard's solution for Tampa was the birth of the Pacific Solution, and the first use of the tiny Pacific island nation of Nauru as a "processing centre", in a deal agreed on on September 10 2001.

The date before the Western world changed it's view of Muslims, and developed a never-before-seen awareness of terror and terrorism, as 9/11 in New York City happened. The climate for foreigners in Western nations, including Australia, changed.

Julian Burnside QC paints the impact of this world event, the treatment of the Tampa, and subsequent Australian fear-mongering about asylum seekers coming by boat in many speeches, as it was his full introduction to the refugee policy of Australia. You can read a transcript of his Hamer Oration here, delivered just last month.

The Howard government in full election campaign mode used this post-9/11 attacks fear to whip up further a public fear of 'boat people', linking those on the Tampa. Because there were Muslims onboard the Tampa. The old White Australia rhetoric was powerful to the voting age at the time.

The Muslims on the Tampa were mostly Hazaras from Afghanistan, actually fleeing the Taliban. But that fact would never be mentioned in the press buzz of fear of the day.

Most of those on the Tampa were transferred to a camp Nauru, and held there until 2004 when the refugees in this group were finally brought to Australia and placed in the community under restricted temporary conditions.

The notion of "classified" information about events such as the SIEV X, and today's call of "On-Water Matters", draws obvious parrallels in Australia's current turn back policy.

Nauru has been closed, reopened, closed, and reopened to it's current status - many men, women and children have currently been held there, now as declared refugees, since October 2013. The end of the current chapter of this blight on Australia's human rights records, treatment of the world's asylum seekers and refugees, and enduring legacy of the Tampa is not yet closed.

Additional Links:

How Tampa Become A Turning Point - Amnesty International Australia

Tampa Affair

Nauru Processing Centre

Children Overboard

Human Rights And Arts Festival 2015: Melbourne

This year's Human Rights Arts And Film Festival back in May served up many thought-provoking moments, and glimpses into the incredibly tough journeys many of our fellow man, and women, experience around the world.

Wolfskinder is about the forgotten children of World War II. The "Wolf Children" are the German children - orphans or displaced - who are walking, fleeing, and trying to find safety, through the country-side, through forests. In hiding, alone, and scared.
Facing things children should not have to face, and working out through each day how to survive.
It's clear, as the story continues, that other children are the only people that will help these children along the way. Adults either come to shot at the children, or are suspicious of them and wary of sharing any food they may have. The cobbled group of children that the film follows, which is ever changing and circumstances and tragedy hits, carry each other, find and share food for each other, keep watch as the others sleep.
Heartbreaking, and real. A tragedy of war not often focused on.

Breakfast Sessions were a new forum aspect of the Festival this year, and I attended the one on Refugees: An International Perspective. A panel of 4 experts in the area, including Daniel Webb from the Human Rights Law Centre and Rebecca Eckard from the Refugee Council, spoke about the lack of learning Australia takes from reviews of other countries, and of course talked about Australia's current policies of arbitrary, indefinite detention on and offshore.
This was paired with stories and scenarios from across the globe, and how other nations deal with refugees. The humanitarian efforts, and the sheer numbers some small nations are taking in, and providing safety to.
The Rohingya situation at sea at the time was highlighted in many examples, being the most persecuted minority in the world today, and a stunning fact that Australia had not settled any Rohingyan refugees for many, many years, was the stark reality of our current inhumanity in our dealings wit the refugee world issue. In addition to the future refugee crisis of climate change and it's impact on communities
The situation in Nauru was discussed. with the point about their dismantled law, and Australia's role of staying silence in the governance of this island nation, for their own political gains.


Don't Think I've Forgotten: Cambodia's Lost Rock 'n' Roll was an incredible and painful look at the music of pre-Khmer Rouge Cambodia. Vibrant, experimental, blues and jazz influenced rock, music scene, with such interesting characters and impressive instrumentation. So many of these stars were killed during the genocide, and with them, the musical scene that filled the bars and lounges of Phnom Penh. Tragic. A must view for anyone interested in the history of Cambodia, and also of music movements.

Transporting a full cinema of school aged kids for the CineSeeds screening of Bekas, which means 'those without family', to Kurdish Iraq at the time of Saddam Hussein rule. Inspired by a stolen glimpse of American cinema through a window, these boys gather the hope of making it over the far away hill, and to safety and a new life in America, with Superman. Kids doing kid things, having kid dreams and fantasy, as the tragic circumstances of their existence force a harsh reality onto their daily lives.

Lastly, I saw Slums: Cities Of Tomorrow, which also included a really interesting Q and A afterward. This is a documentary about the world's slums, and a look at the industry and the misery, the life and living, of these areas. Communities featured included the places that come to mind, like India and Middle East areas such as Morocco and Turkey. But it also featured the fascinating insight into people in New Jersey and Quebec, and the difficulties of the long-term homeless in Western society.

The Q and A highlighted some interesting reflections around sustainability of living, such as recycling, and living very simply, but also spoke about how the world at present has seemed to lost our way, in a community sense, in our constant strive for materialistic things, for that connectedness to the people around us, our neighbours and direct community, within our living spaces. We live in such a rush, we pass by these opportunities, that this film certainly highlighted as a means of survival for so many people.

Take A Stand. Raise Your Voice. Join The March - Movement Towards A Fair Australia For The Asylum Seeker Debate

There was a massive march through Melbourne on Sunday, with 15,000 people using their feet and voices, to raise the need for change about how Australia treats asylum seekers and refugees. This was echoed around the country, and the world, as people gathered in cities such as Perth, Canberra, Darwin and Adelaide, to march as well. Plus, ex-pats and concerned world citizens posted gatherings protesting about the policy of prolonged detention by Australia on various social media.

The momentum feels like it is growing, and the tide turning towards a more compassionate Australian public, little by little.

Apart from marching on this one day, here are a few other little actions you can take on, to help make a difference and keep this movement towards a more just approach to asylum seekers going:

Read more widely. Currently, our government has bans on the information coming out of the detention centres, and the mainstream media seems to support this wholeheartedly. The need to read more widely, from a range of different sources, to find out the truth about what is actually going on, and wade through the different opinions and thoughts on the debate, has been thrust upon us.
Also read the two reports on the situation of detention in Nauru, released very recently - firstly, the Australian Human Rights Commission's The Forgotten Children report, and then the damning Moss Review into the allegation of sexual abuse in the Australian detention centre. The evidence speaks for itself.

Know the facts. There is so much politicised language being repeatedly used in this debate, that the truth and humanity about the issue gets lost, intentionally, I am sure. The Asylum Seeker Resource Centre's Hot Potato Fact Sheet will help you here, to be armed with the truth about the numbers, the costs, the "queue", and the fear being sold to the public.

Read about some of the places and issues people are fleeing from. Places like Syria and Iraq and Palestine are in the news frequently, and so it should be easy to review your understanding about these situations. Issues faced by the Rohingya and Tamils in Sri Lanka are not so widely covered in the present media, and might be a little harder to find, so I have linked a couple of my posts there to get you started.

Write to your local MP, or let them know your thoughts on the debate. At the end of the march in Melbourne, advocate Pamela Curr urged people to go and visit the office of their local government representative and tell them that you care about the way Australia is mistreating people in detention. She said that MPs say they rarely hear about the asylum seeker debate from their constituents.
You can also write to them, which I have done, to let them know your thoughts and concerns. This site, They Vote For You, will tell you where your Member sits on the issues debated in parliament, and thus will help you shape your appeal or congratulations, on a humane stance towards the people turning to Australia for assistance and protection.
I now await a response from mine, which included an offer to meet and chat about my work experience to help inform her of the situation.

Get to know someone for whom these policies affect directly. Visit someone in detention. There are people held all around Australia, some for years and years without release nor information about why they are being detained, with very little to do, and fast dwindling hope and faith in the good of the world. You can go and spend an hour or two with someone, and make a difference in their day. And in yours, while you are at it!
Several asylum seeker agencies and advocacy groups around the country can assist with this, like DASSAN in Darwin, who have a great program in place. You will be supported, and have peer meet ups, to ensure you are well equipped and supported when doing this.
There are actually many ways you can spend time with people who are asylum seekers or refugees in our community, too - join a Welcome Group event or program, sign up for The Welcome Dinner Project, become a tutor to school children in the community. The possibilities are endless, when you start looking!

Oh! And you can share this post! Tell other people how they too, can get active in the debate and fight for change.

I would love to hear how this post has inspired action, if it has - please drop back and let me know what your MP said in response, or tell me about a visit you have made. Share a conversation you've had where you have helped someone see things differently, or tell me about a situation you have read up on that you didn't know about before!

And.......ACTION!

Our Beautiful Names: Art And Poetry In Castlemaine

Yesterday, as part of the Castlemaine State Festival, the Writing Through Fences group opened their Our Beautiful Names exhibit at St Mary's hall.

The title of the show is taken from a poem within the exhibit, referring to the practice in the Immigration system to refer to people by a number:

...
let us be strong,
let us forget numbers,
let us call out
our beautiful names.

The art works on display, and poems available in a booklet for purchase, have all been created by people held in Christmas Island, in detention centres around Australia, and some from both Manus Island and Nauru.

Such beautiful works, showing such pain, the fluctuating hope and despair, and the humanity of those stuck in this highly politicised situation.

The hall also contained an area at the back dedicated to those lives lost recently within the Immigration system, with one death this past week making the dedication all the more emotional for the room.

The room at the opening was filled with people now living in the community, under bridging visas or whatever their circumstances have allowed. The joy and energy from the young artists, so proud of their works on display, and the gathering there to see it, was infectious!

The photography from Fly Camp in Nauru caught my eye, along with several pieces from some of the men I know from there.

The exhibit is open until the final day on the 22nd March, with donations and proceeds from the booklet on sale going towards finding more way to promote these works, and support the ongoing work of the group to provide an emotional and creative outlet for the people in these circumstances.

Please get along if you can, and see and support this amazing collection of works.

A Chapter Closes For Me For Nauru

On Monday I was made redundant from my role in Nauru. Suddenly. Flown home the next day.

I have taken some time away now, and will do loads of self care when I get back to Melbourne next week, to work through all of the experiences. The good and amazing moments, the heart-warming and melting moments. And all the soul-destroying stuff, the heart-breaking stories, events, battles, the tears. The full emotional rollercoaster. Somehow.

I have learnt, and seen, so much.

I have met and had the privilege of spending all this time there with the most amazing lads, who have taught me so much about culture, incredible resilience, love, faith and hope. So much, that I will treasure forever.

I have no doubt this experience has changed me. In so many ways.

Then I need to figure out what's next. I have no idea what that will look like at this stage. But I do know that I will now find a way to fight for our asylum seekers and refugees placed in Nauru by the Australian government, until they are off that island, and safe.

Sri Lanka Is A Tale Of Two Parts: Safe For Travellers, A Danger For Some Cultural Groups

Australia's current government travel advise for Sri Lanka remains at Exercise A High Degree Of Caution...because whilst the 30-something year long civil war is meant to be officially over for a few years now, there is still danger in parts of the country, for some.

The steady stream of Tamil, and some Sinhalese, asylum seekers continues. There are refugee camps in India where Tamils who have fled Sri Lanka have lived and waited for a better life for years and years. Many Tamils, and some Sinhalese, from different religious groups but mainly Christians, have made the decision to escape and try and seek asylum in Australia.

This understanding of danger depends on which side of politics you come from, and what publications you believe. Although I know what I have heard in my line of work, and the stories people tell. The trauma, the fear, the desperation and need to leave.

I have traveled to Sri Lanka twice, to watch cricket, and never a thought of being unsafe entered my mind. I did stick to the southern two thirds of the country, though. As a Westerner with money, it was easy. Without participating in a religious practice, I did not expose myself to any prejudice or danger.

Tamils have been in danger in Sri Lanka since the end of English rule in the country, back in 1948. The brutal civil war was sparked by the militant Tamil Tigers, who fought for an independent state, with an end only being reached in 2009. But the current dangers to parts of the Sri Lankan population are not about the Tigers and the civil war.

Buddhist extremist groups have been targeting Christians in violent attacks, making the practice of their faith a target. Heavy military control of the Tamil regions in the north continue, with reported abuses such as harassment, torture, sexual violence, indefinite imprisonment. They can be denied access to education, and healthcare. Land has been denied to them.

Australia says the country is safe, and has returned failed asylum seekers. It clearly isn't. The volume of people fleeing say otherwise. The lengths some have gone to to avoid being returned, also scream for help. When will they be heard?

*This post is part of a series joining my travels with the lessons and stories I have come across in my work. Much of my travel has helped me understand different issues faced by my client group, and then many of my client's stories and experiences now shape my understanding of the world as I move through it. I wanted to share some of these points, to help others start to get this insight. These points are by no means a comprehensive thesis about the issues for each cultural group discussed - merely a starting point of thought and hopefully an antecedent to further reading and research, to gain an understanding for readers.

These photos were taken on my last trip to Sri Lanka, albeit down south in Galle.

The Plight Of The Rohingya - Travelers' Blindness In Myanmar

When I first started working with, and hearing the stories, of people who identify as Rohingyan, I naively and boldly talked about visiting Myanmar in a hope to work on rapport building and story sharing. I had been to Myanmar, and surely my travels could help me relate, right?

I'll admit, I knew nothing of the Rohingya people when I first started working with asylum seekers. They are a Muslim minority in Myanmar, and Bangladesh, Saudia Arabia and Malaysia (also in Pakistan and Thailand). They are some of the most extremely persecuted people in the world, and tell the most harrowing, trauma-filled stories of their experiences I have ever come across in all my time working in mental health, PTSD, trauma, and international development.

But as many of my clients pointed out, the Myanmar I saw when I traveled, and anyone on the fairly recently opened-to-the-world tourism circuit around this South-East Asian country, was very, very different to the one they know.

The Rakhine state, and Maungdaw is certainly not on the loop which includes Yangon and Bagan for the new wave of tourists.

The origins of the Rohingya people are even disputed in this politicised lawlessness against them, with some believing they are indigenous to the state of Rakhine, the government of Myanmar arguing that they are Bengali. They are a people from very basic villages, and primarily live off farming. They do not have a written language, and thus, one of the cultural groups around the world who rely on oral history.

They live in a state of Statelessness - meaning they are not recognised by the very country they were born in, and should have basic rights in. The right to have official identification papers, the right to having their education acknowledged formally, the right to having their marriages or land ownership documented. None of that.

Attacked by the radical Buddhist minority in Myanmar, with an increase in violence which has included the burning of villages since 2012. Rohingyans are prevented from attending school, and threatened when going to work. Men and boys are being arrested, held, without charge, and often without their families knowing of their whereabouts. The Rohingyans were asked to register as Bengali in the country of Myanmar by the government in March this year, disallowing them the opportunity to participate in the country's first census. Further restrictions are being placed on them even now, and the world just don't seem to know, or pay attention, about it all.

The buzz about Myanmar, and the hopes for democracy and change and the upcoming national election in 2015, with the golden hope of Aung San Suu Kyi becoming leader, will not help the Rohingya. She has a battle on her hands getting elected, and has seemed to think standing up for this minority too dangerous to her own plight.

The UN has just launched a Campaign to End Statelessness, perhaps another new angle of hope in this dire struggle for recognition, safety and a life without the fear of persecution.

I continue to learn so much from my clients, and this small window into their plight has been such an eye-opener - travel gave me none of this insight. As an Australian, it's hard to comprehend the experiences of Statelessness and ongoing and pervasive experiences of persecution.

*This post is part of a series joining my travels with the lessons and stories I have come across in my work. Much of my travel has helped me understand different issues faced by my client group, and then many of my client's stories and experiences now shape my understanding of the world as I move through it. I wanted to share some of these points, to help others start to get this insight. These points are by no means a comprehensive thesis about the issues for each cultural group discussed - merely a starting point of thought and hopefully an antecedent to further reading and research, to gain an understanding for readers.

These photos were taken on my trek through the hillside villages to Kalaw - maybe as rural and basic, albeit Buddhist, as a tourist usually sees when traveling to Myanmar.

Another Round On Nauru

I have just returned from another FIFO round, of 2 weeks, on Nauru. Yesterday was a day of wrapping up my work for my back-to-back in my role, and then flying back to Australia. Lucky me, with my Australian passport. The birth lottery reminder is ever-present.

In this new contract, just like the other, I can;t share too much about the work, or what it's like in the Centre. It's frustrating, working in a place within a harsh government policy, in a tiny country with limited resources; it's also amazing work on the ground with the clients. A rollercoaster of emotions as a worker, daily, hourly, interaction to interaction. Little wins, heart-aching tear-inducing stories, laughs and black tea sessions, and struggles and incredible resilience.

One week this time featured torrential rain and flooding, and broken roads.  The next saw the island's water pump being down (or something), and a resultant severe water shortage across the tiny island country - which lead to the incredulous experience of 30 second shower restrictions for us in the staff block.

I am working alongside incredible people, all problem solving together. We have great support onsite, thanks goodness, which is much needed. We are all doing our best to provide support to the clients there.4

I have started learning Arabic this round, much to the delight of many of my client group. I am not a very good student, and long, hot days do nothing for my new skill retention, and yet, I am pretty proud of my growing vocabulary!

It's still my dream job right now. One of the guys asked me what I wanted to do when I was little, and after going through the many ideas I have had when I was at school and uni, I talked about what I think I want to do now - only to find that I am actually doing it!

I Am Moving To Nauru!

My head has been spinning for the last two weeks, since being offered my new job, which I started today with an induction in Brisbane. This is big! I will be flown to the nation in the Central Pacific tomorrow to get started!

I had been going through the pre-deployment process almost like just going through the motions, from the phone interview and lining up my referees, and then getting started on the medical. I needed to get my history of DVT all cleared for travel, and then also needed a few more vaccinations and boosters from the Travel Doctor. Having needles started to make it all real, but nothing like the actual call of offer!

I am about to set off to Nauru to work in the Regional Processing Centre there, where Australia is currently holding asylum seekers awaiting their claims for refugee status to be processed. I will be working as a Case Manager, providing welfare and social support as a Social Worker.

Of course, there won't be anything much that I can share about the work, any more than I could share anything about my past work experiences. But I can direct you to my new employers' page to check out the details, if you want to know more. There are some great videos there, that will give you an insight into the work.

As for me, I will be working in a Fly In/Fly Out (FIFO) capacity, on a roughly 3 week rotation, with a day a week off whilst away. I will be returned home at the end of each rotation, to rest and relax and recover from the impact of the role.

My day off will give me a chance to explore the smallest republic in the world, sitting midway between Sydney and Honolulu, and oh so very close to the Equator. Nauru is an atoll, and is the second least populated nation in the world, after the Vatican. I am looking forward to finding out more about it!

I am not sure of my ability to blog, or maintain an online presence, whilst I am away for work either. There is a lot of wait and see! This next 3 weeks is going to be pretty full on!

Ever since I got the call about the role I have had Paul Kelly's line Careful what you dream of...you just might get it! in my head. This role is clearly the "something amazing" I have been looking for, and working towards, for years. A way to make a difference in some way, to the people caught up in this ongoing political situation.

(Picture credit -  very outdated Nauru country profile on the New Internationalist)

Please note - any comments published here about my role are my own, and are not representative of my employers' in any way.

Scarf At Jorg

A blogger made contact with me, to tell me about some more social enterprise efforts around Melbourne, and through this I discovered Scarf.

The premise of Scarf is to "borrow" restaurants usually closed on a Monday night as Industry night, and put on a two course set menu with trainee staff who have come across challenges finding employment. This training and mentoring program to marginalised youth fosters skills and confidence, and a network from their experience, to help them find employment.

The trainees are young people who are new migrants, who are refugees or asylum seekers, the long-term unemployed, and people with disabilities. They receive a wage, and tutoring to find the role within a top class Melbourne restaurant that suits them best.

Upon reading about it, I made a booking in one of the timed slots on a Monday that suited us, and Carly and Camille met me at Jorg, which was the restaurant being used for the last month or so.

Jorg is a stunning venue, and was filling up at our time slot. The table was adorned with knitted pieces on theme, and then the menu with choices for each course arrived. Such decisions!

I had the Beetroot Carpaccio for entree, which was light and fresh, with gorgonzola dollops. Candied Walnuts, and Witlof to finish it off. Very good.

For mains we all chose the Wet Roasted Lamb Shoulder, with a Parmesean Crust, Dill Potatoes and Bitter Greens. The melted at the touch of the folk, and was incredible!

It did not take much to convince us to have dessert, and I had the Raspberry Tart with Vanilla Bean Ice-Cream. Yum! That and the wine selection made for the perfect, feel-good dinner out!

Our waiter was very attentive, and careful with his clearing and order taking. He told us he has been completing a 10 week program there at Jorg – what an opportunity and leg-up into employment within the hospitality industry.

The next group of Monday night dinners starts next week, at Markov in Carlton, with Kerala Foods producing Indian inspired dishes. Sounds amazing! We are locking in a booking!

Run For Refugees

I took part in the Melbourne Marathon today! Ha! That's something I have always wanted to say! And I did....I had signed up to do the 5.7km Run/Walk. Although due to the weather it was reduced to a 3km walk just before we all took off.

I signed up for two reasons:

The first was to join Camille, who had set herself the goal of doing this walk at her 8 month anniversary of her double lung transplant this year. What a journey! So, I wanted to walk it with her.

The other was because the fundraising effort was for Run For Refugees, so all funds goes to the amazing Asylum Seeker Resource Centre here in Melbourne. A cause that I care about a lot. A service that receives no government funds to provide the assistance they do, and they help so many people here in Melbourne get settled into Australian life.

Our carload filled and we got into the city, watching the weather overhead, and the forecast. We could see many of the full Marathon and Half Marathon runners completing their final stages, as we made our way to the starting point just near Rod Laver Arena.

We joined up with many others with the pink Run For Refugees t-shirts - with some 420 people signing up for it, across all events on the day. It was raining as our group got closer to our starting time.

The starters announced that our 5.7kms was to be cut down to 3kms, due to flooding on one of the bridges across the Yarra River, and concerns for safety.

Nevertheless, the spirit of the event was not dampened, as we set off over William Barak Bridge towards the city, and then back across again to Birrarung Marr and then over the final bridge towards the MCG.

The final stages of our walk had us in a lane next to the Marathon competitors - they looked sore and weary, but what an amazing feat!

Cam did incredibly well, even with the inclines - and considering she is at 47% lung capacity! It was pretty awesome to be with her as she crossed the finish line after our lap of the MCG.

The current tally of funds for the ASRC is at $186,000 at the end of the event, with the hope to get to a record $200,000. You can support Camille's page by donating here. My page is here.

The Marathon is full of amazing and inspiring stories. I am honoured to have been part of one today!

Black Balloon, New World and Good Vibrations

That time of year has descended on Melbourne again, where I have a eMini Pass for the Melbourne International Film Festival and am running from cinema to cinema in between other life commitments, to see as many films as possible. I am doing quite well so far, and may in fact see all 13 that the Pass provides! Loving it!

Up first the synopsis of The Black Balloon had pulled me in to book Saturday night’s session, which turned out to be the short to a longer movie feature. Nevertheless The Black Balloon was a short about loneliness in a big city, as it followed the path of a floating and free balloon in NYC, and it’s encounters of people along the way. An amazing amount of people befriended this balloon which crossed their path and seemed to follow them along for a little while, speaking to it, telling it all sorts of personal secrets and walking along with it as their companion. A brief encounter with an inanimate object seemed the closest some of these people had had for a friend in some time. I had actually pictured a whimsical trail through skyscrapers and Central Park, and along the iconic landmark of the city – alas it as more Hoboken than Manhattan… The final scene of freedom was the highlight for me, and for the black balloon!

Marvin, Seth and Stanley was the main feature of this booking, about a father and his two grown sons going on a fishing trip together in rural USA. Themes here were around the lack of communication between men, misunderstandings despite the long family history and bond, and each one’s personal issues and their impact on their demeanour towards others. Each unlikable people to be fair, it was a sad tale about the state of some families and the burdens and troubles people carry with them.

Back to cinema darkness on Monday night, Jenny and I saw The New World, which to date is probably my third favourite film of the Festival so far. A story about Mirta, a cleaner in an asylum seeker processing centre in the Netherlands, who is also a single mother battling her own grief and pain and struggles with her life. West African Luc arrives to be processed, with no papers and a heartbreaking story of loss and fear, and despite Mirta’s often quick judgements on new arrivals, something sparks between the two of them, each having a strong impact on the other. It’s a beautiful story, told in a way where there are gaps in her story left for you to fill in yourself. The acting and music are well done, in that as an audience member I felt her very real symptoms of anxiety at one point, and the moments of joy and care between this friendship that is formed. It’s heartwarming, and sad. Luc’s story is powerful, as powerful as an example of the dire circumstances of fleeing your homeland, and the journey and mental toll that takes. There is a moment when Luc is first processed and his photo is taken, where he shifts for a side view, and the officer says, no no “you are not a criminal”. Indeed.

With so much made of the refugee issue and dastardly politicalised platform it has become in Australia, it was humbling to know that these very personal stories are happening the world over. And that they are very individual and yet similar no matter where the asylum seeker has fled from.

Good Vibrations will easily be my pick of best movie for the Festival, and indeed film I will see for some time. I left this later screening with such joy in my heart, and a renewed love of all things music. Set in Belfast in the peak of The Troubles, Terri Hooley opens a record store in one of the most bombed streets in the city at the time. His love of music and the terror all around him collide, and he becomes an icon of hope for youth in the middle of those times – watching him discover the underground music scene just after starting his shop moves the soul of any music lover. He then works on recording some of the bands he discovers, and thus The Undertones, Rudi and The Outcasts are released on his tiny label, produced from the record store.

Moments where he first hears the recorded track of one of these bands is one of the greatest scenes I have seen and felt for a very long time, in addition to the excitement of hearing Teenage Kicks played by John Peel on the BBC Radio National the first time, and the pinnacle gig to close out the film – I already want to see this movie again! The meeting of his future wife in the film is gorgeous, although the pain of the turmoil of the relationship throughout the film is heartbreaking, as Terri’s love of music and the live scene consumes him. An amazing biopic of an incredible man and spirit, it’s funny and witty, and a film for every music fan.

I have been raving about Good Vibrations since walking out of the cinema at Greater Union, and am telling people to see it! It screens again next Saturday!

Key Of Sea

The Key Of Sea, Volume 1, has been a favourite album of mine since it's release a couple of years ago - for the songs, but also because of the amazing collaborations and messages. The concept album is a collection of songs where an Aussie band or artist has been paired with a refugee or migrant music talent to write and play a track. The result is magical.

The second Volume has been released just this year, and when an opportunity to go to the live show came along I grabbed at the chance to see some of these collaborations live on stage.  Carly and I took our seats in the New Hamer Hall, ready for the music on Friday night.

Brain Nankervis was the MC for the night, to fill the space between the stage set ups, which was probably unneeded really. His personality was too big for these bits, and did detract from the music.

The first act was Tim Rogers, with Polyxeni, with Greek musical influences, which was a strong and commanding start to the night. They played a handful of songs they had worked on together, with Tim on vocals.

Next for the night was Sophia Brous with Awazi, who also played a collection of songs, with Brous standing out on impressive vocals. The collaboration was a great fit, the large band behind her.

The Tiger And Me with Afghani Murtaza Jafari was the next collaboration and were very impressive together, and individually. The Melbourne band could indeed be one to watch out for.

Chet Faker hobbled out next, after the MC bit, after The Royal Swazi Spa had taken their positions. Chet was on crutches, with his lower left leg in a cast, but he managed to maneuver himself onto the stool in the middle of the stage.  This bearded lad was the musical stand out for me on the night, and again the collaboration was mesmorising.

A play on the shameful Aussie turn of phrase 'Go Back To Where You Come From', the energetic boys from Jinja Safari gave us things to think about, whilst playing with Kinfe Geshu. Joined on stage by a choir of Sudanese children, this final act was really amazing.  The Silence Of The Gun brings the African sounds and beats of both musical acts together, and was so powerful.

I think it's such a shame we were prevented from taking photos on the night, because some of the scenes of the mix of cultures, musicians and instrumentation, was magical. These coming together of these pairings was the very image of what the Key Of Sea project is all about - our refugee and migrant population here in Australia is rich with talent and skills, if only we appreciate them, and take the time to let them be part of our "lucky country". This night showed that it didn't matter where people were from, music is a powerful cultural glue.

All proceeds of the albums sales go to support the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre, who continue to work towards the very integration that these musical collaborations illustrate. 

Between The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea

I have been following the work of Jessie Taylor, young Melbourne lawyer, since reading about how she came upon the situation of bringing a 14 year old Afghani foster son into her home and life.  Such an incredible and inspiring  story and single act in this horrid time of political turmoil by her!

As part of that journey that had her meet that young man, she had ventured over to Indonesia with the idea of filming the story behind what makes people boat people.  To examine the stories, and find out why people would take such a risk as to board an unseaworthy vessel and attempt to get to Australian land.  The hows, whys and experiences.

The result is the award winning Between The Devil And The Deep Blue Sea.  I attended a screening earlier this month through Melbourne University Refugee Action Collective at the University of Melbourne.  Jessie attended, and answered questions at the end, which added to the experience of seeing this documentary.

The film starts with Jessie getting to Indonesia, and visiting some people in detention.  Hearing and filming their stories.  And from here, many people contact her, to tell their stories.  So many heart-breaking and unbelievably scary and unfathomable things that have happened to these people, and their journeys to get to here. (Photo credit)

We also get a sense of the legal situation - many of these people and families who have made their way to Indonesia to flee such horrid things in their homeland have actually been granted refugee status by the UNHCR.  Many of them are awaiting an interview for this determination. All of them are being detained in the most awful of conditions, for years and years, with no end in sight, and certainly no communication from the UN about how much longer they will have to wait.

The frustration, the unknown, the burden of the risk they have already taken to get this far, is what pushed a few to seek alternative methods to get to Australia.  The promised land.  The "lucky country".  A country that has had a "stop the boats" policy beating the newspaper headlines for 12 years.

The descriptions of the boat journey from Indonesia to Australian waters is harrowing, and the footage of a boat wrestling to come to shore is so unsettling.

The UNHCR process, and the lack of Australian processes where there could be such an easy solution to help these people and indeed "stop the boats", gets a brutal and honest portrayal - only 35-50 people per year actually get from this hopeless situation and are granted the gift of resettlement - their basic human right. The alternative is clear - rather than waiting for some of these people to survive the journey across the sea, our government could just move to speed up the processing steps from the detention sites in Indonesia.

It's the individual stories that touch you.  Tear at your heart, and make you cry.  The families are the hardest stories to take in, but also the young man who has seen his siblings killed in front of him in his home country, sent this far by the urging of his parents, for a glimmer of hope of safety and life.  His voice and story stay with you.

The closing frames of this documentary are the most powerful.  You have to see this.

The film has not gained rights to be screened in Australia.  Because of it's funding, namely a portion from Amnesty International, networks who may ordinarily show such hard hitting, and real film, have shied away.  Jessie has been unable to get it listed in any of the film festivals here in Australia.  And yet several festivals worldwide have screened it, and awarded it Best Documentary at the 2012 European Independent Film Festival and an Accolade Award from the Honolulu Film Festival, to name a few.

To see this film, a crowdfunding effort has been started, with one more week of the campaign until the deadline for an attempt to have it screened all around the country closes.  There are several options to help it be screened in your area, but at the very least, buy a ticket to a possible screening in your area - and hopefully Jessie will get the funds through this process to allow you to see it, too.  And above all, this may reach some people who need to see it, to adjust their views of the refugee issue to a more humane and rights based outlook, and change the way this country votes on such an important humanitarian issue.