May 14, 2012
Why are you marching on World Refugee Day? Is it because 20 years of mandatory detention has been 20 years too long? Because you are sick of hearing about another suicide, suicide attempt or act of self-harm inside detention? Because you believe refugees have a basic human right to seek asylum? Because children being locked [...]
May 13, 2012
For immediate release: Tamil refugee from the Oceanic Viking attempts suicide overnight A Tamil man who was on the Oceanic Viking has attempted suicide in Melbourne Immigration Transit Accommodation in Broadmeadows overnight. Jasee is the third Tamil with a negative ASIO security clearance to try and take his own life this month. Tamils in this [...]
May 10, 2012
Fellow detainees rescued a Tamil refugee who had attempted suicide by hanging from a roof beam at Melbourne Immigration Transit Accommodation centre at 1.30 am this (Friday) morning. The Tamil refugee, the first Tamil to receive a negative ASIO finding had been in detention for 37 months. He was taken to hospital by ambulance, unconscious [...]
April 2, 2012
Independent MP Rob Oakeshott is attempting to get legislation through parliament that will allow asylum seekers to be sent to third countries for processing. Oakeshott has called on both major parties to support his bill. The Refugee Action Collective has condemned Oakeshott’s bill as being anti-humanitarian and an attempt to circumvent the High Court ruling [...]
February 24, 2012
Tuesday, March 27, 6.30pm @ The Multicultural Hub, 506 Elizabeth Street, Melbourne 300 (map) Facebook event! Refugee Action Collective Victoria is proud to host a public forum to challenge the anti-people smuggling rhetoric dominant in Australian politics. Seeking asylum by boat is not a crime. However, those who assist asylum seekers to reach Australia’s shores [...]
February 14, 2012
This Easter, on the year of the 20th anniversary since the introduction of mandatory detention and the preceding two decades of demonising asylum seekers, refugee activists will converge on detention centres around the country to say ’20 years too long!’ and demand that all refugees be freed. National convergence on Darwin, April 6-9 Why Darwin? [...]
February 14, 2012
As tensions once again rise at MITA (Melbourne Immigration Transit Accommodation) in Broadmeadows, an Iranian man, aged 28, stitched his lips up this morning (Monday) as a sign of desperation. He has been detained for 11 months. His friend told Serco and medical staff that he was concerned about his friend and warned them. Serco [...]
February 9, 2012
Refugee Rights Action Network organised a protest convergence to Leonora Detention Centre over the weekend of the 28th to the 29th of January where they uncovered children who have been in detention for over a year despite Bowen’s promise last year to release all children by June. From the RRAN website: Around 40 refugee supporters [...]
January 25, 2012
Tuesday, February 7, 5.30pm. Bourke Street Mall (corner of Swanston Street), Melbourne. Facebook event The Australian government is currently attempting to deport Afghan Hazara asylum seeker, Ismail Mirza Jan, to Afghanistan. Never before has an Afghan national been forcibly removed from Australia to Afghanistan. This would be a new low in Australia’s refugee policy, with [...]
January 22, 2012
Due to Ali Abbas being moved to Adelaide prior to his court case, the prior planned solidarity rally outside the Federal Court in Melbourne has been cancelled. The Refugee Action Collective (Victoria) condemns the Department of Immigration for moving Ali Abbas to Adelaide prior to his court case challenging ASIO’s adverse security check. Abbas is [...]
