A public forum hosted by the Melbourne Uni Refugee Action Collective (MURAC)
Speakers:
PAMELA CURR, campaigns coordinator of the Asylum Seekers' Resource Centre. Pamela will be presenting a historical overview of the refugee rights movement since the introduction of mandatory detention.
ABDUL BAIG, political refugee from Pakistan detained in Maribyrnong Detention Center in the early 2000s. Abdul played a prominent role in leading protests inside detention. He will be speaking about the conditions in which over 5000 refugees are detained today.
A VIETNAMESE REFUGEE, arrived in Australia by boat under the Fraser Government prior to the introduction of Mandatory Detention.
+ A speaker from the Refugee Action Collective
2012 marks the 20th anniversary of the 1992 introduction of mandatory detention under the Keating government. Since then, successive Labor and Liberal governments have led a race to the bottom on refugee rights. Over 5000 refugees remain in immigration detention today, including 500 children. Upon completion this year, the new Wickam Point detention center near Darwin will become the largest immigration detention facility in Australia with a maximum capacity of 1500 people.
Yet mandatory detention has not always been part of Australia's refugee policy. This public forum will, in contrasting the perspectives of two refugees who arrived before and after the introduction of mandatory detention, make the case for a more humane refugee policy.
The Melbourne Uni Refugee Action Collective is an open coalition of students united in our commitment to building a broad-based campaign against the government's inhumane treatment of refugees. We meet weekly, 1pm every Tuesday on the Second Floor of Union House.
For more info, call Jimmy 0433611346 or Jasmine 0405317787
RSVP on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/events/366322086726201/