Emergency solidarity protest with Tamil refugee on hunger strike
Leela Krishnan, a Tamil refugee who has been locked in detention for 12 months, has gone on hunger strike at Maribyrnong Detention Centre in Melbourne. Leela’s application for refugee status has been approved based on the discrimination and violence he experienced in Sri Lanka because of his sexuality – he is gay. But he remains in detention because ASIO has not completed its security check. Despite repeated attempts to get information from the Immigration Department about the status of these checks, he has not been able to find out why he has not been released.
After spending almost a year at Christmas Island and Villawood detention centres, Leela was moved to Maribyrnong in the last 2 weeks. His hunger strike, which began this morning, is to demand his immediate release. The Refugee Action Collective (Vic) has organised a protest in solidarity with Leela outside Maribyrnong Detention Centre for 2pm on Sunday October 3rd. Please come to show your support for Leela and your opposition to the Australian governments brutal mandatory detention policy.
Public transport:
To get to Maribyrnong Detention Centre catch TRAM 82 from Leeds Street near Irving Street in Footscray towards Moonee Ponds.
For more information contact:
Corey Oakley (Refugee Action Collective) 0402 262 753
Aran Mylvaganam (Free Tamil Eelam) 0430 411 469