My Name is Refugee
by Ann-Maree McEwan Picture – West Papuan campaigner Ronny Karemi with BMSRG Judy Lynch BMRSG Chairperson. Community members, including BMRSG members, who... Read More
Palm Sunday’s Sydney rally – a special afternoon for peace
By Ann-Maree McEwan The Trades Hall choir welcomed. Dean King’s Acknowledgement of Gadigal Country reminded us of the spirits of the old... Read More
A Thousand Voices, A Thousand Acts, A Thousand Splendid Suns Event Canberra.
The Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Canberra hosted an event inspired by “A Thousand Splendid Sons” the novel by Afghan-American... Read More
Letter to Susan Templeman, MHR for Macquarie
[The BMRSG Letter Writing group meets approximately 10 times per year in Leura to discuss focus areas for each month’s letters and... Read More
Women and girls in Afghanistan
by Kathie Herbert Chair of Blue Mountains Support Group Since the fall of Kabul in 2021, women and girls in Afghanistan have... Read More
Advocates for Afghanistan face up to Susan Templeman
Wide ranging groups from the Blue Mountains and the Hawkesbury have combined to bring the plight of Afghan people seeking safety to... Read More
Morrison’s ‘unconstitutional’ crackdown on charities
Sweeping new laws that could strip charities of their non-profit status for minor offences are intended to stifle protest, the sector warns.... Read More
Prize-Winners in RAR/BMRSG National Video and Poster Competition 2020
In the next sitting of Parliament, the Coalition intends to bring on a vote on the Migration Amendment (Strengthening the Character Test) Bill 2019. The Bill has passed the House of Representatives and is now before the Senate.
While framed as a simple adjustment to the Migration Act 1958 (the Act), the Bill would in fact significantly expand the character-based powers of visa cancellation and refusal, making them dangerously and unworkably broad. If passed into law, the Bill would increase the number of people in immigration detention and facing removal from the country.
Both Labor and the Greens recommended the Bill be rejected, after a Senate Inquiry was warned of its dangers. The passage of the Bill now depends on the vote of unaligned Senators.
The Bill is bad law and should not be passed. It is deliberately unclear, concentrates power in the hands of the Minister and his delegates, and will harm families and communities.
Contact your Senator.
Strengthening the Character Test Bill – What Can You Do?
In the next sitting of Parliament, the Coalition intends to bring on a vote on the Migration Amendment (Strengthening the Character Test) Bill 2019. The Bill has passed the House of Representatives and is now before the Senate.
While framed as a simple adjustment to the Migration Act 1958 (the Act), the Bill would in fact significantly expand the character-based powers of visa cancellation and refusal, making them dangerously and unworkably broad. If passed into law, the Bill would increase the number of people in immigration detention and facing removal from the country.
Both Labor and the Greens recommended the Bill be rejected, after a Senate Inquiry was warned of its dangers. The passage of the Bill now depends on the vote of unaligned Senators.
The Bill is bad law and should not be passed. It is deliberately unclear, concentrates power in the hands of the Minister and his delegates, and will harm families and communities.
Contact your Senator.
‘Do not abandon us’ Behrouz Boochani tells audience in Wentworth Falls
Behrouz Boochani, the Kurdish Iranian journalist and award winning autho, discussed his recently published memoir No Friend But the Mountain: Writing From Manus Prison at the Wentworth Falls School of Performing Arts last Saturday. Mr. Boochani fled from Iran to seek refuge in Australia but was instead sent to offshore detention on Manus Island in Papua New Guinea. Mr. Boochani is a vocal advocate for Kurdish people and all refugees and asylum seekers. Mr. Boochani Skyped in from East Lorengu, the refugee accommodation on Manus Island where he currently resides, and received a standing ovation from audience members, before talking about his memoir and his time in detention.