Writing Letters
Guidelines for writing to your politician
Introduction – Why Write Letters?
We generally direct criticism of Australia’s refugee policy and the actions taken by the Department of Home Affairs and the Department of Immigration to the relevant Minister for Home Affairs and/or the Minister for Immigration. However, every Federal politician is also responsible, unless they have actively and openly opposed the Federal Government’s position and actions. Both major parties have supported recent legislation maintaining the inhumane policies introduced over the last few decades, and have also breached international law by ignoring Australia’s obligations under several UN conventions, though Labor, since forming Government has improved some aspects of the Coalition’s draconian approach. There is still a long way to go before decency and compassion become the base on which decisions about refugees and asylum seekers are made.
Last year, Labor reopened Nauru where about 100 people who have since arrived by boat are now detained. They have had their phones removed from them and there is very little outside knowledge of how they are being treated. Australia spends around $500 million each year on making refugees’ lives a misery. Even when there are no refugees on Nauru, Australia pays an American firm hundreds of millions of dollars each year to maintain the facility there.
There are also 37 refugees abandoned in PNG, many of whom are now suffering severe physical and mental health issues as a result of years of neglect. The most recent responses from the Government when questioned about these people is that it is the responsibility of the PNG Government. While Australia pays some money to PNG (meaning we accept that we are responsible), the amount is hidden in secrecy and in the past, at least some of that money has not been used to support refugees.
Many Federal politicians do not know the facts about our refugee policy, and most have not confronted the moral issues it raises. Our politicians are fed information by their minders and the party political spin doctors.
So, the responsibility is on us to educate our politicians and force them to acknowledge the facts and confront the issues raised. We can all do this by writing to them, asking very simple, focused questions and then pressing for an answer. Pressing them for an answer is critical. They will not want to answer and they will refer your letter to someone else, or respond with a form letter containing bureaucratic fog in the hope that you will go away.
Tips for writing to Politicians
Contact our politicians and encourage them to act. Any contact is seen as an indicator of public opinion and we all know how politicians bow to that.
If you phone, you will talk to the office person whose job it is to record your views. Write out what you will say before you phone. One or two sentences are plenty. When it is election year it is worth adding that you will consider your vote on the basis of the party’s refugee policy.
Letters, either typed or hand written, are much more effective than emails and tend to elicit a response.
If you email, give your email a title. Begin by affirming any positives, finish by asking. Try to be polite.
And if you struggle with letter writing, try using AI. Put some of your main ideas in point form, then tell the AI (ChatGPT, Gemini, …) to write a letter based on those points. Make sure you read what it produces – AI does make mistakes, and you should try to put your own voice into it. Some AIs (eg Gemini) will refuse to write a letter addressed to politicians, so tell the AI that it’s a letter to the editor and adjust accordingly.
Use your own words, not someone else’s.
An original letter sent by one person is generally more effective than a form or template letter sent by dozens of people. If you feel your writing skills are not the best, remember that a letter written in your own words will carry much more weight than a letter that just repeats what some else said.
Always remain polite and courteous
but don’t be afraid to take a firm position. While your representative’s job is to represent you, you must remember that politicians and their staff are people too. Threats, hostile remarks and rude/offensive language are among the fastest ways to alienate people who could otherwise decide to support your position in light of rational and reasoned argument. Your representative could be in elected office for decades, and could be promoted to higher, more influential, office within their party. Avoid creating enemies.
Keep your letter brief
Please ask only two questions (see below for suggested content). As a normal rule letters should be no longer than one page and should be about one issue only. You need to be concise as Politicians receive many letters on many topics every day. Long or rambling letters are likely to be put aside and read on a quieter day and that day may never come. Also brief, concise letters makes evasion all the more evident and repeated refusal to answer a simple question carries its own story.
Handwritten letters often get more attention than word-processed letters and emails are often ignored.
You are likely to get a wordy or evasive answer. Read it carefully. If it does not actually answer your questions, write again pointing out politely that they have not answered the questions.
Repeat the question until you receive an answer.
If you get an answer, write thanking them for the response.
Some issues you could address
- Don’t take away Asylum Seeker phones.
- Get all those trapped by Australia on Nauru and Papua New Guinea to safety.
The Recent Reports – Australia’s Response to Refugees page on the BMRSG website (under Stay Informed) has up-to-date information, articles and ideas to direct or include in your letters.
Join the BMRSG Letter Writing Group
You can either write your own letter using the tips and information given above or you might like to join the BMRSG Letter Writing Group where you can brainstorm and share ideas for letters. The Group meets monthly – usually the second Thursday of the month from 11 am – 1 pm. For more information on the group contact Judy Reynolds on 0429 491 862 or email juglenn@bigpond.com
Letter Writing Kits
A network of advocacy groups produces a regular Letter Writing Kit. It is focused on their current campaign and provides tips, ideas and a sample letter, as well as contact details for politicians to whom you can send your letter. The most recent kit can be downloaded from this link at the Australian Refugee Action Network (ARAN) website: ARAN Letter Writing Kit (Note that some of the contact details actually contained on that page are out of date but the correct information is included in the PDF and Word versions of the monthly kit, which can be found just above the section titled “Past Letter Writing Kits (Word versions)”.)
Addressing your letter
The Australian Parliament website has contact details and guidelines on the correct forms of address for Members and Senators. Click below for more: