Tamil Sydney

Varna Rameshwaran in Muththamil Maalai 09 - By Australian Medical Aid Foundation (AMAF)

Time: 6.00PM, Saturday, 5/12/09 Venue: Ian and Nancy Turbott Auditorium Rydalmere campus, University of Western Sydney.
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Rally on Monday, 2 Nov 09 - Welcome Refugees, Say no to Rudd's Indonesian Solution

Rally on Monday, 2 Nov 09 - Welcome Refugees, Say no to Rudd's Indonesian Solution Venue: Immigration Office, Lee St near Central station to protest against the Rudd Govt's Indonesian solution.
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Bishop Manning’s letter to Prime Minister Rudd

"..As you are aware around 250,000 internally displaced Tamils have been, for the past 5 months, segregated into camps in Sri Lanka with extremely poor facilities and limited access to aid from NGOs. Reports indicate increasing levels of desperation when faced with water shortages, sickness and limited food supplies. I have been the recipient of many letters and phone calls from the Tamil community in Australia asking me to intervene on behalf of the Tamils in these camps. Such desperation is always a “push” factor when it comes to people making risky escapes from intolerable situations. .."

29 Oct 2009. Tamil Sydney - Border Protection Command today successfully intercepted a suspected irregular entry vessel. The Royal Australian Navy patrol boat HMAS Ararat, operating under the control of Border Protection Command, intercepted the vessel at 4.20 pm (AEDST) on 29 October 2009 as it approached Ashmore Islands. It was initially detected by a Dash-8 maritime patrol aircraft, operating under the control of Border Protection Command.

The Australian Human Rights Commission has found the that Commonwealth Department of Immigration and Citizenship breached the human rights of Mr Ahmed El Masri under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), in a report tabled in federal Parliament today. Commission President, Cathy Branson QC, found in the report that there had been two separate breaches of article 9(1) of the ICCPR which prohibits arbitrary and unlawful detention.

The Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) today acknowledged the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) report regarding the detention of Ahmed El-Masri and has extended its unreserved apology for the breach of his human rights.“We take this matter very seriously,” a DIAC spokeswoman said.“In line with the AHRC’s recommendations, departmental processes have been amended to require staff to consider relevant case law when assessing whether a person is unlawful and should be detained.”

In an exclusive article to The Australian Amanda Hodge writes, "KUNAM has been a civilian for the past five years but he will be branded a Tamil Tiger for the rest of his life by the bullet and shrapnel wounds that scar his body.The 34-year-old former rebel soldier, who says he cannot stay in one place for more than a week at a time for fear of assassination by government security agents or rival Tamil paramilitary gangs, is waiting in an ever-growing queue to take a direct boat trip to Australia. "

A popular Talkback Radio 2GB host Ray Hadley interviewed Dr Victor Rajakulendran on recent political debates around asylum seekers. Dr Victor Rajakulendran recently claimed that Tamil fighters are likely to be among boat people arriving in Australia but Australasian Federation of Tamil Associations has disassociated it self from this statement and said, "AFTA categorically disassociates with the statement by its executive member about the presence of ex-LTTE cadres amongst those fleeing as this has no basis in fact."

The Australian today published messages sent by 78 Asylum seekers in bottles to Chief of Australian Government or Kevin Rudd. The report said, " In the letters, addressed to "the Honourable Chief of Australian Government", they promised to uphold Australian law should they be resettled. "Until now we heard that your country is a humanitarian country and also the refugee can restart their new life with freedom in your country," one letter said. "If your country don't want find us a good solution better we will close our life in here," the unsigned letter said. "

Photo Courtesy: Reuters
Sri Lankan refugees look out from the Australian coast guard vessel, Oceanic Viking anchored near Bengkil Island, about 14 km (8.7 miles) east of the Tanjung Pinang and the port of Kijang, on the Indonesian island of Bintan October 27, 2009. A refugee on the ship said he left the Jaffna area in northern Sri Lanka some 6 months ago, and had been on the current vessel for 10 days. Seventy eight Sri Lankan asylum seekers rescued by an Australian customs vessel in Indonesian waters are to be taken to a detention centre on the Indonesian island of Bintan, an official said on Monday. Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, seeking to curb a growing number of asylum seekers, has sought help from Jakarta and other neighbours over the politically sensitive issue.
REUTERS/Vivek Prakash (INDONESIA POLITICS MILITARY SOCIETY)

ABC TV Lateline reported today that, "An Australian film-maker who visited several Indonesian detention centres has described the "appalling" conditions asylum seekers are being held in.Jessie Taylor has told ABC's Lateline program that conditions in some of these centres are akin to "third world jails".Ms Taylor visited 11 camps and spoke to 250 asylum seekers across Indonesia. She says she saw people with rampant skin diseases and infections caused by poor conditions."

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