Australia must heed Pope Leo’s call on 2013 anniversary
On 19 July 2013 the Rudd Government initiated an indefinite offshore detention regime that still holds over 100 people, who arrived in Australia by boat, in scandalous conditions in Nauru and Papua New Guinea, while 750 people evacuated to Australia languish on temporary visas with no hope of safe, permanent settlement.
In the past six months, the St Vincent de Paul Society has pleaded multiple times for an end to this long and cruel regime. We call for a quick and permanent settling of all these people in Australia or a safe third country.
The Society’s National President Mark Gaetani said this 13th anniversary of the Rudd Government decision is a sobering reminder that policies built on exclusion continue to leave people in prolonged uncertainty and distress. This is completely contrary to the just, welcoming and compassionate approach to people seeking protection demanded by Pope Leo XIV and by his immediate predecessor, Pope Francis.
“It is sadly ironic that in the month Mr Rudd made his announcement, Pope Francis made his first journey to the Italian island of Lampedusa, where he condemned the ‘global indifference’ to the people also arriving there by boat and instead stood in solidarity with them,“ Mr Gaetani said.
On 4 July this year Pope Leo commemorated Pope Francis’ visit in 2013, by word and action, visiting the island and thanking all those offering welcome and compassion to the people arriving there by sea. He also issued a letter to United States people for their Independence Day, reminding them that defending human life “includes welcoming, protecting and assisting immigrants”.
“However, the Australian Parliament’s principal response to this sad anniversary has been this month’s issue of the majority report for the Senate Inquiry into offshore processing and resettlement arrangement, which focussed almost solely on governance and financial issues,” Mr Gaetani said. “The majority report ignored the grave human rights abuses and the appalling conditions endured by vulnerable people subjected to this regime for 13 years.
“The Society has a long history of standing with people who are vulnerable, and that includes people seeking protection in Australia. Every person deserves to be treated fairly and with compassion.”
Mr Gaetani said Pope Leo’s witness has sharpened the Society’s focus on putting words into action, especially in service of people pushed to the margins.
“Therefore, the Society again calls for an end to offshore detention and for the Government to ensure that people who have already endured years of trauma, uncertainty and displacement are given a permanent place to rebuild their lives in safety and dignity,” he said.
People are invited to connect with this advocacy by attending the Australian Refugee Action Network online forum on 21 July and signing two Asylum Seeker Resource Centre petitions, one seeking the evacuation of people held in Nauru and Papua New Guinea to Australia and one calling for those 750 in Australia to ‘stay here for good’.
Mr Gaetani said justice for people seeking refuge in Australia is not only a matter of policy, but of moral responsibility for the welfare of the people already in our community.
The Society is also calling on Australians to support community agencies assisting refugees and people seeking asylum, including Catholic organisations, the Jesuit Refugee Service and the Brigidine Asylum Seeker Project, in Sydney and Melbourne respectively.
The St Vincent de Paul Society in Australia consists of more than 40,000 Members and volunteers who operate on the ground through over 1,000 groups located in local communities across the country.
MEDIA CONTACT
0475 068 209 or media@svdp.org.au