following the recent change of federal government we congratulate Senator Chris Evans on his appointment to the
position of Minister for Immigration and Citizenship. We hope that
there will be opportunities for a close and productive dialogue between
his office and the community sector. We welcome the decision to return
the refugees held on Nauru to Australia and trust that this signals the
start of the swift demise of the horrendously damaging Pacific Solution.
We are heartened by our new government's assertion
that their decision to abolish Temporary Protection Visas was "adopted
in pursuance of a very simple principle; that when people fleeing
persecution reach Australia, that persecution must end".
We trust that this principle will extend to heeding the
call from community advocates for an end to the practice of enforced
destitution through the provision of work rights and access to health
care for all asylum seekers. Read more
We warmly congratulate our dedicated colleagues at
the House of Welcome on their much deserved Highly Commended Award at
the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission's 2007 Human Rights
Awards ceremony.
Read our latest asylum seeker testimonial which expresses hope for a change in government policy towards community based asylum seekers.
We
are pleased to announce the arrival of the ASC 2008 calendar which features
stunning images of asylum seekers and their artworks and highlights
notable human rights dates.
All proceeds of the calender go to
supporting the work of the centre. Order your copy here .
The calendar was designed and production managed by Riena Voss, who has donated her expertise pro-bono over the last three years. Here Riena
tells us about what motivates her to work with ASC.
We
thank Riena and all our volunteers for their invaluable support. In
fact we recently celebrated their contribution at our annual Thank You evening for volunteers
and Friends of ASC held at St Aloysius College overlooing the harbour.
Learn how you can get involved at ASC.
If you would like to give a gift directly to an asylum seeker
at this time please consider sending us international phone
cards for distribution so our clients may speak with loved ones overseas.
Once again - warmest thanks for your much needed support from all of us here at ASC.
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