Society

Solving the problem of asylum seekers

Rev the Hon Dr Gordon Moyes, Leader of Family First in NSW Parliament, announced today that, "Kevin Rudd could solve the problem of the 78 Sri Lankan boat people on the Australian vessel in Indonesian waters by ordering today that the ship bring them to Australia. Process them in Perth or Port Hedland, then bring them to Sydney.”

He continued, “Sydney has a large Tamil community. They are well-respected citizens, and there are half a dozen large, Tamil-speaking Christian churches here that are used to settling new arrivals. Rev John Jegasothy, Minister of the Dulwich Hill Uniting Church, as well as President of the Australian Council for Tamil Refugees, has two decades experience of settling Tamil students and refugees, overseeing their housing, employment and schooling. The Federal Government should pay him to provide these same services to the new refugees.”

In the 1960's I helped settle illegal refugees and legal refugees in Dandenong Victoria, by providing them with housing, organizing employment and schools for White Russians from China.

In the 1970's I helped settle refugees escaping from Vietnam, with jobs, housing, clothing, food and schools. Their children are today doctors and lawyers, and one a research scientist.

In the 1980's my wife and I became carers for over 30 illegal boat people, all orphaned boys who had seen their sisters and mothers raped and shot, and their brothers and fathers shot and thrown into the China sea by renegade pirates. They eventually ended up in Darwin and we provided care, food, clothing, housing, bedding, schooling and trauma counselling over the next six years for each of them. Every one of them graduated from HSC and went to University or TAFE.

Those boys, the eldest of whom was twelve when we started caring for them, started an automatic transmission business, a restaurant and went into various professions.

Our experience is that refugees are good for a country. They spend every cent they earn on purchasing their own homes, cars, furniture, clothing and consequently pay GST on everything, helping the Australian economy.”

"Mr Rudd, bring them to Sydney and we will look after these families. They will do us good! Not the least of it, your action will reverse the bad publicity for the way learning colleges have ripped off so many Indian and other international students.

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Combined Churches of Townsville awarded for community outreach

The Neighbour to Neighbour program, which is the combined Churches of Townsville National Day of Thanksgiving community..