ACTION CURRENTLY IN PROGRESS
Cellist and refugee supporters occupy Spring St intersection in Melbourne to bear witness and show solidarity to the men on Manus.
This morning, a cellist surrounded by refugee advocates has occupied Melbourne’s Spring St intersection in solidarity with the men of Manus who are being deserted by the Australian Government. The cellist is playing a Kurdish poem composed to song by the journalist Behrouz Boochani (who has been imprisoned on Manus for the past four years)activits. Supporters are standing in a large circle holding red ribbons connected to the cellist as more refugee activists stand on Parliament steps holding a banner that reads: “We Rise With the Men on Manus” #Justice4Refugees #WhereIsOurHumanity #Manus
Whistleblowers, Activists and Citizens Alliance (WACA) spokesperson Sumarlinah Raden Winoto stated,
“For four years the men of Manus have had no safety and no certainty and still the injustice continues. There is a looming humanitarian emergency as the Government begins to close Manus and abandons all responsibility. The Government has created the present crisis and now they turn their backs on the same acutely vulnerable people who lives they’ve destroyed.”
With contracts on Manus officially ending on 31st of October, people in the detention centre are being cut off from essential services and denied the protection that’s encouraged by the Human Rights Charter.
“We cannot fathom the damage that has already been done and fear for their mental health as continue to live in a state of uncertainty. This horror needs to end now by resettling the men of Manus into safety.” stated Winoto
Spokesperson Callum Simpson explains
“We must all start to acknowledge that we are all complicit in the torture of refugees. Our tax money is going into the funding of the private corporations running the camps. Any minor inconvenience people face this morning should be felt in comparison to the years that have been stolen from the people on Manus. We see it as our only option left to get our Government to listen. Similar to other national crimes, Australia’s treatment of people seeking asylum will not be easily lived down – and we will fight for them to be held accountable.”
Hashtags
#Justice4Refugees
#WhereIsOurHumanity
#Manus
Callum Simpson, Sumarlinah Raden Winoto, Whistleblowers, Activists and Citizens Alliance (WACA)
