Senator Nick McKim will share his personal experience of visiting asylum seekers

Senator Nick McKim will share his personal experience of visiting asylum seekers and refugees under Australian’s indefinite off-shore detention regime.

On Saturday February 10th at 3pm, Senator Nick McKim will speak about his personal experiences of visiting Manus Island, as part of the ‘Lost Opportunity’ Exhibition at Mawson’s Waterside Pavilion. This will be followed by Q & A.

Polly Shelley from The Tassie Nannas said it was a unique opportunity for people to hear directly about conditions for asylum seekers and refugees on Manus and Nauru Islands.

‘We’d love people to come along and be more informed about Australia’s damaging refugee policy. Without government transparency, we have been left in the dark about the inhumane conditions for people in indefinite detention,’ Ms Shelley said.

Lost Opportunity is a collaborative humanitarian exhibition between political artist Jill Nolan and the Tassie Nannas, portraying the story of refugees and asylum seekers who came by boat to Australia. It is the brain-child of political artist Jill Nolan.

‘I felt I simply had to honor the nine young men who have died in detention’, Ms Nolan said. ‘Australia is missing out on so much creativity, passion and purpose by not allowing asylum seekers to settle here, not to mention breaching our own human rights commitments. Having been given a second chance, refugees are powerfully motivated to be successful and to give back to Australia and they have made such vibrant contributions to Australia. It is a lost opportunity to lock the gate’, Ms Nolan said.

The exhibition, which opened on Monday, also features a display of knitted work by the Tassie Nannas and a collection of quilts depicting powerful refugee stories. Lost Opportunity runs daily until February 11th.
Jill Nolan