Immigration Minister Kevin Andrew’s remarks last week — about Sudanese people facing difficulties to integrate and adjust into Australian mainstream community, and the reduction of Sudanese refugee and special humanitarian intake to 30% — were received with great disappointment by many Africans, particularly the “Sudanese” all over Australia.

Mr Andrews’ timing was utterly inappropriate. It came down like a storm as the Sudanese community was grieving the tragic murder of young Sudanese Liep Gony at Noble Park train station on 26 September by people likely to be from “white community”. This has had a huge effect on Sudanese community members across Victoria.

We are concerned that the Sudanese will become a potential target of the ill-informed racist minority in the mainstream community who will incorrectly interpret the Minister’s statement by pouring their fury onto the Sudanese people. If not addressed urgently, significantly increased racial discrimination and social vilification in public places as well as in schools, will severely affect our children and young people being educated in Australia.

In my opinion the Minister shouldn’t blame the Sudanese community for integration difficulties, because he is the minister responsible for the refugee integration and their wellbeing in their new home – Australia.

What he should contemplate is the fact that Sudanese people are the most recent incumbent community in Australia, we’ve been here less than ten years, compared with other refugee communities.

The Sudanese community came to Australia as a result of protracted civil war (1983-2005) and underwent difficult circumstances. Consequently, I believe the minister should acknowledge the naked fact that these new members of our Australian society still have the post-war symptoms that include trauma, depression, grief and loss, guilt and shame.

The young people who are now the victims of crime are a disadvantaged generation with a history of interrupted education – in fact many have not had an opportunity to attend regular school in their lifetime at all. So they require extra support in Australia.

To me and to many refugee experts, integration has prerequisites, like language learning. But we need more than the 510 hours that the immigration minister offers to adequately equip the new arrived refugee with the skills to integrate in wider community. We also need to learn about the culture and the lifestyle of the host country.

The Sudanese community should not be blamed entirely for lack of integration. Instead, questions should be raised about what the government and various service providers are doing to encourage that integration.

In conclusion, we applaud the enormous support and advocacy from the diverse Australian community who are trying to force the minister to withdraw his decision of reducing the Sudanese humanitarian intake.

We appeal to the Minister and the government to establish dialogue with Australian-Sudanese people and publicly remove the negative perceptions within the mainstream community generated by his statements.