Today in Crikey‘s ongoing series on population growth, we’ve reproduced an extract from former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser’s new political memoirs on making the tough decisions on immigration and refugee numbers.
In the memoirs, Margaret Simons writes that Fraser was well aware that the decision to take in large numbers of Asian refugees and their families was a “fundamental one, changing the face of Australia and with the potential for vicious electoral backlash”:
“Every word I said on the issue in public was to try to say that we could do it, that we were strong enough, that we should be proud of our record as a migrant nation, and that we would be made stronger by diversity.”
Politicians, Fraser told Simons, have a superior duty to speak with “discretion and respect” on issues of race and religion.
All of which puts today’s Essential Research figures in stark relief. Essential reports that when asked this question:
Q. Do you think the Federal Labor Government is too tough or too soft on asylum seekers or is it taking the right approach?
65% answered “too soft.”
Which leads us to our current Prime Minister’s answer, standing outside his local church on Easter Sunday, when asked if Australia should throw its doors open to refugees:
“I think this is a very great celebration for all Australians, and I wish everyone a happy Easter, and as I said I hope all the kids scored lots and lots of eggs,” he replied.
Feel the leadership.
Rudd is a snivelling little coward but the media are worse.
All the blather that has been written about a few hundred refugees making the last bit of a long journey, some that take years, by sea is deranged.
Why is it that the Afghan Hazara forced illegally into Pakistan or Iran where they cannot be safe is an Afghan hazara but if they manage to reach Australia after a few years they become “boat people” instead of Afghan hazara?
It’s ugly, vicious racism and Rudd gave that stupid interview with Paul Kelly just before the election when he falsely and illegally claimed he would turn people away and he has been hoist on his own lies.
Here is the only thing that needs to be known – everyone has the right to seek and enjoy asylum from persecution in other countries.
The conventions and laws do not stipulate how they get anywhere, whether they are poor or pay for the transport.
As they literally cannot say “beam me up Scotty” and magically arrive somewhere else they do need trains, boats, planes, cars and trucks.
As we are the only nation on the planet who uses the people smuggling convention to punish refugees for “being smuggled”, Evans even called it an illegal activity for pete’s sake and Leigh Sales didn’t correct him, one would have to conclude that the protocol does not over ride the refugee convention and legal rights attached to the convention but apparently our lawmakers aren’t capable of reading all the way to Article 19
Article 19
Saving clause
1. Nothing in this Protocol shall affect the other rights,
obligations and responsibilities of States and individuals under international
law, including international humanitarian law and international human
rights law and, in particular, where applicable, the 1951 Convention and the
1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees and the principle of nonrefoulement
as contained therein.
2. The measures set forth in this Protocol shall be interpreted and
applied in a way that is not discriminatory to persons on the ground that
they are the object of conduct set forth in article 6 of this Protocol. The The
interpretation and application of those measures shall be consistent with
internationally recognized principles of non-discrimination.
I have only sent it to the media and pollies umpteen times and they all ignore the truth because it is easy to have their little racist whinges.
And perhaps Richard Farmer could stop repeating the bile of the bolta and Fielding and realise that legally the only thing Rudd can do about the refugees arriving is legally and decently process their applications for refugee status.
Anything else is disgusting and illegal.