Close Manus Island: 99,000 sign petition – Canberra hand-over; Sydney protest

A petition jointly organised by GetUp and the Refugee Action Coalition will be delivered to the Federal Parliament tomorrow, Thursday 4 December.

The petition presently has almost 99,000 signatures making it one of the biggest petitions ever to be presented on the question of asylum seekers. The petition will be delivered in the Senate courtyard at 10.00am.

Among the politicians represented will be Independent MP Andrew Wilkie, Sen. Sarah Hanson Young, Labor MP Melissa Parke, and Greens Senator Sarah Hanson Young, Sen John Madigan and PUP Senator Dio Wang.

The petition will be presented one day after the report by the Senate inquiry into the events surrounding the killing of Reza Berati on Manus Island in February this year.

Nicole Judge, a former Manus Island worker, who gave evidence to the Senate enquiry will also be at the presentation. (See Nicole’s article here). Unions for Refugees will be represented by Stephen Darwin, ACT secretary of the NTEU.

“This petition gives Senators another 99,000 reasons to vote down the Asylum Legacy Caseload Bill,” said Ian Rintoul, from the Refugee Action Coalition.

“What is happening on Manus Island is horrific. For many people, the killing of Reza Berati in February and the death of Hamid Kehazaei in September opened their eyes to what the government’s offshore processing really means. More and more people and, it seems, more Senators too, are a wake-up to the fact that Scott Morrison is a con-artist.

“There will be no justice for Reza or Hamid until Manus Island is closed.”

Protest in Sydney

To mark the petition presentation in Sydney, there will be a protest at the Department of Immigration, 12.30 Thursday, 4 December.

Speakers at the protest will include: Australian Federation of Islamic Councils Australia (which co-sponsored the petition); Unions for Refugees; Kurdish Association; a ChilOut refugee youth ambassador; Refugee Action Coalition; and an Iranian refugee.

There will also be a protest in Brisbane at the electorate office of Liberal Senator, Brett Mason, 2166 Logan Road Upper Mount Gravatt, beginning 11:00am.

For more information contact: Ian Rintoul 0417 275 713; Nick Riemer 0481 339 937

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