While a seventh man has now died on Manus island, the chorus of protests is growing. The aim of this Governments has always been never to let refugees into Australia that tried to come by boat. They conveniently forget that, unless of aboriginal ancestry, we all came by boat.
With the upcoming bi- election of several federal seats and a general election looming, The abominable way those refugees are being treated is now getting to a growing awareness of voters. Savvy politicians will try and take advantage of it. If not out of a softening of their stance or because of a pure humanitarian concern, but out of practical political awareness.
You can only sweep so much rubbish under the carpet. The news about the horrendous treatment by Australia about those refugees locked on Manus and Nauru now into their fifth year is being soaked up by many countries. It will damage our reputation for years to come. You cannot excuse trying to achieve an aim ( preventing boat people from seeking asylum) by punishing thousands by locking them up indefinately on foreign islands.
The seventh refugee to die (by jumping from a moving bus) is now being remembered by a memorial on Manus Island. Have a look.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-05-26/manus-island-refugees-remember-rohingya-man-who-died/9803314
Two of the bi-elections are in WA which are contested by Labor and the Greens only. The Greens are strongly opposed to our present abominable refugee policies and totally in favour of dealing with refugees on-shore in Australia. One wonders if Labor too now will soften their stance on refugees. If not, many might well vote for the greens.
New Zealand is also willing to take some of the refugees which the present Government is strongly opposing. It seems that our minister for immigration, Peter Dutton, hopes for all the refugees to slowly give up and die or follow the latest refugee, and commit suicide.
Tags: Australia, Greens, Labor, Manus, Nauru, Peter Dutton, refugees, WA
Oosterman Treats Blog 
May 26, 2018 at 3:51 am |
I totally agree with your point of view. This is a terrible blight on Australia’s reputation, and the very sight of Dutton upsets me greatly.
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May 26, 2018 at 9:48 am |
It will follow Australia like a bad smell. Dutton has to be made responsible in a Court of Justice.
There is just no excuse for treating refugees so bad in order to prevent others from trying to seek refuge away from the bombings and killings that we are inflicting.
No one wants to leave their home-country.
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May 26, 2018 at 4:12 am |
Excellent post. Fitting pic of Mr. Potato Head.
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May 26, 2018 at 9:49 am |
Yes, but he is an insult even to the humble potato.
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May 26, 2018 at 12:35 pm
So true.
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May 26, 2018 at 5:30 am |
Is he on the left or the right?
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May 26, 2018 at 6:39 am |
If you are asking about Mr Peter Dutton, you won’t find a more cold blooded, ignorant, unkind, ex cop, a worst example of a right wing idiotic Queenslander Australian.
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May 26, 2018 at 9:55 am
You are right. One wonders if he was given the strap on his knuckles and dreadfully punished and bullied by his teachers and now taking his revenge.
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May 27, 2018 at 12:28 pm
My dad said that Peter Dutton isn’t fit to shovel shit. But I stood up for him and said he was.
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May 26, 2018 at 9:52 am |
Mr Dutton is more right than imaginable. He is a blight on the potato.
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May 26, 2018 at 12:20 pm
Some of my best friends are potatoes. I don’t think I would like Mr Dutton.
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May 26, 2018 at 6:55 am |
Excellent blog. I hope that one day soon all remaining refugees will be treated with more respect and be at peace with some freedom they strive for. A new environment and decent housing. They are only to keen to work, pay taxes and contribute to our multi cultural society. Maybe the next federal election will see the end of that Dutton bloke. Keeping Australia safe ! Who are they kidding. On top of that he has a budget without a bottom line. His stupid policies is costing us plenty for no real reason. So short sighted, so sickening, so selfish and also so illegal. Wake up Dutton. How can you sleep at night.
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May 26, 2018 at 9:59 am |
My parents came here to find a better future. But, I bet they never expected that their children, looking back, will find the horrors of how the refugees were dealt with, staring them from the pages of Australian history books.
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May 26, 2018 at 9:32 am |
Unbelievable and a shame! My wife is teaching every day German to migrants mostly from the war-zones of the Middle-East. Their personal viographies are partly and more often incredibly governed by violence and trauma. They need help what a lot of countries are not willing to give. Sometimes I feel that mankind has not learnt anything from the past.
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May 26, 2018 at 10:07 am |
There are countries that do the best to help refugees.
Australia with being the least populated continent and prosperous is ideally placed to show the world their generosity and empathy towards the plight of those driven away from home and hearth by bombing and wars.
We, in Australia, are not desperate seeking refuge clinging on leaky boats, but only by the sheer luck of our birth, nothing else…
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May 26, 2018 at 1:16 pm
The people quite often simply forget or ignore forget that migration is an important part of human history otherwise we would still sit under a tree somewhere in Africa.
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May 26, 2018 at 10:34 am |
It’s appalling. Did you know that someone from the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre in Melbourne rang the wife of Salim (the man who died) to offer comfort only to discover she hadn’t even been told he’d died. Dutton had made sure the papers had been fed a negative story of the man but hadn’t even bothered to notify his family.
In more positive news, I read this week that the Victorian Labor Party is to debate a motion to bring all remaining asylum seekers to Australia and end off-shore detention at their next conference. Perhaps we might see a move in federal Labor’s stance also.
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May 26, 2018 at 11:56 am |
The Liberals plan to have a federal election before or during the Labor Party conference. So Labor will not have a new policy at election time.
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May 26, 2018 at 12:42 pm
That is so horrible, so…..I can’t find the words. Let’s hope you are right about Federal Labour Party long overdue change of their policy.
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May 26, 2018 at 12:46 pm
I think that Berlioz means a bi election and if so they, the Labour Party has changed the date of conference.
Sorry Berlioz that prev reply was aimed at Master of Something.
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May 27, 2018 at 12:20 pm
No, it’s not a Federal election – it’s 5 by-elections to deal with the dickheads who held dual citizenship when they were elected last time.
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May 27, 2018 at 12:22 pm |
Sadly they didn’t.
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May 26, 2018 at 8:10 pm |
It’s such a pity your government won’t let us take them in New Zealand.
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May 27, 2018 at 12:18 pm |
There was talk about Dutton considering the NZ option. Anything to reduce the stench of this abomination that calls itself a government.
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May 27, 2018 at 12:16 pm |
I noticed that the CFMEU and AMWU shut down debate on closing Manus and Christmas Island detentions at the Vic conference today. I guess that means at least one Green win in WA. There must be a lot of redneck voters in the Super Saturday by-elections.
Wheels within wheels. Pretty sure the light on the hill just went out.
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May 29, 2018 at 9:48 pm |
Important post, Gerard! I agree fully!
This happening is horrible, sad, angering. 😦
We have way too many Potato-Heads ruling the world these days. 😦
(((HUGS)))
PS…I’m back to blogging after 6 days of a very full house of family. 🙂
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