SOSManus Protest, 5.30pm this Wed, 15 Nov, Parliament House More than 400 men remain in the Manus Island detention centre, resisting intense pressure and intimidation to move to other sites that are on the edge of the Lorengau town. The hostility towards, and attacks on, refugees by some in the local community, mean that the men are very fearful for their safety and feel they have no option but to stay in the centre. This is despite the fact that, for the third week, there is no running water, electricity, medicine, food and working toilets. Senator Nick McKim has recently returned from his second visit to Manus and will speak at this protest on Wednesday, 15 Nov, 5.30pm on the lawn outside Parliament House. Senator McKim has also recently described Immigration Minister Dutton as a “racist monster, and a serial abuser of human rights". Protests, rallies, vigils and other actions continue around the country to demand that the Australian government end this humanitarian disaster that they have created, and bring the men to safety immediately. We urge all people who add their voice to this demand to come to the protest and be counted. | RAC Annual Planning Meeting, Sun 26 Nov, 1-4pm, Alliance Française de Canberra, 66 McCaughey St, Turner The RAC annual planning meeting is an opportunity to reflect on the campaign and our activities and to orient for 2018. Everyone is welcome. This meeting will also be the final General Meeting for 2017. Stay around after the meeting for a snack and a chat. The proposed agenda is:
* Political update
* Taking the campaign forward - strengthening our organisation
* Working Group reports
* Financial report
* Orienting for 2018 - focus and emphasis
* Steering Committee elections
If you have other suggestions for the agenda, please send these through to us by email. The RAC Steering Committee has drafted a paper to contribute to the discussion at the Planning Day which you can read here. The Facebook event is here. The website event is here.
There has been significant turnover on the Steering Committee over 2017 with a number of people stepping back and some new people coming on to the Committee. We are very keen for activists to consider getting involved in. If you are interested, or would like to know more about what is involved, please flick us an email or simply reply to this one. | Rainbow RAC's annual SpringOut event Mon 20 Nov, 6.30pm, Asian Cafe, 32 West Row Canberra. Dinner at 6.30, talk at 7.30 - all warmly invited Dr Paula Gerber, Deputy Director of Castan Centre for Human Rights Law, Monash University, will update us on how refugees seeking asylum in Australia are faring with a particular attention to an often overlooked group in discussions on LGBTIQ refugees - women seeking asylum on the basis of persecution based on their sexual identity.
Buy tickets here - ($35 full, $30 concession). Email here for further information. | Histories of Immigration and Refuge: A Panel Discussion, 1947 - 1970s, Sat 25 Nov, 4.30-6.30pm, Muse, East Hotel, 69 Canberra Ave, Kingston Spanning post-war Australia to the arrival of Vietnamese refugees and the introduction of mandatory detention, historians Dr Alexandra Dellios, Dr Jayne Persian and Dr Claire Higgins will discuss the hidden stories and behind-the-scenes decisions in Australia's refugee history.
Buy tickets ($12) and register here. | The Staging Post film screening Sat 25 Nov, 7pm, Dendy Cinema, Civic This uplifting film about the determination to provide opportunities to the refugee community in Indonesia through establishing a school is charted beautifully in The Staging Post - Watch the trailer here.
Tickets available at thestagingpost.com.au. | If you have any enquiries about any aspect of this email, or about the work of the Refugee Action Committee, please contact us at mail@refugeeaction.org, or flick us a reply to this email. Regards
Refugee Action Committee | |
