Monday, June 06, 2005

The Rights of Man

I would like to present to you, The Rights of Man, an Ezine produced by Mick Arran. It features an article by myself on the refugee issue. Check it out!
The Rights of Man

Outside Villawood detention centre
Welcome to Australia
Prime Minister John Howard's government herds refugees into pens like this one. Their crime? Running away from persecution makes them 'illegal immigrants'.

A Question of Decency

by Benjamin Solah, Benjamin Solah's Blog
Photos by Benjamin Harris

Conditions of the refugees include mental illness, self-harm, violence, children’s exposure to self-harm and violence, lack of education, lack of health care, and ill-assessed claims. The amount of depression and hopelessness is evident in a lot of the detainees. One Afghan boy said, "…if I had stayed in Afghanistan of course they would have killed me, maybe in an hour or two, but I ended up in here so physically they are keeping me alive but emotionally and spiritually they are killing me."