Wednesday, 29 November 2023

 Sarah MANSFIELD (Western Victoria) (09:45): Last week friends and I went along to Queenscliff to have a Tamil welcome feast. These events occur monthly, supported by Queenscliff Rural Australians for Refugees. At these events people can book a table and be served a delicious meal prepared by Tamil asylum seekers. During that meal we heard from a number of the asylum seekers who prepared our meal that evening, including a family – mum, dad and two young kids – and the story they told was just extraordinary. There were audible gasps from the people attending at some of the things that this family has been through, and they continue to live in unimaginable uncertainty on temporary protection visas. The eldest child has almost finished high school. She was six or seven when they arrived in 2013 by boat. She would love to go on to study psychology at university, but she cannot because she would have to pay international student fees. The youngest child was born in detention. That the government is willing to treat people like this is incredibly distressing, and it is largely for political purposes. There have been slight improvements in our asylum seeker policy with this current federal government, but there is a long way to go. We have at least 12,000 people in a similar situation to this family. I really look forward to the day when I can attend a welcome feast like this where those who prepared the meal are also truly welcome.