‘I Felt Trauma Again’: Refugees Detained For Years Have Now Been Told They Can’t Settle In Aus

Refugees and asylum seekers who were imprisoned in Australia’s torturous offshore immigration detention for up to 10 years have now been told by the Federal Government they must leave Australia. Farhad Bandesh, a Kurdish refugee who spent more than seven years in indefinite detention, received a letter from the Department of Home Affairs out of the blue last week that said “settlement in Australia is not an option for you”. It suggested he apply for a New Zealand or United States visa instead and that he had to advise the department of his travel plans within six days. Other refugees on temporary visas in Australia have reported receiving the same letter.

This letter is full of hatred and division.

After suffering a decade in detention, they say resettlement in Australia is not an option for us. With a lot of restrictions and difficulties we’re trying to build a life. I’d like to stay with people I love. Day 18 pic.twitter.com/u1ul9wrmIq — Moz (Mostafa Azimitabar) (@AzimiMoz) September 22, 2022

wine and spirits business “It’s really, really sad,” he said. “You’re in your home with your family, friends and the ones you love and they said you cannot stay here longer. They are taking away your life, your family and your hope.”  NZ Government agreed in March to resettle 450 refugees US government also said in 2017 tens of thousands of refugees According to the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre (ASRC) so they can build their futures here Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in the lead-up to the 2022 federal election he did not support temporary visas but he still supports offshore detention, which was created under the Gillard government.  Bandesh said the hypocrisy of the government granting permanent visas to the Nadesalingam family in May and publicising it heavily was all “fake” when countless other refugees in Australia live on temporary visas with no idea what their futures hold. “They changed the laws, they have the ability, they are the government they make the laws. So they can easily give permanent protection to all refugees here who have been suffering for more than 10 years,” he said.   in contact with lawyers. H “It’s not just about my letter,” he said. “This isn’t about refugees who came from offshore, it’s about all refugees and asylum seekers who are suffering and in limbo for more than 10 years on temporary protection visas.

I am going to fight this. I am fighting for a change in the legislation that tortures all asylum seekers – this is not about one letter. It is about Australia and their human rights abuses. It always has been!@ClareONeilMP @AlboMP #PermanentProtection

— Farhad Bandesh (@FarhadBandesh) October 4, 2022

“We need to break this cruelty down so it never happens again in Australia.”

The post ‘I Felt Trauma Again’: Refugees Detained For Years Have Now Been Told They Can’t Settle In Aus appeared first on PEDESTRIAN.TV .

“When I opened the letter I thought maybe the government was going to apologise for what they have done to me and others,” Bandesh told PEDESTRIAN.TV. “I panicked because I felt trauma again. It’s obvious, you cannot hide it, but you need to find a way to fight again.” The artist and musician was detained at Christmas Island, Manus Island, Port Moresby and the Mantra Hotel in Melbourne’s northern suburbs. He was released in 2020 and is now on a bridging visa which allows him to work but he cannot study or access welfare payments. Bridging visas only last six months so he has to reapply every time his expires. Despite years of uncertainty, Bandesh has a home and a life in Melbourne. He has a partner and friends and in May he launched his own Kurdish-Australian , picking up the winemaking hobby he left when he was forced to flee Iran in 2013. The letter said there were no visas in Australia Bandesh was eligible for that would allow him to stay here permanently. “While on a bridging visa you must work and cannot study and do not know if you visa will be extended after six months,” the letter reads. “This does not provide you with any certainty or a settlement pathway. Resettlement in New Zealand does.” The who went through Australia’s offshore system over three years. The intake has not yet commenced. The it would resettle up to 1,250 refugees from Manus and Nauru who would have to undergo “extreme vetting” first. But there are more than 1,000 refugees still in Australian detention and who hold temporary protection or bridging visas, waiting for permanent protection. A temporary protection visa only allows a person to stay in Australia for up to three years, instead of immediately granting them permanent protection visas. They were first used in 1999 and then outlawed in 2008 before they were reinstated by the Coalition government in 2013. Like bridging visas, once the temporary protection visa expires holders must go through the application process all over again. These types of visas have been widely criticised as cruel and illegal under international human rights laws because they leave people in limbo and create a cycle of disadvantage and psychological trauma. , visaholders are saddled with uncertainty, are unable to apply for family reunion, are barred from most forms of financial support and cannot access to emergency accommodation. Activists have been pushing for permanent protection rights for refugees in Australia for years. Organisations like ASRC, Amnesty Australia’s Game Over campaign and the Australian Refugee Action Network’s Give Them A Future campaign all argue it’s way past time to provide individuals and families with permanent visas. Bandesh has missed the deadline to reply to the letter from the Department of Home Affairs and has beene said he would stay and fight for not just himself but for all other refugees in Australia.