Anglican Church of Australia - General Synod 2001 Media
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Church calls for community support for asylum seekers
The 12th General Synod of the Anglican Church of Australia has called on the Federal Government to review the plight of temporary protection visa holders and community support mechanisms.
The General Synod today held a discussion on the refugee issue involving presentations from Archbishop of Adelaide and chairman of the Anglican Communion Refugee and Migrant Network, Dr Ian George, and Federal Immigration Minister, Philip Ruddock.
The General Synod, which has been meeting in Brisbane this week (July 21-27), passed a motion calling on the Federal Government to address the disparity between current treatment of persons overstaying their visas and persons held in detention or with temporary protection visa status, and provide separate and appropriate living quarters for women and children detainees where requested.
Archbishop George said the world was witnessing the greatest movement of people since the breakdown of the Roman Empire.
“The World Council of Churches says that one in every 50 human beings on this globe is a refugee or an international migrant,” Dr George said.
“Human beings are on the move in unprecedented numbers – in a mostly south direction.”
Of the current intake to Australia of some 85,000 immigration places, about 12,000 places are made available to refugees and asylum seekers and those who have special claims on humanitarian grounds.
“To meet with some of these human beings is to hear astonishing stories of appalling hardship, trauma resulting from murder, rape, robbery, abuse of various kinds, which is added to the persecution and harrowing experiences many of them had long before paying some middle man to bring them to Australia,” Dr George said.
Dr George said the Australian community, and especially the Christian churches, had a commitment to welcome the stranger and to give succour to those in need.
He said four key issues needed addressing.
“First, the detention system means human beings are imprisoned for far too long and in circumstances less than desirable,” Dr George said.
“The second is the present manner of handling Temporary Protection Visa holders is discriminatory in an undesirable way – denying them support services which other refugees enjoy.
“Thirdly, the disparity between the treatment of those overstaying visas and temporary visa holders and fourthly, the constant ‘denigration’ of asylum-seekers by government opposition and the media.”
The full text of the resolution is as follows:
That this General Synod:
1. a. calls upon the people of our dioceses to give continuing care to refugees and asylum-seekers through prayer, and other spiritual physical and emotional support;
b. applauds the work of Anglicans throughout the country already involved, including Anglicare Australia and its members; and
c. requests the dioceses of the Anglican Church of Australia concerned to act to provide chaplaincy and pastoral care, where possible, to residents of detention centres in NW Australia, Woomera and Villawood, Maribyrnong and any other centre created;
2. requests the Federal Government and, in particular, the Minister for Immigration and Multi-cultural Affairs to
a. conduct an urgent review of the plight of temporary protection visa holders and the support mechanisms available to them in the Australian community;
b. address the disparity between current treatment of persons overstaying their visas and persons held in detention or with temporary protection visa status; and
c. provide separate and appropriate living quarters for women and children detainees if so requested by any of them;
3. asks the Standing Committee of General Synod to establish a working group which will -
a. advise the Standing Committee on how these issues might be best addressed in the dioceses and parishes so that action can be taken at every level of the Anglican Church of Australia;
b. undertake such research as might be necessary to further this work; and
c. report back to the next session of this Synod;
- asks the diocese of the Anglican Church of Australia to observe Sunday 26 August 2001 as Refugee Sunday this year, and that the last Sunday in August be observed as Refugee Sunday in each year from 2002.