wfn.org | WCC says Australian treatment of asylum seekers "deeply

["Sheila Mesa" <smm@wcc-coe.org>]

troubling" 

World Council of Churches
Press Release, PR-01-30
For Immediate Use
30 August 2001

Australian treatment of asylum seekers "deeply  troubling" says
WCC
 
The following letter was sent on Wednesday, 29 August, by World
Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Konrad Raiser
to WCC member churches in Australia and the National Council of
Churches of Australia regarding the situation of asylum-seekers
on a boat (Tampa) near Christmas Island.  

The text of the letter follows:

"Over the last few days, we have been watching the unfolding
story of the Tampa, the ship filled with asylum-seekers, which
has been standing off Christmas Island, has been prevented from
landing in Australia and is apparently unable to travel
elsewhere.  Like many around the world, we have been dismayed by
the initial reaction of the Australian government and hope that
the government will allow the asylum-seekers to land, to receive
the assistance they need, to be allowed to tell their stories and
to present asylum claims.  The right to seek and enjoy asylum is
a basic human right (Universal Declaration of Human Rights,
Art.14) which must be upheld throughout the world - and on
Christmas Island.  

We know, through our participation in the NCCA Forum and a staff
visit on these issues to Australia last month, that the situation
of refugees and asylum-seekers has become a burning political
issue in your country.  While Australia is certainly not alone in
the world in implementing measures to deter asylum-seekers, such
policies stand in stark contrast to Australia's history as a
country of immigration and of refuge.  Over the years, Australia
has played a leading role in creating and supporting an
international regime to protect those forced to flee their
countries because of persecution, human rights violations and
wars.  It is truly sad to see the public debate in Australia now
characterized by stereotyping, xenophobia and lack of compassion.
Moreover, it is deeply troubling to see Australia's role in the
international community changing from one of support and
leadership for a collective response by the international
community to one of questioning international obligations.  

The Tampa case is not an isolated example.  Together with the
churches joined in the NCCA, the World Council of Churches is
particularly concerned about the wider pattern of policies toward
asylum-seekers currently being followed by the Australian
government:

-  mandatory, unlimited detention of asylum-seekers in detention
centres located in isolated parts of the country where community
support is minimal;

- asylum-seekers who are recognized as refugees are given
temporary protected visas which delay them from being reunited
with family members and beginning new lives;

- the government's agreement with Indonesia under which
asylum-seekers en route to Australia are detained by Indonesian
security forces;

- recent reports that the government is calling for fundamental
changes in the 1951 Refugee Convention precisely at a time when
other governments and churches around the world are commemorating
the 50th anniversary of the Convention.  

All of these developments have repercussions far beyond
Australia's shores.  When the government of such a democratic and
prosperous country refuses landing privileges to a ship loaded
with asylum-seekers rescued from peril at sea, other governments
take notice.  When the Australian government calls for changes in
the 1951 Refugee Convention to prevent people from seeking asylum
in other countries, the whole international regime of refugee
protection is weakened.  

We share the concern expressed by the government that the
practice of trafficking in human lives must be stopped.  However,
we reject the notion that the victims of such practices be
further punished rather than the traffickers themselves.  We
understand that it is difficult to speak out on such divisive
political issues in the current climate in Australia poisoned by
government spokespersons and media that label asylum-seekers as
"illegals" and "queue-jumpers".  Yet the Gospel tells us that
Jesus made the love for strangers and enemies a hallmark of the
inclusive community of the children of God.  In this, he followed
the Old Testament tradition of receiving the stranger (Exodus
23:9; Leviticus 19: 33-34; Deuteronomy 24:14-19; Jeremiah 5-7). 
We are therefore greatly encouraged by several recent statements
by Australian churches that offer both an alternative vision of a
culturally diverse society and which outline concrete steps the
churches are taking.  We commend you for these actions and
express our solidarity with you as you struggle to live out your
faith in difficult times.   
  
As the WCC Central Committee said in 1995: "Christians are
called to be with the oppressed, the persecuted, the marginalized
and the excluded in their suffering, their struggles and their
hopes.  A ministry of accompaniment and advocacy with uprooted
people upholds the principles of prophetic witness and service -
diaconia.  We cannot desert the 'needy', nor set boundaries to
compassion (Hebrews 13:2; Luke 10: 25-37; Romans 12:13)."  

May God bless and sustain you in your witness now to a
government and a society in need of such words of wisdom, mercy,
peace and justice."  

For further information, please contact Karin Achtelstetter,
Media Relations Officer, Tel.:  (+41.22) 791.61.53   Mobile: 
(+41) 79.284.52.12

**********
The World Council of Churches (WCC) is a fellowship of churches,
now 342, in more than 100 countries in all continents from
virtually all Christian traditions. The Roman Catholic Church is
not a member church but works cooperatively with the WCC. The
highest governing body is the assembly, which meets approximately
every seven years. The WCC was formally inaugurated in 1948 in
Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Its staff is headed by general
secretary Konrad Raiser from the Evangelical Church in Germany.

World Council of Churches
Media Relations Office
Tel: (41 22) 791 6153 / 791 6421
Fax: (41 22) 798 1346
E-mail: ka@wcc-coe.org 
Web: www.wcc-coe.org 

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