Researchers in Britain and refugees in Australia聽condemned the new offensive against refugees in Britain and across Europe at a forum organised by Refugee Action Collective (Victoria)聽on May 9.
The online forum 鈥淎ustralia鈥檚 refugee cruelty exported: fighting offshore detention from Nauru to Rwanda鈥, heard from refugees who endured Australia's cruel refugee regime and British-based experts who discussed the global consequences of Australia鈥檚 offshore detention policies and directions for the refugee rights movement.
A pre-recorded video by Elahe Zivardar, an Iranian artist and documentary maker who was detained on Nauru, criticised Britain鈥檚 decision to adopt Australia鈥檚 offshore detention policies. Zivardar ended her message with an appeal to 鈥渄o everything we can to stop this nightmare before it is too late鈥.
Dr Hannah Lewis, senior lecturer in Sociology at the University of Sheffield, spoke about her research into the failure of deterrence policies, both in Britain and elsewhere. She contrasted the groundswell of support for the 鈥淗omes for Ukrainians鈥 movement with the recent move by the British parliament to introduce offshore processing in Rwanda, as part of a suite of harsh new immigration policies.
Reza Mousavi, recently released from the Park Hotel in Melbourne, described his experiences in offshore detention. He said he experienced and witnessed 鈥渞eal cruelty鈥, including being denied medical care and suffering psychological torment inflicted by the guards. He said offshore detention is 鈥渄isrespectful to human life鈥 and a means of 鈥渉iding the real cruelty far from home鈥.
British refugee rights campaigner Neha D鈥橲ouza analysed the Australian government鈥檚 tactics to bolster its cruel immigration policies, describing as 鈥渆xtreme鈥 its demonisation of refugees, the moral crusading language to describe people smugglers, media black-outs and the militarisation of the borders.
D鈥橲ouza outlined examples of grassroots activism in defiance of the British policy, including unionised workers threatening legal action over 鈥渂oat push backs鈥 in the English Channel. D鈥橲ouza is working to build relationships between refugee rights activists and British and Australian MPs to develop accountability 鈥渁cross the pond鈥.
[The next forum of the Refugee Action Collective (Victoria) is on May 30.]