RISE eX-detainees condemns any groups or individuals encouraging the Australian government or any other government involved in the US led intervention to restrict the intake of Afghan Refugees to a quota during the current crisis.
“Refugee quota” is a racist and white imperialist colonial theory. It should be abolished.
The lives of the Afghan people are sacrificed and crushed by the intervention of the US, Australia and other military forces in the name of a “war against terror” and geopolitical interests. Afghan people are fleeing from persecution, especially to neighbouring countries such as Pakistan who not only hosts the largest Afghan refugee population, but also the largest refugee population in the world.
The very same countries involved in the US led military occupation of Afghanistan are now washing their dirty hands from this catastrophe in the name of “peace” by taking an insignificant proportion of refugees. The combined total of Afghan refugees being taken in by all these countries is a fraction of the tally of all the countries’ troops who were part of the occupation since 2001.
When these countries, including Australia, have blood on its hands, refugee organisations or individuals encouraging them to increase the “refugee quota” to take more Afghan refugees, is NOT acceptable. Refugee intake must not be capped by numbers – we have the right to seek asylum and protection. Millions of refugees are still caught up in interim camps or stuck at the borders due to the “refugee quota” or our families have been “waiting for their turn” for decades because of a “refugee quota” while governments and their proxies continue to expand the military industrial complex to serve capitalist interests.
The Refugee quota is a racist and white imperialist colonial theory that we should abolish. Australia must urgently increase humanitarian assistance to people facing persecution in Afghanistan, compensate all victims due to its role in the invasion and increase its humanitarian refugee intake without putting a designated “number”. We also condemn the inexcusable ignorance of refugee “advocates” (many of them paid) who are putting Afghan Refugees in danger by calling on Australia to come up with a similar response to the Syrian refugee crisis – the fact is that even during the Syrian crisis Australia only expanded their intake to 12000, said they would place focus on Christian Syrian Refugees and took five years to provide them with resettlement in the country.
One should, therefore, be mindful of the fact that at the moment people who are facing persecution in Afghanistan are forced to take extraordinary risks to flee; by foot, air or boat to other countries to seek safety and a permanent refuge. Our plight must be respected and understood. We must be given permanent protection and our situation should not be politicised or taken advantage of by anyone.
We eX-detainees, have outlined our demands in our recent Afghanistan media release:
RISE eX-detainees demand that the Australian government
Immediately release all Afghan detainees from Australian run offshore and onshore detention centres including hotels into the community with proper humanitarian, financial and medical support, without further delay.
Grant all Afghan detainees, eX-detainees and asylum seekers permanent protection.
Immediately allow all Afghan Refugees in Australia to apply for family reunion under the humanitarian category and fast track the processing of these applications.
Lift the bar for all Afghan Refugees stranded in Indonesia to unite with their families in Australia.
Fast track citizenship applications of Afghan Permanent Residents and stop endangering the lives of Afghan Refugees by forcing them to contact their oppressors in Afghanistan to obtain Afghan ID documents to prove their identity.
Read our full media release here:- “Australia, US, UK, Canada and ALL other countries involved in the occupation of Afghanistan have blood on their hands: RISE eX-detainees call for immediate permanent protection and sanctuary in Australia for Afghan eX-detainees and detainees held in Australia’s onshore and offshore detention camps, asylum seekers and their families” https://www.riserefugee.org/australia-us-uk-canada-and-all-other-countries-involved-in-the-occupation-of-afghanistan-have-blood-on-their-hands-rise-ex-detainees-call-for-immediate-permanent-protection-and-sanctuary-in-austra/
‘Nothing About Us Without Us’
RISE eX-detainees