The numbers released last week indicate that more than 684?000 Syrian refugees are in Lebanon, 516?000 in Jordan. In just the last 5 days, 30?000 Syrian refugees have fled to Iraq. During the last financial year Australia received only about 25?000 asylum seekers. In Australia these refugees will be sent to Nauru or Manus Island.
Syria itself over decades has hosted refugees from other countries including about half a million Palestinian refugees and they are now going to be displaced again.
UNHCR predicts that the projections in 2013 indicate a continued outpouring of refugees from Syria to neighboring countries with an uncertain timetable for return (http://data.unhcr.org/syrianrefugees/syria.php).
What steps are being taken by the UN and the international community to ensure that independent monitors can move freely in Syria and all parties are held accountable for the war crimes and crimes against humanity being committed against the people?
What steps are being taken by Australia, particularly as a member of the UN security council, that in addition to ensuring there is independent monitoring we share the world?s responsibility to provide safety for people from Syria. Is the government willing to act by
a. increasing humanitarian assistance in this region
b. increasing our humanitarian intake
rather than funneling millions of dollars of taxpayers? money into private corporations running the immigration detention and ?security? industry that imprisons a relatively small number of refugee men, women and children seeking asylum in Australia to serve the personal interests of politicians and their mates?
These are questions to ask
Minister for foreign affairs Bob Carr
foreignminister.carr@dfat.gov
http://bobcarrblog.wordpress.com/
http://foreignminister.gov.au/contacts.html
and
Shadow minister for foreign affairs Julie Bishop
http://www.aph.gov.au/Senators_and_Members/Parliamentarian?MPID=83P
And make a decision to stop the ROT:
http://riserefugee.org/post/56113874713/stoptherot