SIEV-X: Australia's unending shame

Tomorrow sees the start of Refugee Week.

Well-known author Arnold Zable, writing in The Age about the SIEV-X an din particular Amal Basry and her life and death, says:

"The SIEV-X sinking is our Australian story writ large. It highlights the trauma and dangers that flow from placing asylum seekers on temporary visas that prevent them from seeing their loved ones for years. It is a reminder of the good fortune of those who made it, and the tragedy of those who did not. It is a testimony to all who have undertaken perilous journeys in search of freedom, and it remains a searing reminder that we assess who we are as a nation by the way we treat those who come to us in a search of a better life."

Read Zable's moving piece here - and note that Zable joins Actors for Refugees and Julian Burnside, QC, to commemorate Amal Basry's life and launch refugee week tomorrow at 5pm in the Carillo Gantner Theatre, Sidney Myer Asia Centre, University of Melbourne.

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