Hands up all those who will suffer if 4,000 refugees come in on boats over three years
“We are 300 kilometres off Christmas Island. There are 37 children and 32 women aboard. A total of 153 people”.
2,900 km from where they started, a boatload of PEOPLE have called Australia, asking for help.
They are asking for refuge, to which they are entitled under the CONVENTION RELATING TO THE STATUS OF REFUGEES which was first proposed in 1951, and acceded to by Australia in 1954.
In 1967, the limits which prevented those from outside Europe and who became refugees before 1951 were removed.
In the 1970s following the defeat of the USA and its allies in
Vietnam, including Australia, we began receiving boatloads of refugees,
fleeing from what had been done to destroy their country, by the
countries of the South East Asian Treaty Organisation , which included
the United States, South Korea, Australia, the Philippines, New Zealand,
Thailand, Khmer Republic (later overthrown by Khmer Rouge), Kingdom of
Laos and Republic of China (Taiwan).
On Wednesday this week South Australian premier, Jay Wetherill named Hieu Ban Le as next Governor of that state.
In 1979, we were complaining about the “boaties”. (Well at least some
of us were). Prime Minister of the day, Malcolm Fraser had a model
developed, which has earned some praise recently as 94,000 displaced persons arrived on our shores.
Now they are members of various parliaments, business people,
employers, taxpayers, doctors, lawyers. Now, those “boaties” include a
State Governor. Citizens in fact, of a country which offered them hope,
expecting little in return.
The Department of Immigration estimates that at any one time there are 53,900 visa over stayers in country.
Mining person Gina Rinehart is lobbying the Federal government to
allow her to bring African labourers into the country on 457 visas with a
view to paying them $2 per day. No matter how hard I listen, I find it
very difficult to hear anybody complaining about that and I find myself
wondering why.
Various parts of the mining companies are trying to get more 457
visas allowed for so-called specialised employees, because they are
unable to find enough people in country. Most of the mining companies do
not have training programs. Rather, they prefer to bring people into
overseas who are already trained to take jobs which in the greater
scheme of things there is absolutely no reason they can’t be done by
Australian employees. With the exception of coarse that the mining
companies will actually have to train somebody. And that will come out
of the 88% of the profits from the mining industry which are repatriated
to home countries.
There is a constant call among shareholders of virtually every
company in this country to reduce costs and upgrade their investments.
The first port of call in cost reduction for most of these companies is
reduction of staff. When Tony Abbott talks about creating jobs, he
apparently does not mean in Australia. Most of the jobs created since
Abbott came to power appear to be on call centres in Manila and Mumbai,
whilst ensuring that there is no purpose served in having a motor
vehicle industry here in the country, because our population is too
small to support them.
A Prime Minister for Australia? I don’t think so.
So hands up all those who will suffer if 4,000 refugees come in on boats over three years.
Look mum, no hands.
The above is a guest post by AIMN reader Sir ScotchMistery.
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