Policies & Papers

Refugee and Migrant Sunday

Archive

Editorial

This is the first edition of 'Journeys' End' for 1999.

In April, the gravity of the situation for refugees from Kosovo increased, especially in the Federal Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM). The Australian Government responded to a request from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to provide temporary haven for almost 4000 Kosovar refugees who were in FYROM. The first of the refugees arrived on 7^th May and, after a few days at East Hills in Sydney, went to Tasmania. Successive groups, after a short stay at East Hills, went to Victoria, Western Australia, South Australia, and New South Wales.

This humanitarian response, as well as helping the refugees, has helped many Australians to be more compassionate and understanding. The Honourable Philip Ruddock, Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs, has thanked the organisations and individuals who have contributed in a multitude of different ways. Among those to whom he gave special mention was the Society of St. Vincent de Paul.

The majority of Kosovars have been insistent on expressing their gratitude to Australia, even though a few, in one instance, showed well-publicised dissatisfaction. It was regrettable that this instance caused some generalised bitterness to be expressed in the media. Do we make the expression of gratitude a condition for helping people who have been through horrendous experiences? That is not the example which Jesus Christ gave us.

Although most of the refugees wish to return to Kosovo as soon as possible, some have apparently expressed the desire to stay , particularly because of fear of ethnic hatred which still exists in their homeland. This is an issue which Australia will face in the months ahead.

Holy Father's Message for Refugee and Migrant Sunday (In Australia, Sunday 29^th August).

The theme set by Pope John Paul for 1999 is "the importance of the parish in welcoming the stranger". It is not possible to include the whole message in this newsletter as it is three A4 pages in length. Copies may be obtained from ACMRO. In his message, the Pope says: "The importance of the parish in welcoming the stranger, in integrating baptised persons from different cultures, and in dialoguing with believers of other religions, stems from the mission of every parish community and its significance within society. This is not an optional, supplementary role for the parish community, but a duty inherent in its task as an institution".

May the peace of Christ be with you all.

(Fr) John Murphy

UPDATE/NEWS

Father Eris Tierney R.I.P.

Fr. Eris Tierney was Director of the Catholic Immigration Office in Sydney from 1952 to 1972. He was born on 19^th September 1921, and was ordained a priest on 21^st July 1945. He died at his home in Bateau Bay (diocese of Broken Bay) where he lived in retirement.

Much of Fr. Tierney's work at the Catholic Immigration Office is recorded in Fr. Frank Mecham's book "The Church and Migrants". He generously and zealously assisted refugees and migrants in many ways, e.g. with interest -free loans for travel to Australia, and with finding employment and accommodation. Many Catholic immigrants arrived in Sydney each month (in one year, 1000 per month). With the migrant chaplains, he met them all on arrival.

May he rest in peace.

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Refugee and Migrant Sunday

29 August 1999

Refugee and Migrant Sunday

(formerly called National Day for Migrants and Refugees and also Immigration Sunday)

will be observed on Sunday 29^th August 1999. Material for this day was sent to Dioceses and School Commissions in the second week of July for distribution to parishes and schools. The material includes 3 items: a letter from ACMRO with some facts on refugees; the message of the Holy Father for 1999; and a poster which was the winning entry of a national secondary school competition conducted jointly by the National Council of Churches in Australia (Program for Refugees and Displaced People) and ACMRO.

Olivia Pulbrook a Year 9 student at Melbourne Girls Grammar School is the winner of the poster competition. Olivia's painting not only highlights the pain and suffering of refugees, but also has an optimistic message of hope. Well done Olivia!

Most dioceses will celebrate Refugee and Migrant Sunday on Sunday 29 August, but a few have chosen a different date for local reasons.

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National Multicultural Advisory Council

Fr. Murphy and Felicity attended a function at Parliament House on 5 May for the launching of the policy statement "Australian Multiculturalism for a New Century: Towards Inclusiveness" prepared by the National Multicultural Advisory Council (NMAC). The Prime Minister (the Hon John Howard) launched the statement along with the Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs (the Hon Philip Ruddock) and the Chairman of NMAC Mr Neville Roach. The statement endorses social harmony for an inclusive and cohesive Australian multicultural society. ACMRO thanks Dr Ann-Mari Jordens (a Canberra Advisory Group Member) for her comments in the submission to NMAC. Many of Ann-Mari's comments and ideas are referenced in the policy statement. The submission to the NMAC will be available on ACMRO's home page.

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East Timorese Asylum Seekers

The situation remains bleak for more than 1500 East Timorese who are waiting to see whether they can remain in Australia. Page 8 details the time-line of significant events that have caused the conflict in East Timor. This time-line has been prepared by the Australian Catholic Social Justice Council.

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Policy on Pastoral Care of Migrants and Refugees

A draft policy statement on the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Refugees has been prepared and will soon be sent to the Bishops for their comments. Sincere thanks to Fr. Adrian Pittarello for his work on this project.

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Year 2000 Celebration for Migrants and Refugees

There will be a celebration in Rome for Migrants and Refugees from 1 to 3 June 2000 with a Mass in St Peter's Square on Friday 2 June. Harvest Travels have prepared a tentative pilgrimage to Rome and the Holy Land, with an optional return to Rome for the Eucharistic Congress, 18 - 25 June 1999.

In Australia the main celebration for Migrants and Refugees in the Jubilee Year will be on Sunday August 27^th - Refugee and Migrant Sunday.

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2000 National Conference on Migrant and Refugee issues

The Bishops Committee for Migrants and Refugees has commissioned ACMRO to hold a national conference on migrant and refugee issues. St Joseph's College, Hunter's Hill NSW is the venue and accommodation will be available there. The dates are Friday evening (7^th July) to Sunday afternoon (9^th July). The conference will be open to all members of the community and representation from parishes will be encouraged.

National Refugee Weekwill be celebrated 11 to 17 October 1999.

Austcare advises that the aims and objectives will be the same as last year.

The theme - "Clearing a Safe Path".

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ACMRO Web Page

Thanks to Mark Donnelly, ACMRO has a web page under construction at http://users.interact.net.au/~cacm/index.htm . Mark generously created the page in his own time and continues to develop and update the page. ACMRO's publications, policy, submissions, newsletter and news updates will be available at the site.

IMMIGRATION NEWS

Senate Inquiry

The Australian Senate Legal and Constitutional Reference Committee is holding an 'Inquiry into the Operation of Australia's Refugee and Humanitarian Program'. Submissions closed on Friday 18 June 1999. ACMRO made a joint submission with the Bishops Committees for Migrants and Refugees and for the Family and for Life. The submission will soon be available at the ACMRO web site address.

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Annual Migration and Humanitarian Programs - Intake Submission

ACMRO contributed to the annual submission process for the make-up of the 1999/2000 Humanitarian and non-Humanitarian Programs. Many non-government organisations made the same request in their submissions this year, seeking a formal Government response to the recommendations made in the consultative process to show how the Government responded to those recommendations.

ACMRO's submission focused on the importance of family reunion as a right; consideration of increasing the family component of the Migration Program; and that skilled migration is not necessarily achieving the desired effect. Other points included:

• the thoughts of Pope John Paul in response to a large number of countries restricting entry of migrants and refugees;
• a request to simplify the Immigration Act and Regulations;
• inclusion in the Immigration Act of

i) a statement of principle;

ii) relevant parts of the 1951 Convention on the status of refugees; and

iii) installation of procedures which ensure that all applicants for Protection Visas will be informed of their basic entitlements.

• a general overall concern with long-term detention, especially in remote Port Hedland.

ACMRO was assured by DIMA that our views and comments would be considered in the formulation of Government policy on immigration.

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1999-2000 Humanitarian and non-Humanitarian Programs

The size and composition for the 1999/2000 Humanitarian and non-Humanitarian Programs consists of 82,000 places.

70,000 non-humanitarian places:

32,000 Family Stream

35,000 Skill Stream

3,000 Special Eligibility Stream.

12,000 humanitarian places:

2,000 Onshore places

10,00 Offshore places:

- 4,000 Refugee places

- 4,300 Special Humanitarian Program

- 900 Special Assistance Category

- 800 to be allocated according to developing situations as advised by UNHCR.

DIMA called for submissions on the Immigration Advice and Application Scheme (IAAAS) and congratulates the National Council of Churches on their submission. Summary of NCCA's recommendations included:

1. The level of funding is inadequate as many refugee claimants with merit and without funds cannot access application advice. An increase in the amount of application assistance and legal advice to the pre July 1998 level was suggested;
2. That the standards of contracts must be improved to ensure advice is comprehensive and fair;
3. That the three day response period is increased to fourteen;
4. That commercial consideration be provided for contractors attending RRT hearings;
5. That there be a separate monitoring system for best practice and that a complaints system be established;
6. That full information about the role and function of advisors be given to asylum claimants clearly explaining confidentiality of any complaints.

The Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs has proposed changes to assistance for newly arrived humanitarian entrants. The changes include a new service delivery model aimed at encouraging Government funded organisations and volunteers to work together in assisting humanitarian entrants with;

• Accommodation Support

• Initial Information and Orientation Assistance

• Early Health Assessment and Intervention

• Household Formation Support

• Service Support

• Proposer Support

The Directors of the Catholic Offices in the Capital Cities at the annual Directors Meeting meeting on 7 April expressed concern at the likely negative effect of the IHSS on volunteers, particularly those in Community Refugee Settlement Scheme (CRSS) groups. These comments were made when Ms. Philippa Godwin, DIMA Humanitarian Section, was present at the meeting to specifically discuss the issue.

The Directors comments were then presented to the Bishops Committee for Migrants and Refugees on 8 April. Fr John was asked to express these concerns to the Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs, the Honourable Philip Ruddock. This is the response letter from the Minister:

Dear Father Murphy,

In response to concerns that sufficient time be allowed for community organisations to respond to the RFP process, I have agreed that the process be over a longer timeframe. My Department will be writing to stakeholders advising of the new timetable shortly.

Thank you for writing to me on this matter. Yours sincerely

Philip Ruddock 17 June 1999

Citizenship

Minister Ruddock launched the Australian Citizenship 1996 Census Statistical Report No.26 on Wednesday 9 June 1999 at Parliament House. Fr. Murphy attended the launch. The report will be a useful resource. The findings showed that:

• 73.2 % of overseas born took up citizenship;

• the longer the residency the higher the rate of citizenship;

• those born in countries with a high English proficiency were less likely to take up citizenship;

• males have a higher rate of citizenship than females;

• a positive correlation for those proficient in English who spoke a language other than English at home ;

• citizenship rates varied between different language groups;

• the rate of citizenship increased with age;

• the rate of citizenship was higher in capital cities. Canberra had the highest rate while Brisbane had the lowest rate; &

• the estimated number of eligible non-citizens was 943,400 at June 1998

Living in Harmony

The Government awarded fifty organisations with Living in Harmony Grants. According to DIMA Staff News (1 April 1999) the projects to receive the grants include:

• whole communities - businesses, schools, local government, service clubs (RSL, Rotary) - creating synergy, working together towards harmony;
• community - produced performance projects that actively engage the audience in questioning their own assumptions about harmony issues;
• various projects interpreting aspects of Aboriginal reconciliation to diverse audiences;
• particular outreach projects by specific ethnic and religious communities;
• strategies for schools to allay inter-ethnic bullying and other problems disrupting harmony;
• work with families with very young children to create a climate of positive values from the earliest stages of their lives;
• strategies to improve the participation in sport by young people of both Indigenous and non-English speaking backgrounds;
• addressing religious intolerance based on stereotypes and lack of understanding; &

• universities mounting very practical projects to involve their students in tackling harmony issues in their local communities.

Refugee Source Countries

The top 10 source nations for refugees coming to Australia in 1996/97 were:

Country # People

1. Bosnia-Herzegovina 2064

2. Iraq 1393

3. Croatia 907

4. Somalia 506

5. Afghanistan 439

6. Vietnam 401

7. Sudan 395

8. Iran 309

9. Sri Lanka 220

10. Ethiopia 106

Total 6740

Source: Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs

Press Statement from the Bishops Committee for Migrants and Refugee Press Statement on the Kosovo crisis 8 April 1999

The Bishops Committee for Migrants and Refugees released the following press statement on 8^th April 1999:

Catholic Church Stands Ready to Assist in Kosovo Refugee Crisis

The Catholic Church, particularly through its Migrant and Refugee agencies, stands ready to assist in the temporary settlement of refugees from Kosovo in Australia.

The Bishops Committee for Migrants and Refugees welcomes the Government's generous response to accept 4,000 Kosovo Albanian refugees for temporary stay in Australia.

The Chairman of the Bishops' Committee, Archbishop Barry Hickey said, "We await instructions from the Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs as to how Catholic Church agencies may assist in this crisis".

However, the Committee hopes that this humanitarian gesture will not be demeaned by the introduction of special legislation preventing application by these refugees to remain permanently in Australia.

The situation in Kosovo is extremely unpredictable. These refugees should not be burdened with extra uncertainty about their future in Australia. While many will want to return to their homeland as soon as possible, others, especially if the crisis in Kosovo continues for a long time, may wish to make application to remain in Australia, and should be free to do so.

"While recognising that the selection process will be urgent, we urge reasonable caution - e.g. by ensuring that families are not split in this period of temporary settlement," said Archbishop Hickey.

Book Review

The following book review by Br Brian Grenler CFC, examines the recently published book authored by the Director of the Catholic Migrant Centre Gerald Searle "Stillness be My Friend", St Pauls Publications ( RRP $14.95).

The tradition of mediating on a single sacred phrase or mantra, such as MARANTHA (Aramaic for 'Come Lord'), can be traced back to at least the time of John Cassian (?360-c.435). It has been revived in our day by the Benedictine John Main (d.1982) and his successor Dom Lawrence Freeman. Gerald Searle's recently published book, Stillness Be My Friend, will provide interested readers with a practical guide to this

increasingly popular form of meditation.

Written 'by an ordinary bloke living a simple life, a simple yet spiritual person', it seeks to promote an activity (or should I say a lack of activity?) which is decidedly 'counter-cultural' in a world dominated by the materialistic agenda of big business. 'Being still' once or, preferably, twice daily for periods of at least twenty minutes while saying the mantra ('subvocally, internally, gently, effortlessly') is a far cry from the pressures of performance indicators, management strategies and financial indices. The writer, who is currently director of the Catholic Migrant Centre in Perth makes it quite clear that mantra based meditation is not just thinking/praying about some scriptural text. Nor is it a relaxation exercise, though it may have that effect. The emphasis is not on doing but on simply being, on resting in the presence of God watching and praying with Jesus. Made daily in a disciplined way, it takes us on a 'journey into our inner space, a journey to the centre, to the core of our being'.

Gerald Searle draws on a wealth of pastoral and work experience both in his native South Africa and here in Australia where he has lived with his wife and children since 1980. His writing has a down-to-earth quality and is deeply but not intrusively personal. Couched in engagingly conversational language, his text is rich in scriptural references and illustrative anecdotes.

Following John Chapman's advice ...'pray as you can and not as you can't' some people (my self included) may prefer the Ignatian approach to meditation to that proposed in this book. Be that as it may, Stillness Be My Friend, as the author indicates, has been written 'for anyone who is searching for spiritual meaning'. From its evocative front cover (featuring waterlilies in a pond) to its concluding pages which include a useful contact address for the Australian Christian Meditation Community, it has much to offer the reflective reader.

KOSOVO PRAYER

Ethnic Cleansing, collateral damage, victims spill

Old, young, all ages, male, female: for leaders the thrill

And generals the kills as victory in sight looms

O'er country, village in which death's spectre dooms.

Television shots, commentators slants, mirror the carnage

Children slaughtered, mothers with babies dead, the age

Where conversation and dialogue diplomatically change

The odds from nationalism to genocide in fire powere rage.

Displaced, refugee Albanian, Serb equally claim

Home, hearth in tales of battles misted into fame

While people of goodwill universally seek, beseech

Peace in harmony with dignity for all to have, hold, preach

Harold Grant April1999

50^th Anniversary of the Ukrainian Catholic Church in Australia

On Sunday July 11^th, the Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy of Sts. Peter and Paul celebrated the 50^th anniversary of the Ukrainian Catholic Church in Australia with the Divine Liturgy in St. Patrick's Cathedral, Melbourne, where the first Liturgy was celebrated 50 years earlier. Over 20 Ukrainian and Latin rite Bishops, and 20 priests, including Fr. Murphy, concelebrated. Among the Bishops was the retired Eparch, Most Reverend Ivan Prasko. Most Reverend Peter Stasiuk, the present Eparch was Principal Celebrant. Most Reverend George Pell, Archbishop of Melbourne, read a message of congratulation and appreciation from Cardinal Clancy, and added his personal best wishes.

Later in the day there was a 50^th anniversary dinner at the Ukrainian centre in Essendon.

ACMRO congratulates Bishop Stasiuk and the Ukrainian Catholic Eparchy on this wonderful contribution to the Church in Australia.

The 49^th Council Meeting of the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC) was held in Geneva from 22^nd to 24^th June 1999. At this meeting, Mr. Michael Whiteley, of Australia, decided to stand down as President after seven years (1992 - 1999). Immense gratitude was expressed to him for his strong leadership. The Council elected Professor Stefano Zamagni of Italy as its new President.

Fr. John Murphy was nominated by the Australian Catholic Bishops' Conference as the new Council member for Australia.

On the first day, after a message from Archbishop Stephen Fumio Hamao, President of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People, there were talks on Uprootedness in the World (William Canny, Secretary General of ICMC) and Uprootedness and Challenges for the Catholic Church (Michael Whiteley). The next one and a half days were spent discussing a new Strategic Plan for ICMC for the next five years. The final day was for Council business - Secretary and Treasurer's reports', adoption of the Strategic Plan, and election of the President and Governing Committee members.

East Timor Time-line

The following time-line provides an overview of political events that have shaped East Timor

5 April 1974 Overthrow of dictatorship in Portugal starts hasty decolonisation