Minister Bishop visited the Manus camp today. One man from each nationality and compound group was chosen to attend a briefing.
One man thought that Ms Bishop was an immigration officer, the other did not know.
1300 men in the four compounds Oscar, Delta, Foxtrot and Mike have been protesting peacefully each day, asking for information about their future.
They have been denied drinking water for 3 days as a result of the protests but given bottles of water for the first time today.
“We did not come to just eat and sleep like animals”
” We are not animals”
“We dont make protest with violence”
“We are not Criminals”
Ms Bishop said that she just came to listen to you and participate in discussion- all I can do is inform the PNG and Australian Government.
The men said “this is our right to protest peacefully- all we want is freedom- politicians use us as victims,
we had problem in our own country and we cannot go back now you are making us crazy.
One man said “you told us that we do 3 interviews then before 28 days we will get a response- now we are waiting 4-5 months with no response” “We have no future”.
Another man said that there were two UAMs (teenagers without parents) in the camp- that there had been more but the immigration wait until they turn 18 then say -” now you can stay.”
He also explained that 15 men were separated and sent to Manus and their wives and children were sent to Nauru- in the past 45 days they have also been sent to Nauru.
There is an old man with no teeth who cannot eat- he said that he will be the first to die.
Mehdi an iranian man who is also a Dwarf is still struggling in the Manus camp. His friends have to lift him onto the toilet or to the taps to wash his hands. No facilities have been given to make his life easy.
The conditions in the camp require men to queue for meals toilets showers everything. When it rains they are required to stand in the rain. they asked guards if they could stand under cover but were told ” no-it is nice in the rain for you”.
This man said “no one can feel that he is a human”.
They are asking for help.
—
Pamela Curr
Refugee Rights Coordinator
Asylum Seeker Resource Centre
12 Batman St West Melbourne 3003
ph 03 9326 6066 / MOB 0417517075
“AUSTRALIA. Built by boatpeople.”
Where’s the petition????
hello pat,
readers are free to start their own petition – proforma petitions can be found at the parliamentary website or at places like change.org
ian
PACE – Peace, Anti-Nuclear and Clean Energy – Collective
http://www.brisbane.foe.org.au
Media Release
Feb 5, 2014
Military pollution and additional insult to human rights in the “Pacific Solution”
The leaking of an environmental report into the Manus Island detention centre (The Guardian 4 Feb, 2014) reveals additional risk to the health and wellbeing of people seeking asylum. Military bases leave a legacy of water and land pollution that can poison inhabitants for decades.
Manus Island has a long history of military occupation and use as base, including the Australian, United states, Japanese and British Military. Unexploded ordnance, fuel storage and the use of military chemicals are known pollutants affecting human health worldwide. It is likely that, without any kind of remediation, pollutants have leaked into the soil and air of Manus Island putting detainees, military and Manus Island inhabitants at risk.
In a 2013 report US bases: the social and environmental risks, FoE researcher and military spokesperson Kim Stewart lists the contaminants commonly left behind by military occupation. They include:
· Perchlorate, the primary ingredient in rocket fuel, known to be contaminating groundwater in 42 US states and numerous bases worldwide. Linked to birth defects and thyroid problems;
· White phosphorus, a particularly cruel form of weapon that not only burns the skin of peopleit touches (like napalm), it also poisons them;
· TNT, RDX and other explosives, linked to cancer and CNS problems;
· Mercury and lead, bio-accumulating heavy metals known to cause neurological problems,
heart problems, even death;
· Depleted uranium and plutonium, leading to cancers and deaths;
Careless storage and disposal of military materials has lead to hundreds of leaking drums, pipelines, underground storage tanks, landfills and contaminated buildings worldwide, including Australia. Manus Island will be no exception.
The Abbott government has a responsibility under the international human rights agreements not to add further injury to the health of people fleeing war, nor to add to the ongoing infringement of the human rights of the local people by continued occupation of Manus Island.
Further information: Stewart, K (2013) US bases: the social and environmental risks
http://www.academia.edu/4200497/US_bases_in_Australia_the_social_and_environmental_risks
Media contact: Kim Stewart, BSc hons, MSW Friends of the Earth – Military Pollution Spokesperson
0413397839
Friends of the Earth: “Resist, Mobilise, Transform”
FoEB http://www.brisbane.foe.org.au FoEA http://www.foe.org.au Qld Nuclear Free Alliance http://qnfa.org/