SOCIAL JUSTICE
"Systemic justice is concerned with the way the structures of society work, and the litmus test for whether or not a given system or structure is just or not is you look at the results. If you have a system that produces a pretty large and radically impoverished class then, no matter how fair the rules are which are in force and no matter how democratically those rules are made, it's not a just society." Marcus Borg from "Living the Questions."
"The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world's problems." Mahatma Ghandi
WEST PAPUAN REFUGEES - human rights must be paramount
Find out more at UnitingJustice Australia's website or call (02) 8267 4236.
Work Rights for those on temporary protection visas.
Could you live on $25 a week? Hundreds of people live on $25 a week in Victoria alone. Who are they?
People like Samira,who arrived in Australia on a valid visa and who are now seeking protection in Australia. Samira receives $25 a week from an agency supporting asylum seekers in the community. She is forced to beg for anything else she needs even though she is a qualified pharmacist.
Since 1997, thousands of people have been denied the right to work and support their families, which has devastating impacts such as homelessness, poor health, family breakdown and depression.
They have valuable skills, many of which are in short supply in Australia.
In Victoria alone, it is estimated that about 900 asylum seekers are trying to live under the restrictions of this type of visa, primarily on a Bridging Visa E (or BVE).
Why can't they work?
There are three main reasons work rights are denied:
- If a person does not lodge an application for protection within 45 days of arrival.
- If a person appeals to the Minister of Immigration on humanitarian grounds.
- If a person is released from a detention centre on a BVE.
What's the solution?
It is simple: Allow people seeking asylum to work.
Reverse the regulation changes made in 1997, which denied the right to work, Medicare and income support.
What you can do
Visit the website safetynotcharity.victas.uca.org.au for details of what you can do.
