More than 50 refugee rights supporters occupied the Melbourne offices of the immigration department on 12 May. A crowd of more than 300 met at the state library before marching to the department offices on Lonsdale Street where some protesters rushed in through a side door to occupy the foyer and liftwells. They chanted “Let them stay!” and “Free free the refugees!”
Protesters ignored police directives to leave and shut the building down while they listened to speeches and scrawled anti-racist slogans on the windows. After around an hour, the protest moved outside to block a busy city intersection where the speeches and chants continued.
In the wake of recent suicides on Nauru and continuing protests by refugees on Manus Island and Nauru, activists felt it was necessary to take a more radical stand against the government’s abuses. As one protester Anastasia Kanjere put it: “I feel like the level of violence occurring in offshore camps is at a point where civil disobedience is the only way”.
The protest was organised by Family, Friends and Feminists Against Detention and advertised as a “March for Civil Disobedience and Refugees”. In the lead up to the event, FFAD argued that the refugee rights movement “can do more”.
“Let’s not wait for another murder, rape or suicide on Manus on Nauru. Join us to show the Australian government we will not stop until they close Nauru and Manus Island”, read the group’s call out for refugee supporters to attend. 
The refugee rights campaign needs more of these types of actions. As the Australian government continues to heap horror upon horror on refugees, direct action and mass civil disobedience is the response demanded of us. Omid Masoumali, 23, died after being driven to self-immolation. Hodan Yassin, 21, is fighting for her life after also being driven to set herself alight.
Malcolm Turnbull warns us not to get “misty-eyed” about it all. Now is the time to draw a line in the sand and say enough.
But civil disobedience is not only about a moral imperative to act. It is effective. This was the lesson learned by protesters at the Lady Cilento hospital in Brisbane in February. It was the defiance of the hospital staff who refused to discharge baby Asha back to Nauru, and the union and community picket that blocked the exits, that stopped her being sent back.
We need to defy the government, to disrupt its operations and do everything in our power to stop this grotesque policy.

Emma Dook

Refugee protesters call for more civil disobedience

In the early hours of Tuesday 16 June, refugee activists held a snap protest at the Broadmeadows detention centre (Melbourne Immigration Transit Accommodation) to stop the forced transfer of a mother and daughter to Darwin. It was feared that the transfer would be the first step in deporting the pair back to the concentration camp on Nauru.
The pair had been brought to Melbourne from Nauru in order to treat the daughter’s mental health issues. They were terrified at the prospect of being returned. One of the Nauru guards allegedly had tried to rape the 16-year-old.
The Immigration Department claimed it was moving the family to Darwin because the daughter’s mental health had been treated. However, she had self-harmed in the past month. Her mother’s mental health is also poor. She had taken an overdose of pills last week after learning that she and her daughter would be taken back to Nauru, along with around 20 other people.
We knew that the department would try to get the pair on a direct flight to Darwin at 8am, so we gathered outside the detention centre at 6am. Some activists had arrived much earlier. We linked arms outside the gates and vetted each vehicle that approached in order to make sure they weren’t carrying the pair. When the car carrying the refugees arrived, we stood firm and were able to turn it around. We forced them to miss the 8am flight.
The protest ended shortly after, partly due to concerns that the pair would be shackled if the disruption continued. Unfortunately, they were taken to the airport three hours after the protest ended, and they are now in Darwin.
However, the act of solidarity was felt inside the detention centre. The mother sent the following text: “I thank everyone who were protesting yesterday for us especially Mr Arad and Mr Reza”.centre. The mother sent the following text: “I thank everyone who were protesting yesterday for us especially Mr Arad and Mr Reza”.
And another contact inside the centre sent the following: “Thank you soooo much everybody … we’re glad to have friends like you guys who cares about us”.
Activists remain in contact with the mother and her daughter. It appears unlikely that they will immediately be sent to Nauru.

Activists delay transfer of refugee family

Refugee rights activists held a protest at the Broadmeadows detention centre (MITA – Melbourne Immigration Transit Accommodation) on 9 June to halt the removal of asylum seekers. A group of 20, including 10 children, are to be returned to the hellish camp on Nauru. They had been flown to mainland Australia for medical treatment to address a range of health issues, including serious mental health conditions.
“They’ve heard they’re going to be transferred to Nauru”, Reza Yarahmadi told Red Flag. Yarahmadi is an activist who came to Australia as a refugee, spending time in detention on Christmas Island. He is in contact with those inside the centre.
“They are saying they’re going to kill themselves. Three people have tried to commit suicide already. One man has had a heart attack. There is a woman who is six weeks pregnant who is afraid she will be sent back, and [there are] two babies.”
The immigration department has admitted that asylum seekers have self-harmed in response to the news of their impending return to Nauru. A department spokesperson told the Herald Sun that “self-harming behaviour will not influence the outcome of an individual’s immigration case”.
“They know what Nauru is like and they don’t want to go back”, Yarahmadi said.
Protesters camped at the detention centre gate maintained contact with detainees inside. Photographs and messages of support passed between the two groups.
“They are asking us please help us”, Yarahmadi said. “They know this protest is happening [and] they support it.”
A text message from one of the asylum seekers said: “Thank you very much everybody, thank you for coming. I know it’s cold I’m so sorry guys. We had too much stress last night but now we have you guys for support and we’re calm now. Love you all”.
Protesters stayed overnight in order to block any removals. No asylum seekers were taken. However, the situation could change at any point. Activists remain on alert.

‘They know what Nauru is like and they don’t want to go back’

University students are facing massive fee hikes, and staff at unis across the country are facing job losses. But the view from the top is very different. In fact, life for university vice-chancellors has never been better.
A new report commissioned by the National Tertiary Education Union shows that VCs at five Australian universities had remuneration packages of more than $1 million last year.
The largest was ANU vice-chancellor Ian Young’s $1.1 million cheque. The $1 million club also includes Glyn Davis from the University of Melbourne, who is carrying out the biggest single lay-off of university staff in Australian history as part of his “Business Improvement Process” (BIP). According to Davis, such cuts are necessary because of reduced government funding to universities.
It doesn’t seem to occur to Davis that he should chomp on fewer cigars, eat less foie gras and take a pay cut to help out. This also hasn’t occurred to Michael Spence from the University of Sydney. Spence “earned” his million dollar pay packet last year by attempting to push through attacks on union rights at the university, which failed due to a sustained and combative union campaign.
These figures reveal just how corporatised universities have become. Universities today are multibillion dollar businesses, churning out commodities in the form of ever more expensive degrees, and overseen by VCs who have the interests and outlook of CEOs rather than educators.

Refugee protesters call for more civil disobedience

Activists delay transfer of refugee family

‘They know what Nauru is like and they don’t want to go back’

Putting the vice in vice-chancellor

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