Picture the scene.
There’s a mum trying to cross the very busy and dangerous road outside my house with her young children. She looks terrified and her children look so little and vulnerable.
She’s doing the best she can but she is so, so tired, she barely has the strength to hold onto them. I don’t know her – she’s not one of the mums from around here.
Her children were in great danger in her home and she has grabbed them and fled. She’s trying to get to me because she knows my family will take her in, give her children somewhere safe and warm to sleep, food to eat, and get them the medical care they need after what they’ve been through.
Top Comments
While I agree its hard to watch/hear/know about what these Syrian people are going through, why is it our responsibility to help more so than we already are? There own government doesn't give two hoots about them, but they expect us to help?
We have Australian born and bred people who are living on the streets, living in public housing, selling furniture to put food on the table, people who are running away from DV situations and more, all of which our government is happy to sit back and watch because we "don't have the budget" to help. And yet we give $4b to foreign aid. Its not that I agree with not helping refugees at all, I just think until we are in a better shape as a community, we do we want to stretch our resources further?
Plus it makes it hard to want to help when so many people come here illegally and expect us to just let them in.
Who comes here illegally? Oh right...all those Irish and British tourists who overstay their visas. That's who you're talking about because you are aware that it is not illegal to seek asylum?
While you're at it - 'there (sic) government doesn't give two hoots?' - perhaps if you read some more you would be aware that their country is in the midst of an horrific civil war that has been going on since 2012.
If you accept the premise that the asylum seeker boats have stopped, then no one is coming here 'illegally.' Let's just establish that fact.
Right now we haven't done anything regards to the Syrian crisis, the current discussion is revolving around what we should do. We are Australians, we help those in need. We are more than capable of doing our fair share......which will end up taking around 10, 000 - 20, 000 refugees most likely. Countries like Turkey, Lebanon and have taken 1 - 1.2 million refugees each. Germany is taking in 800, 000 refugees.
Pressure the government to tackle the domestic issues that you mentioned, but don't use it as an excuse.
You seek asylum without getting on a boat and risking lives to get into our country without proper identification and paperwork.
I know Syria is in the middle of a war! Boat people have been illegally trying to access our country well and truly before 2012. The war doesn't excuse their illegal behaviour.
But according to the Government, there has not been one asylum seeker boat arrival since 2013. This issue is regarding Syrian refugees feeling civil war by foot to UNHCR camps with their identification and paperwork in neighbouring Turkey and Lebanon.
The 12,000 refugees intake will be from these camps, so your argument about it being illegal doesn't hold up. It's just rhetoric.
People use the argument about helping our own homeless and poor first..Shouldnt we have been doing that anyway and arent they the lazy dole bludgers we complain about and demonize only now to trot them out and show faux sympathy for them now that the govt is talking about taking in more refugees
Spot on.