8-year-old Srijon Kabir is being deported. This is why.

This is Srijon Kabir.

He is holding a sign that says: “Please Mr Morrison, don’t deport my mum and dad from Australia because I have autism. I love Australia it’s our home and my parents love working here. My school really good too. Your’s sincerely Srijon.”

Because that is what is happening to him. Srijon, his mum Siuly (a Biomedical Engineering researcher), and his dad Enamul (a statistician at the University of Queensland) are being deported back to Bangladesh after the Australian government rejected their application for a Skilled Residence Visa due to Srijon’s mild autism.

The family lodged an appeal with Immigration Minister Scott Morrison last November, however, they have not heard back. So, Srijon decided to take matters into his own hands, writing a personal plea to Morrison which has been shared on Change.org’s Facebook page.

There are currently 38,000 signatures on a Change.org petition to stop the family’s deportation, which was started by Enamul’s UQ colleagues, Chris McDonald.

Chris writes:

I was astounded when I saw the email from Enamul. I couldn’t believe that this was still happening in our country. My friend and former colleague’s family is about to be deported from Australia — the reason: his son has mild autism.

Enamul and Siuly Kabir are caring parents, taxpayers, both have PhDs – one an academic at the University of Queensland, the other a researcher in Biomedical Engineering. But because of archaic migration laws still on the books — when their son was diagnosed with a mild form of autism, the government rejected their application for permanent residency.

The ‘net benefit’ approach as recommended by the Joint Standing Committee Inquiry into the Migration Treatment of Disability (“Enabling Australia” published in June 2010) appears to have been completely ignored.

You can put your name on the petition to keep the Kabir family in Australia by clicking here.

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