Resources – Rural Australians for Refugees

Current News

Australian Refugee Action Network – ARAN News page
Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law – Weekly News Roundup
Refugee Council of Australia – Bulletins
Asylum Insight
Refugees Deeply
UNHCR – The Refugee Brief
Buddies Refugee Support Group – Bulletins

Petitions

Online Petition re SRSS Cuts – Back Your Neighbour campaign

Stop cruel cuts to support for asylum seekers living in the community – petition:

http://backyourneighbour.com.au/petition/

You can also email your MP here http://backyourneighbour.com.au/takeaction/

The Back Your Neighbour campaign is run by the Local Government Mayoral Taskforce Supporting People Seeking Asylum, a group of Australian Councils who are speaking out against Federal Government cuts to the Status Resolution Support Services (SRSS) program leaving thousands of asylum seeker families living in Australia destitute and homeless. For more information about the Taskforce see >> http://www.greaterdandenong.com/document/32480/local-government-mayoral-taskforce-supporting-people-seeking-asylum

Merchandise

RAR T-Shirts are available in Black or Orange. For details and to order, email:

Bumper Stickers are available from Bellingen and Nambucca District RAR. 60 cents each (cost) plus postage. To order email:

Boat People T-shirts also available from

Bellingen and Nambucca District RAR.

For details and to order, email:

Films and DVDs

A Beginning List of Fourteen DVDs/Films for those interested in refugee issues
Refugee Council of Australia’s List of Films
Amnesty International – 7 free short films about refugees recommended by human rights educators
Videos from the UNHCR youtube website –https://www.youtube.com/unhcr
Border Politics – New Film About a “Dark Patch in Australian History”
- See trailer, human rights barrister Julian Burnside as he traverses the globe examining the harsh treatment meted out to refugees by most Western democracies.
- This contemporary story is about the threat to human rights, the loss of democratic values and our increasingly heartless treatment of ‘the other’.
The Staging Post – Inspirational new film
- The film follows two Afghan Hazara refugees, Muzafar and Khadim Muzafar was a presenter at 2018 National RAR Conference
- More information here
Island of the Hungry Ghosts
- Christmas Island’s famous migrating crabs, lost souls caught in limbo and political detainees intersect in lyrical, highly cinematic fashion in the Tribeca Film Festival Best Documentary award winner.
- The tiny Indian Ocean Territory of Christmas Island has been a centre for migrating populations for millennia – first, the distinctive Christmas Island red crabs; then phosphate miners from Malaya in the 19^th century; and most recently, people seeking asylum in Australia. It is here, at the nexus of the three, that first-time feature documentarian Gabrielle Brady locates her extraordinary essay, an expansion of her award-winning 2017 short The Island. – http://www.christmasislandfilm.com/
- Here is a little 20 minute taster from The Guardian UK released last year. – https://www.theguardian.com/world/ng-interactive/2017/apr/13/crossing-boundaries-crabs-asylum-seekers-and-therapy-on-christmas-island-video
- Best Documentary Tribeca Film Festival 2018.
- Prix Buyens-Chagoll Visions du Reel, Switzerland 2018
- Best Documentary Official Competition at Valletta Film Festival 2018
- Special Jury Mention Edinburgh Film Festival 2018

Books

RCOA List of Books on Refugees
RCOA List of Books about Refugee Journeys
Booktopia’s List of Books – Refugees & Political Asylum
More Books – Refugees tell their Story in Non-Fiction, Fiction and Poetry
Refuge Lost : Asylum Law in an Interdependent World, Cambridge University Press, 2018
No Friend But the Mountains by Kurdish journalist of Behrouz Boochani – available in bookstores and online.
When Elephants Fight, Majok Tulba, Penguin
Walking Free by Munjed al Muderis – Munjed al Muderis at TEDxSydney
Dignity in a teacup: stories of courage & sacrifice from Christmas Island: written by Bendigo RAR President Chris Cummins. Chris was a torture and trauma counselor on Christmas Island.
The Power of Good People: Para Paheer with Alison Corke (Alison is a member of Apollo Bay RAR)
A Grain of Hope a picture book for older readers about refugees and detention centres. This beautifully illustrated book tells a dual story, on facing pages, of a dog and a refugee girl, whose lives mirror each other…until the end. Facts about refugees are provided at the end to assist in discussion. 100% of profits will be donated to Rural Australians for Refugees.