Young refugees being positive role models

On By More to the StoryIn Refugees in WA, Uncategorized

The Makur Chuot family from South Sudan are an extraordinary success story when it comes to refugees making their way in a new country. The West Australian recently ran a feature article  where Akech and Mangar talked about their extraordinary sporting and community achievements. Mangar will head to the Rio Olympics in June as a champion sprinter and Akech is the first African woman to play for Western Australia’s State AFL team.

Both pay tribute to their mother who has guided and helped them through some of the darkest times in their life to a brighter future in Australia.

“The pain of unnecessary death is wielding great power in the young lives of people such as Akech Makur Chuot.

The 23-year-old’s father, a chief in the South Sudanese village of Pagarau, was killed by rebels in a hail of machinegun bullets barely a month after she was conceived. He died unaware his daughter was on her way.

Her mother managed to take her daughter and seven siblings across the border to a Kenyan refugee camp and eventually to their new life in WA. While her father’s leadership genes inspired a desire to make a difference, it was the rawness of a recent murder in Makur Chuot’s new hometown which accelerated that quest.

When her 17-year-old friend Kuol Akut was allegedly murdered during a brawl at a Girrawheen party in February, it was a violent incident like so many others blighting the lives of young African immigrants who should have been on their way to a more promising future.

But Makur Chuot and a pack of her Perth peers are compiling compelling resumes through sport and acts of social conscience, anxious to role model positive ways of life.”

You can read the full article here.

Akech and her family
Akech with her Mother and brother Mangar

Yemen – giving a face and name to a crisis

On By More to the StoryIn Telling other people's stories

I first met the wonderful Maltese writer, journalist and humanitarian Karl Schembri at the Ubud Writers Festival. We then caught up again at the Byron Bay Festival several years ago.

His poetry and journalism are quite special, but it is his work in various media related posts in the Middle East with organisations such as Oxfam, Save the Children and the Norwegian Refugee Council that particularly inspires me. I recommend you take a look at his website.

Last time we spoke he was living and working in very trying conditions on the Gaza strip providing aid, and trying to communicate what was happening on the ground. Most recently he has returned from a stint in Yemen. The Huffington Post has just published an insightful article by Karl about the forgotten millions of displaced and impoverished civilians in Yemen.

Like me, Karl hopes that by communicating individual stories of real people, we all gain a better understanding of the world around us. I was particularly taken with this conversation he had with his taxi driver Adnan in Yemen about the challenges of getting people to understand.

I tell Adnan one way to go about it is to zoom in on the individual stories, giving a face and a name to this crisis, showing that behind the big figures and high politics, there are innocent individuals with dreams and aspirations like everyone else. The question is then to make linkages to the outside world, the common threads that unite us, despite our cultural differences and contexts.

Adnan and his car
Adnan and his car. Photo by Karl Schembri

 

The Sanctuary Movement

On By More to the StoryIn Australian Asylum Seeking Policy

There was a great article in the Guardian Australia on Monday on the growing Sanctuary Movement. How interesting it is to hear of hundreds of people from different religions gathering at their churches to learn how to engage in civil disobedience in order to help protect asylum seekers from border force officials.

“We’re not here today to be arrested. We’re here today to demonstrate what respect looks like. This is about a respectful way to challenge the current policy framework”.

The policy framework that those gathered have come to challenge is the federal government’s hardline stance on asylum seekers, which has left 267 asylum seekers currently in Australia facing deportation to offshore processing centres on Nauru or Manus Island. They could be removed at any time and there are 37 babies among them.

As a result, hundreds of people gathered at churches around the country on Sunday, including at Wesley Uniting church, to learn how to engage in civil disobedience and protect asylum seekers should border force officials try to forcibly detain them and send them to offshore detention centres.

You can read the full article here.

let them stay
Misha Coleman from the Australian Churches Refugee Taskforce and Shen Narayanasamy from GetUp address the crowd at sanctuary training at Wesley Uniting Church, Melbourne. Photograph by Melissa Davey for the Guardian

 

Youth Advocacy in WA

On By More to the StoryIn Events, get involved

It was a real pleasure to attend the first 2016 Multicultural Youth Advocacy Network (MYAN) Forum in WA recently.

The Network is the peak body on multicultural youth issues, representing the needs and interests of young people from refugee and migrant backgrounds. It has offices in every State and Territory and the WA organisation is very active www.myan.org.au/wa/

It holds networking forums regularly for all agencies and groups who are concerned with multi-cultural youth issues. The theme for the first forum was refugees and asylum seekers. During my visit, I met representatives from so many groups and agencies doing outstanding work with our young people: the Red Cross, the Police Department, Princess Margaret Hospital, local Councils, agencies like Communicare as well as organisations like Beyond Blue.

I was invited to speak about my book. I also focused on the need to not just advocate, but to also share positive stories and to correct mis-information so we can engage in better conversations.

My talk was followed by moving and thoughtful presentations from a number of young people who attended a special youth summit about refugees and asylum seekers. Apart from sharing their own personal life stories as refugees, they also presented some suggestions for changing the dialogue about refugees. One of the many things this group has done is start a wonderful Facebook page called Young Refugees of Western Australia which regularly posts positive news stories about young people. Check it out!

I was also delighted to meet Jamila Jafri at the event and to hear her story of fleeing Afghanistan with her mother and her younger brother when she was five years old. She is now 20 and studying at university in Australia. You can read her story on http://behindthewire.org.au/

 

Big issues and the power of ideas

On By More to the StoryIn Events, Festivals

Record numbers of Western Australians attended the Perth Writers Festival over four days. I agree with Program Manager, Katherine Dorrington, that the focus on ideas and issues helped bring a more diverse audience to the festival this year. I believe people are hungry for intelligent conversation and different ideas. Even if you didn’t agree with everything that was said, there was a lot to reflect on.

Of course, as a writer, I was inspired by some of the visiting fiction and non-fiction authors. How can anyone not marvel at the beauty of Gail Jones’ language, the breadth of Simon Winchester’s knowledge, the joyfulness of Katherine Rundell’s books for children, the compassion of Patrick Gale’s writing or the powerful storytelling of Etgar Kerat?

But I was especially energised by the debate and discussions about our society and who we are today. Thinkers and writers like George Megalogenis, Don Watson, Jane Caro, Stan Grant and Laura Tingle made me think and ask myself different questions. The sorts of conversations I heard at the festival seem sadly lacking in the general media and among our politicians.

In a society fixated on fast-paced environments, the ten second news grab, the ping of the mobile phone with another message and a “go, go, go” mentality, it’s difficult to find the time to sit down and reflect. But I plan to do this and think more about what I heard and the books I am reading.

As American President John F Kennedy said: “Too often we… enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought.”

I am a big believer of moving outside my comfort zone to develop informed opinions – so well done Perth Writers Festival. Challenging, inspiring AND entertaining!

There are more photos on the Gallery page.

Rose, Liz Byrski, Melinda Tognini
Signing books with Liz Byrski and Melinda Tognini after our ‘Shared Narratives’ panel

The Perth Writers Festival

On By More to the StoryIn Events, Festivals

As many of you know the Perth Writers Festival is fast approaching. It’s held from Thursday 18th to Sunday 21st February in the beautiful grounds of the University of Western Australia.

While I’ve been involved in the event for many years, this is my first one wearing a variety of hats – interviewer, author, facilitator and guest speaker to launch a book!

I will be involved in two sessions as an author this year. I’m thrilled to sharing the stage with Stan Grant, Yassmin Abdel-Magied and George Megalogenis in We are Australian on Saturday 20th at 10am. We will be discussing what it really means to be Australian and whether we are still a tolerant, multicultural nation. And later the same day I will be talking about the intricacies of telling someone’s true story with Liz Byrski, Melinda Tognini, Alice Nelson and Bruce Russell in Shared Narratives at 2:30pm.

As I’ve done the past, I am interviewing some terrific writers over several sessions – something I enjoy immensely. I’m really looking forward to meeting Hyeonseo Lee who will be talking about her experiences of being trapped in North Korea, escaping to China and being reunited with her family in South Korea. This session is called The Girl with Seven Names and is on Sunday 21st at 2:30pm.

David Dyer, Katherine Rundell and Patrick Gale all have new books that drip with snow, ice and winter and I’ll be talking with them about the importance of place in their narratives. Winter is Coming is on Friday 19th at 10am.

I’m also facilitating the publishing seminar again this year, which is on Thursday 18 February. For those of you interested in understanding the publishing landscape in Perth, this is an extremely valuable day.

And lastly, as I’ve mentioned in a previous post, I am honoured to have been asked by Liz Byrski and Rachel Robertson to launch a new book called Purple Prose, a collections of stories by women writers on what the colour purple means to them. The launch is on Saturday 20th at 5:30pm.

There is something for everyone at the Perth Writers Festival and I really hope to see you there.

Purple Prose

On By More to the StoryIn Festivals

I am very honoured to have been asked to launch Purple Prose at the upcoming Perth Writers Festival on Saturday 20 February at the University of Western Australia.

A wonderful new book of stories published by Fremantle Press, Purple Prose has been written by Australian women answering the question “What does the colour purple mean to you?” It all began with a conversation between Liz Byrski and Rachel Robertson and grew into a book with vibrant, personal stories about love and loss, beauty, art and nature – all inspired by the colour purple.

The launch is in Tropical Grove at 5:30pm and all are welcome. I hope to see you there.

Liz and Rachel
Liz Byrski and Rachel Robertson

purple prose cover

 

 

 

 

 

How has it come to this?

On By More to the StoryIn Australian Asylum Seeking Policy

There is a terrific article in the Monthly by Robert Manne that sums up the current situation on Australia’s asylum seeking policy and procedures. Robert Manne is an Emeritus Professor and Vice-Chancellor’s Fellow at La Trobe University.

“Now that the High Court has decided that the offshore detention of asylum seekers is lawful, reports suggest that the Turnbull Government is considering returning 234 asylum seekers to Nauru along with the 33 babies of these asylum seekers born in Australia. Given what everyone knows about the spiritual, psychological and bodily ruin that accompanies indefinite detention on Nauru, if the reports turn out to be true this will be a genuinely monstrous act which will outrage millions of decent citizens.

Outrage and acts of protest, however, are not enough. If things are to change, if the decision is to be reversed, what we need is to try to get the prime minister to acknowledge and to reject the thinking that has brought us to a place where it is now possible that a decision of this kind can be taken by the responsible minister of an important department of the Australian Commonwealth Government.”

You can read the full article here.

Australia Day in Katanning

On By More to the StoryIn Events

As I sang the national anthem alongside members of the Katanning community at the recent Australia Day celebrations, I looked around the faces in the crowd. Many were from migrant and refugee backgrounds. Unlike a lot of people, the newer arrivals standing near me knew the second verse to Advance Australia Fair and sang it with gusto. I often struggle to remember some of the lines, which is a shame because I think they reflect the idea of an inclusive nation so well.

Renowned of all the lands;

For those who’ve come across the seas

We’ve boundless plains to share;

With courage let us all combine

To Advance Australia Fair.

I was frequently reminded of the courage of so many refugees when I met up with several who had shared their stories in the book. It was particularly pleasing to see John Nazary again. John is a proud Hazara man from Afghanistan and as I said in my speech during the official celebrations – John’s story reminds me of the strength and endurance of the human spirit. It was good to hear his family continue to do well in Australia with their studies and work. One son, Zeify, is still enjoying international soccer success with Spanish club Malaga.

It was a wonderful way to celebrate Australia Day. The whole community once again made me feel very welcome. I was also pleased to see Zee Sultani recognised with a Citizenship Award for all her work in the community.

In Katanning, I see an Australia that I am proud to call my home.

Rose John and Lesley
Me, John Nazary and Lesley Balinski at the Katanning Australia Day celebrations

 

Karen New Year Celebrations

On By More to the StoryIn Events

I was pleased to recently attend Karen New Year celebrations in Balcatta, Western Australia. Over 300 members of the Karen community who have settled in Perth from Burma and refugee camps in Thailand came together to celebrate the day with song, dance, speeches and great food.

The community has celebrated New Year for centuries and it was traditionally held around the time of the first harvest in Burma. The New Year celebrations fall on a different day each year in line with phases of the moon and harvest time. The ethnic Karen community are mostly subsistence farmers in eastern Burma, in both the lowland rice-growing plains and hill regions, with large numbers in the central Irrawaddy Delta. However under the Burmese military government thousands have been forced off their land, persecuted and forced to flee.

In the mid-1930s whilst Burma was still under British rule, there was a push to create a Karen National Day in the country. This was unsuccessful in the parliament but a compromise was reached to recognise a single day as Karen New Year nationwide in 1938. Karen communities who have made their homes in other parts of the world continue to recognise the New Year as special day for the Karen people.

Perth’s Karen community is very active throughout Western Australia and it was pleasing to see such strong support from State and Federal politicians and community leaders at this year’s event.

The highlights of the day for me included learning more about the Karen culture, the traditional dancing and, of course, catching up with friends Beauty John, Paul Kyaw and all their families. Paul and Beauty are two of the people who shared their refugee stories in More to the Story. You can see more photos of the event on the Gallery page.

If you can’t find the book in book stores remember you can buy it from www.margaretriverpress.com.

Karen New Year Katanning girls
The beautiful performers from Katanning at the 2016 Karen New Year celebration