The Australian government has been accused of intercepting a boat of 153 Tamil asylum seekers, and handing them over to the Sri Lankan navy without processing their claims. According to relatives, at least 11 asylum seekers on board the boat are fleeing Sri Lanka because of torture. They fear further torture, imprisonment or death if they are returned. Australia’s actions are the latest in a long series of repressive policies against asylum seekers and refugees. But Australia is not the only country turning away asylum seekers. The United States is detaining refugees, mostly children, from Central America fleeing drug cartel and gang violence. Refugees are used by governments such as Australia and the US to ferment racism and to divide workers. Only through co-ordinated international working class action will we be able to defeat the racism that drives anti-refugee policies.
Open the Borders!
Free the Refugees!
Category: Sri Lanka
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Australia continues regressive policies on refugees
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Waiting on Biafra and Lanka
As May turns into June the quiet loneliness of war-torn Jaffna lies before me. For how much longer, years or decades into the future, will I look back into the past? And who will help me reflect on that past? Some, fifty years ago, the tragedy of Biafra unfolded. I grew up hearing about the […]
