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Vic: Thousands rally in support of asylum seekers
MELBOURNE, Feb 2 AAP - Thousands of people rallied in central Melbourne today in thestate's biggest show of opposition to the federal government's mandatory detection policy.
Members of the Refugee Action Collective (RAC), Victorian Trades Hall and Aboriginaland religious leaders led a peaceful march through the city streets from the city squareto the state library.
RAC spokesman Jody Betzien said more than 2,000 people joined the rally, despite cooland wet weather blanketing the city.
"This is the largest rally we have had for refugee rights in Melbourne and that's anindication that we are winning the hearts and minds of people in Melbourne," Mr Betziensaid.
"Increasingly people are seeing that these are normal human beings who have escapedpersecution and got here by whatever means and deserve to be welcomed here.
"As this campaign grows, there's good potential that the (federal) government willbe forced to change its policies on refugees."
Mr Betzien said there were still more than 100 people on hunger strike in WesternAustralia's Port Hedland and Curtin detention centres, and the situation would not beresolved until mandatory detention ended.
Anglican Arch Deacon of Malvern, Philip Newman, described Australia's treatment ofasylum seekers as "less than human and a shame upon our understanding of compassion andjustice".
"Part of our responsibility is to receive refugees, and besides the Aborigines, thewhole country has been founded by refugees," he told AAP.
"We have a long history of receiving refugees, whether from the Irish potato famineor from eastern Europe, and that's been damaged."
Victorian Trades Hall Council Secretary Leigh Hubbard said the struggle against detentioncentres would not stop until they were abolished.
"We need to ensure that mandatory detention is abolished totally rather than breakingup families by only releasing women and children," he said.
AAP ce/cdh/bwl
KEYWORD: DETENTION VIC
