Sydney, Australia
Australian Christian leaders have called on Prime Minister Scott Morrison to accept 20,000 refugees from Afghanistan after the Taliban reclaimed power when Western forces left after 20 years in the country.
It comes as more than 130,000 people – supported by the National Council of Churches in Australia and the Australian Churches Refugee Taskforce – have signed a petition also calling for an increased refugee intake from the beleaguered nation to 20,000.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, pictured leaving Downing Street in London, UK, on 15th June. PICTURE: Reuters/Henry Nicholls/File photo.
The Federal Government announced on 18th August that an initial 3,000 humanitarian places will be allocated to Afghan nationals within Australia’s annual program, which currently provides 13,750 places annually.
The Department of Home Affairs says it anticipates “this initial allocation will increase further over the course of 2021-22”.
The Jesuit Refugee Service released a statement on Monday in support of Australia following Canada’s decision to offer 20,000 places to fleeing Afghans.
“We strongly believe that the Australian Government should take additional measures to ensure the safety and reduce the anguish of people from Afghanistan in need of urgent protection,” it said.
Zaki Haidari is the leadership coordinator at JRS Australia and also a Hazara community leader who was only 17 when he fled Afghanistan and is currently on a temporary protection visa.
In a statement on the JRS website, Haidari said the news coming from Afghanistan “is beyond heartbreaking” for the Afghan community in Australia.
“It is shocking and tragic. We have our families, friends, and relatives living there now and we are all in disbelief at how fast the country has fallen. Everyone in Afghanistan is shocked and lost. They don’t know what to do and where to go for their safety.
“We, the Afghan community in Australia, feel hopeless and numb to this situation. We are worrying what will happen to our loved ones at any given moment in Afghanistan. What will it take for the Australian government to give us permanent protection and for us to be reunited with our families?”
The NCCA-ACRT last week wrote to Morrison, urging him to declare a new humanitarian intake and match Canada’s commitment to allow 20,000 refugees into the country. They also called on him to grant permanent protection to Afghan refugees currently in Australia on Temporary Protection Visas, warning “it may never be safe again for them to return to Afghanistan”.
They also said Australia should help Afghan Australians with urgent family reunion applications for relatives who are in imminent danger.
In a letter to Morrison last week, Catholic Archbishop of Brisbane and president of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, Mark Coleridge, said the 3000 places offered above and beyond 8000 places over the past decade “is a substantial commitment, but more is needed”.
Based on estimates from key humanitarian organisations and pledges from other countries, Archbishop Coleridge proposed that at least another 17,000 places be made available, adding that Catholic agencies were ready to help in the resettlement process.
“It would seem our moral duty to stand with those who supported Australian military forces as interpreters or in other capacities, who it seems likely will suffer reprisals and even death for their work,” he said. “We should also offer refuge to other Afghans who are likely to suffer persecution or risk being killed because of their opposition to the Taliban, or because of their beliefs, values and way of life, including members of the Christian community.”
Primate of the Anglican Church in Australia, Archbishop Geoffrey Smith, said the urgent response to the ongoing emergency in Afghanistan also must involve the whole of the Australian community, readying itself to “welcome, receive and include refugees”.
“We express our deepest sympathy with the families of Afghan background in Australia and embrace them with our solidarity,” he said. “We also urge the Australian Government to do all it can to ensure safe passage for Afghan citizens, particularly those who assisted Australian troops in Afghanistan over the past 20 years.”
Sydney’s Anglican Archbishop Kanishka Raffel, has also spoken publicly to have the number of refugees from Afghanistan increased.
Australia’s mission to evacuate Australians and refugees from the capital, Kabul, continues.
