The Federal Government’s new Papua New Guinea resettlement arrangements are based on a “fundamentally untrue premise” that it is wrong to seek asylum, Bishop Gerard Hanna, bishops’ delegate for migrants and refugees said this week.
“Each and every one of us must rise above indifference and have the courage to open our hearts to asylum seekers, to listen to their hopes, to empathise with their despair, and to welcome them into our community,” Bishop Hanna said.
“Our thoughts and active involvement are accompanied by our prayerful support for these people who have endured so much in the hope of making a life for themselves in Australia and who will now be denied this opportunity,” said Bishop Hanna.
“The new resettlement arrangements with Papua New Guinea are based on the premise that it is wrong for people fleeing from persecution to seek asylum in Australia… this is fundamentally untrue,” Bishop Hanna said.
“We have the duty as members of one human family to help those who arrive on our shores seeking asylum and to strive with all our resources to assist them no matter how inconvenient this may prove to be.
“We also share the concerns raised by the Catholic Bishops Conference of Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands.
“[They are concerned] Australia is asking the people of Papua New Guinea to show a level of generosity far beyond their economic means,” Bishop Hanna said.
Fr Maurizio Pettená CS, National Director of the Australian Catholic Migrant and Refugee Office, said there were other, more compassionate options on the table.
“An alternative way to prevent tragedies at sea is to accept more refugees from source countries and provide the possibility and the hope of reaching Australia through a regular legal pathway” Fr Pettená, a consulter of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People, said.
“At the root cause of forced migration is the failure of various nations to uphold human rights and respect human dignity… The ultimate solution is to seek justice, uphold the rule of law and encourage all other nations to do likewise. Full respect and care for asylum seekers must come before the national and political interests of any country,” Fr Pettená said.
“Importantly, in this context, we must uphold our international human rights obligations under the 1951 Refugee Convention.” – ACBC