USYD SRC Refugee Rights Office

1000 people out in Punchbowl yesterday to support the encampment for permanent visas which now enters its 49th day. So remarkable how the refugees are holding firm against every pressure and refusing to accept anything less than a clear pathway to permanent protection from Tony Burke.

Great to be back at the Sydney encampment for permanent protection tonight, where the continuous protest is now in its 37th day. These refugees are part of a nation-wide movement for permanent visas, with encampments now sprung up in Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide and Melbourne! Get down to 1 Broadway Punchbowl anytime, or join the next big rally on the 22nd of September.

Some more pics from the Sydney encampment for permanent protection! Every hour on the hour for the last 22 days, these refugees have chanted together outside Tony Burke's office for the right to a secure future here. Come along this Saturday at 1pm for the next community rally, starting at 90 Griffiths avenue Bankstown and marching back to the encampment.

Big encampment protest happening right now outside 1 Broadway in Punchbowl. All power to refugees like Abdel pictured here, who is demanding answers from the government after over 12 years of suffering under insecure visa conditions. Especially inspiring to see this fightback right now as racist anti-migration politics reaches disturbing new heights around the world. Come show your support and follow for more info.

Refugee Rights Officers Annabelle and Lucas taking part in the protest against the state Labor conference today! So good to see so many people enraged by the ALP’s wholehearted backing of Israel in their genocide against the people of Gaza. It’s of the utmost importance that we take a stand against a party which not only aids and abets the crimes committed against Palestinians, but also commits its own against refugees and migrants in Australia. From the river to the sea 🇵🇸🇵🇸✊🏼✊🏼

One month of the usyd Gaza solidarity encampment. Thanks to for hosting a great teach-in today about the Tamil genocide and the overlap in all our struggles.

15 years on from the 2009 Tamil genocide, remembering the crimes of the Sri Lankan state and complicity of the Australian government.

We’re so stoked to be down at the Gaza solidarity encampment at Sydney Uni. Are you also inspired by the students over in America who are holding their ground in the face of extreme repression!!? Do you want to stand up against usyd’s military connections and complicity in the genocide of the Palestinian people?? come down to the quadrangle, pitch up a tent or just say hi and find out how else you can support the encampment ! Also give a follow if you aren’t already for latest updates

building support for the student strike for Palestine ! Make sure you are back out on the 9th of May to stand up against the ongoing genocide, displacement and famine in Gaza.

Nauru is back open for business, with 64 people now detained, among them the Pakistani refugees who arrived in WA in Feb after fleeing torture. They have no ability to contact their families, and are kept in the dark on plans for their future. The government should bring them all here and grant them full protection immediately, but instead are reaffirming their commitment to Operation Sovereign Borders and trying to push for the mandatory imprisonment of anyone who resists their own deportation.

Tonight the Sydney Uni SRC unanimously passed a motion in opposition to the ALP’s racist Migration Amendment Bill. If passed, this bill would give new powers to the government to lock up refugees, send people back to countries where they face persecution, and place an outright ban on refugees from certain countries. Sydney Uni SRC rejects this disturbing Trumpian attack, and demands an end to the racist scapegoating of refugees by the Labor party. Sign onto the petition in our bio to demand the same!

Student unionists oppose the Migration Amendment Bill ! Sign the petition in our bio, initiated by and send us a pic in support if you do too. The bill will now be voted on in May, and could determine the fate of thousands of refugees seeking asylum in Australia. Say it loud say it clear - refugees are welcome here !

The refugee rights office condemns this latest attack by the ALP. This new legislation threatens refugees who don’t “cooperate” in their own deportation or deportation of a family member. For trying to evade being sent back to a country they had to flee from, this bill can have refugees thrown in jail for up to 5 years. This effectively overturns the High Court ruling last year that found immigration detention unlawful and will affect the lives of thousands of refugees who should have every right to live here in safety.

We’re proud to be out at the national student strike for Palestine today, alongside hundreds of other students across the country standing up against genocide and war.

Tomorrow is the big day! Hundreds of students around the country will be walking out of class to oppose the genocide in Gaza - make sure you are one of them. If you’re at usyd then it’s 1pm on eastern avenue.

We’re out at usyd O’Week with Jasmine from the welfare office talking to new undergrads about getting involved in Palestine activism and building for this Friday’s rally outside Albo’s office in Marrickville! stop by for more info + free shirts 🇵🇸

In the wake of the high court ruling a few weeks ago that found indefinite detention illegal, Liberal and Labor parties are now trying to out-do the other to clamp down on the 150 released migrants. These measures, and the re-detaining of 5 people who have already served their prior sentences in another country, are designed to paint every refugee as a potential threat to “the community”. All of these politicians have proven that they have no genuine concern for ordinary Australian people, as they oversee a historic cost of living and housing crisis, cut public services and degrade our standard of life. This is just another attempt to whip up racism, fear and contempt and redirect frustration onto people seeking asylum here.

🇵🇸 the kids are alright!! awesome initiative . Come walk out of school/ uni / work etc this Friday to stand against the unrelenting genocide in Gaza.

The Australian government backing up genocide in Sri Lanka as well as Palestine. Not the first time they have initiated an outrageous scare campaign to deter Tamil people fleeing for their lives.

The refugee rights office condemns in the strongest terms this the latest of Peter Dutton’s vile racist comments, and the limits that are being placed on the democratic right to protest in the aftermath of last weekend’s peaceful rally to support Palestine. Israel and all it’s Western allies are preparing to unleash unprecedented mass slaughter on the people of Gaza, and yet non-citizens in Australia who want to show their solidarity with the oppressed are being threatened with deportation. We’ll be attending the rally in support of Palestine tomorrow in Hyde Park at 1pm to oppose this attack on our civil rights and stand with the people of Gaza.

The refugee rights office stands with the the Palestinian people and the 2 million refugees who inhabit the Gaza Strip. We recognise their right to fight back by any means necessary against the daily tyranny of Israeli occupation. Israel is not under threat, Israel is not “defending itself”- it is openly preparing to decimate the people of Gaza, with the support of our own government. We’ll be at the snap rally tonight called by Palestine Action Group, be there at 5:30 Town Hall.

The refugee rights office opposes all forms of racism. That’s why we’ll be building and attending the Rally Against Racism in support of the Vote Yes campaign for the Voice to Parliament. This will be a really important rally to show that students strongly oppose the racism of the No campaign, which is only getting more virulent by the day. A No victory would mean the emboldenment of racists and reactionaries like Jacinta Price, Pauline Hanson and a growing far-right, who are on a warpath against Indigenous people. They must be stopped, left wing, anti-racist students need to show their support for the Voice and the Rally Against Racism.

Last month the Australian government settled their case against the family of Reza Barati. Reza was a 23 year old Iranian man who was beaten to death on Manus Island in 2014, as part of the prison guard’s organised, violent attack on the refugees who had bravely staged protests throughout the month of February. Reza was violently murdered using rocks and timber sticks lined with nails, yet in the settlement there includes no admission of responsibility on the part of the Australian government. A grave reminder that there continues to be no justice for the refugees who have died by the hands of the Australian state, nor for the thousands of people who remain imprisoned in immigration or community detention.

Come tomorrow -1pm to the John Woolley Rodgers Room N397 to hear about the social enterprise The Bread & Butter Project, and what their doing to create pathways to employment for refugees and asylum seekers.

USYD REFUGEE WEEK 2023 (AUG 14-18th) This year, the SRC Refugee Rights Office is organising a serious of speaker sessions for the University of Sydney’s Refugee Week. The overall theme of the week is ‘Finding Freedom’, with multiple sessions being held exploring the refugee experience.

Tomorrow (Tuesday 15th), the Refugee Council of Australia is running a keynote session about what it’s like coming to Australia as a refugee. Later in the day , the Refugee Advice & Casework Service (RACS) will be coming in to discuss their work, both legal and non-legal, as a strong, independent public voice for the rights of refugees and people seeking asylum. Would love to see you there!

Stay tuned for locations!!