Editors: Margaret Hinchey Marie Butcher
margaret@lifequestoz.net mbutcher@mercy.org.au
Dear Reader,
We aim to get MAJic out once a month. In between you can access what is happening in the
Justice World through http://www.ccjpoz.org/ or http://www.lifequestoz.net/ by going into
urgent action.
CONTENT:
Project Respect: focus on women trafficked to Australia for prostitution, and other women experiencing harm and violence within the sex industry. http://www.projectrespect.org.au/
Private Member's
Kevin Manning, Bishop of Parramatta
Refugee Sunday
Sunday Seminar CCJP (Catholics Coalition for Justice and Peace)
Mercy Global Concern
Micah: Christians acting for and with the poor
TRAFFICKING OF WOMEN
Has slavery ended or does it still exist?
Does the trafficking of women to Australia take place?
Are we concerned about women and how they are treated in society?
This was the topic of the 10th Annual Luncheon for Women and the Australian Church which
was held at Parliament House Sydney. The guest speaker was Shirley Wood who works with
Project Respect, which is a Non-government organisation which challenges the exploitation
of women and acts to counter the violence against women in the sex industry. Project Respect
believes that structures must reflect our understanding of gender, power and exclusion.
http://www.projectrespect.org.au/ They are looking for volunteers who will be present at court hearings to
support the women.
Mercy Global Concern has a statement on Coalition Against Trafficking in Women http://www.mercyworld.org/projects/mgc/2004/pdfs/special_report-041021-b.pdf
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PRIVATE MEMBERS’ BILL
Letter from Dr Carmen Lawrence MP Federal Member for Fremantle
Dear All,Petro Georgiou's Private Member's BillsI have received a number of emails and messages on the subject of PetroGeorgiou's Private Member's Bills and the changes they propose with respect to the treatmentof asylum seekers. Naturally, I support the substantive thrust of the Bills and will argue in favourof the measures they contain - as indeed I have done over the years. After the meeting of Caucusthis morning, it has been decided that the Bills should in the main be supported since theylargely accord with ALP policy and, most importantly, because they represent a humaneapproach to dealing with the crucial issues of indefinite detention and temporary protection.(It's another indictment of the current refugee policy that Australian politics should be so wrackedwith the difficulties involved in changing an inhumane system.)From a procedural point of view, however, it must be remembered that the Georgiou Bills won'tbe debated at all, let alone voted upon, unless Mr Georgiou puts the Bills on the Notice Paperand the Howard Government agrees to list the Bills for debate. From Opposition, the best wecould do is to move a motion to suspend the Standing Orders so that the Bills could be debated.Even then, a number of Coalition Members would have to cross the floor for the motion tosucceed. On present numbers, and assuming that all three independents voted with Labor(unlikely in Katter's case), we would still require at least 12 Coalition members to cross thefloor. That would be unprecedented. And yet, considering the attitude of John Howard, thatis probably what is required for the Bills even to be debated.Massive pressure must therefore be applied to the Government if these Bills are to see thelight of day within the House of Representatives (HoR). I include here the link to the list ofHoR Members, listed by Federal Electorate, and I encourage you to contact your Member,especially if they belong to the Coalition, and urge them to support the listing of PetroGeorgiou's Bills for debate: http://www.aph.gov.au/house/members/mi-elctr.aspYours sincerely,Dr Carmen Lawrence MPFederal Member for Fremantle==============================================================================BISHOP KEVIN MANNINGIn his June letter the Bishop states:” My wonderment was further fuelled by a few indicatorsof the Federal Industrial Relations Legislation, proposed for debate in July/August and whichpromises little joy for the poor:
A continuing imbalance in the employment relationship;
No clear guarantee of a proper minimum wage to protect the poor;
Lack of support for the poor in their search for just wages; and
Exemption for small business employers from unfair dismissal claims and redundancy payments.
http://www.parra.catholic.org.au/Bishop/Bishop-letters.htm
In response to this year’s Federal Budget, Bishop Kevin Manning wrote an open letter to the
Prime Minister, Mr John Howard. http://www.ccjpoz.org/urgent_action!.htm#kevin
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We cannot stand by and witness the mistreatment of children
carried out in our name and our behalf. This is an issue ofhuman rights, not politics.HOW MANY CHILDREN ARE IN DETENTION?
Villawood 27 Port Augusta 19
Christmas Is. 6 Nauru 6
Baxter 2 Maribyrnong 1
Other detention 7 As at 1 June 2005 68 children
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Wednesday 1 - Saturday 18 June
FREEDOM DETAINED - an exhibition of Gai Mather’s work - NSW
The artist writes: My exhibition is an attempt to demonstrate the plight of refugees in
Australian detention centres. Using the cloud as an example of absolute freedom and
beauty and then enclosing it in a cage will, I hope, lead to thoughts of how horrifying it
must be for refugees to be incarcerated in detention centres and in many cases left in
limbo for years.
When: Wednesday 1 - Saturday 18 June (12.00 - 5.00pm, wed to sat)
Meet Gai: Drinks with the artist 2.00pm - 4.00pm Saturday 4 June
Where: James Harvey Gallery, 163 Clovelly Rd, Clovelly
Contact : T:/F 02 9314 7708; E: jharvey@zipworld.com.au ;
http://www.jamesharveygallery.com.au
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Sunday 19 June WORLD REFUGEE DAY - Sydney
Rally on World Refugee Day
End detention!
Stop all deportations!
Permanent protection!
Royal Commission now!With the pressure building on the Howard government over the wrongful detention of Cornelia
Rau, the mistaken deportation of Vivan Alvarez Solon, and the wrongful detention of a possible
200 other people, now is the time for the refugee-rights movement to rally our supporters to
call for the whole cruel and punitive immigration detention system to be dismantled. We demand
an end to mandatory detention, an end to deportations, permanent protection for all refugees
and a Royal Commission into the whole damn lot.
When: Sunday June 19, noon
Where: Rally at Hyde Park fountain for speakers March to DIMIA, near Central station.
Speakers include: Phil Glendenning, Edmund Rice Centre, co-author of report "Deported to
Danger"; Dr Louise Newman, director, NSW Institute of Psychiatry; member of the Professional
Alliance for the Health of Asylum Seekers and their Children; Shahin Shafaei, Iranian playwright
and ex-detainee at Curtin; Greens Senator Kerry Nettle; Labor MP Tanya Plibersek
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SUNDAY: 19th JUNE 2005
GUEST SPEAKER: Dr. Tim Battin who is a political economist who teaches in the
Department of Politics at the University of New England.
TOPIC: The Howard Government's Industrial Relations Reforms:What
will it mean for working people?
VENUE: Paulian Centre 33 Tavistock St Enfield South.
TIME: 9.45am-12.30
This will probably be the last seminar held at Paulian Centre, Enfield before our move to Croydon.
Please come along to say your good byes. Come along and bring some interested people with you. Registration $10. Email: ccjp@bigpond.com
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MAKE POVERTY HISTORY
Micah Challenge Australia is part of a global campaign of agencies that encourages churches
and other Christian groups, which seeks to mobilize Christians to act for and with the poor.
http://www.micahchallenge.org.au/ The Micah Call is the first step of the campaign. It is a
vision statement and it also tells our leaders how many Australians care about justice for the
poor. The Micah Call is an important first step in the new global campaign called the Micah
Challenge, which aims to deepen Christian engagement with the poor and to influence leaders
to keep their promise to achieve the Millennium Development Goals and so halve world
poverty by 2015.
The Micah Call will act like a global petition to show leaders the strength of Christian support.
It is particularly important that we demonstrate our support prior to the G8 meeting in Scotland
in July 2005. Decisions taken at that meeting on trade, aid and debt will have a critical impact
on the ability of poor nations to address poverty and to achieve the Millennium Development
Goals.
The Micah Call explains why our generation has an almost unique opportunity to turn poverty
around, and how as Christians we have been shown by the prophets and by the teachings and
life of Jesus, that holistic engagement with the poor is integral to our discipleship. The Micah
Challenge takes its name from Micah 6:8 'What does the Lord require of you but to do justice,
to love kindness and to walk humbly with your God.'
The Millennium Development Goals are explained on the website. The key things to know are
that all United Nations member states, as well as the major international institutions
(e.g. the World Bank), have promised to achieve the Goals, and that if they are achieved
poverty will be halved by 2015! If you would like to add your name click on
http://www.micahchallenge.org/home/
· Watch out for the Make Poverty History arm/wrist bands, to be sold at Oxfam Shops
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MERCY GLOBAL CONCERN
Briefing Notes
June 2005 Briefing Paper Number 1:
Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues opens fourth session with focus on
Millenium Development Goals Indigenous people are called ‘first peoples’, ‘tribal peoples’,
‘aboriginals’ and ‘autochthons’ They have a historical continuity with the pre-invasion or
pre-colonial societies that developed on their territories. They consider themselves distinct
from other sectors that make up the dominant society where they find themselves. There are
at least 5000 indigenous groupings made up of about 300 million people, living in more than
70 countries on five continents http://www.mercyworld.org/projects/mgc/2005/brief_050601-a.asp
Ethics – Kofi Annan, Secretary General UN
"Do We Still Have Universal Values?"
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen:
Let me spare you any suspense, and tell you right now that my answer is Yes! The values of peace, freedom, social progress, equal rights and human dignity, enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations and in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, are no less valid today than when, over half a century ago, those documents were drafted by representatives of many different nations and cultures.
http://www.mercyworld.org/projects/mgc/pdf/2005/0506_briefing_paper-2.pdf
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EDMUND RICE CENTRE
Edmund Rice has two issues of Just Comments that you might like to read.
1: Mental Health in Australia: A state of urgency
http://www.erc.org.au/just_comments/1114048003.shtml
2: ‘A Fair Go’ for All http://www.erc.org.au/just_comments/1117763227.shtml
JESUIT REFUGEE SERVICE
World Refugee Day Statement http://www.jrs.org.au/news.php?item=136
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How do you feel when you listen to what is happening in the
world?
How do you feel when you listen to people’s stories?
Where has the innocence of life gone?
Oh to be a child,
To be in that
Narrow view of world
Where Governments
Their decisions
The effect of these
On the life of individuals
Is in the periphery
Of my vision.
Oh to relax
To be with nature
To be carefree
But is this ego-centricity?
Will my life deteriorate
As the life of the earth community is deteriorating?
Can I really walk away?
Can I withdraw?
Can I say to the community of life
Fend for yourself? Marie Butcher
"...what does the Lord require of you but to do justice,
and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God" - Micah 6:8
