This Saturday marks one year since Letters For Ranjini was created.

It has been an incredible an emotional twelve months, a mix of tragic cruelty and heartwarming human strength and compassion. For every shocking story from inside Villawood, there has always been an inspiring reaction of hope from one of our wonderful supporters. Ranjini has an army of supporters that extends all over Australia, and until she – and the other 56 ASIO detained refugees – are granted access to a justice that should be universal, we will keep fighting.

Saturday is a birthday, it’s a milestone – most of all it’s a reminder, we still have much to do.

Thanks for 12 wonderful months – here’s hoping we don’t need a second birthday. 

Anthony

Last night, in the middle of drafting a letter to the Immigration Minister, I had a bit of a epiphany. Somewhere between reading and re-reading media statements and finding the correct legal language to ensure it didn’t become a debate on semantics, I realised I could probably already write his response. In fact, I probably already had a copy of the same form letter response he would send me on my desk.

And then I started thinking about what it is I was actually doing – I was about to write a letter to an elected representative of a highly advanced western country asking him whether the prison where he was keeping a mother, her 3 sons – one of them an infant – for life, without any charges, did not have an unsafe level of asbestos.

It is heartbreaking, but it deserves to be considered in that light.

The Ranjini Army is growing – since January we have sent 119 emails to MP’s, had 9 of them join our cause and held the others to account for their refusal to comment.

Unfortunately, it appears that those MP’s who have ignored their constituents so far won’t give us an answer at all – which forces us to consider alternatives.

That is where we need you! Whilst your MP’s may be too “busy” to respond (mine was), the election gives us a chance to look at the other candidates in each seat. Most parties have started releasing their candidates, and more will be released over the coming weeks, so we need you to help us build a comprehensive picture for Ranjini advocates in every seat in Australia.

Below are some lists of candidates that we were able to find – it’s far from comprehensive so you may need to do a bit of Googling or perhaps put a phone call in to Party offices. Please let me know if you find anything that you think would be useful for others, and CC letters@lettersforranjini.com on your emails so we can keep our records updated.

You have all been incredible so far and hopefully this will be the last time I have to hassle you (except to invite you to the Welcome Home Party).

Thanks!

Anthony.

QLD Labor Candidates - http://www.queenslandlabor.org/federal-candidates/
NSW Liberal Candidates -  http://www.nsw.liberal.org.au/federal-candidates
List of LNP Candidates - https://lnp.org.au/lnp-team/federal-lnp-team/federal-candidates/

The package of CD’s we had donated for Aria have reached Manus Island – he has asked me to pass on this message to those who gave so generously. 

“Hello
Grenadiers, P.I.G.E.O.N , House Vs Hurricane , The Bennies , Foxrot , Steel Affliction , The Smith Street Band , The Living End , Wil Wagner , Karnivool , Buried in Verona , The Vampirates, Jackknife and Fist 2 Face,

I’m writing to you from deep bottom of my heart.
I really appreciate your kindness.
In these killing depressing boring days, Having something from outside of fences is really exiting for me even people who living next to me, When we see we are not alone and someone care about freedom, it makes us happy and hopeful about our future.
Personally I never expected this support from you. Thank you all.
It makes me stronger than before.
I wish you health, happiness, success on every single part of your life. I wish you the best of best,

Faithfully
Aria”

PRESS RELEASE

Melbourne Music Community Unites Behind Aria

Jackknife Music and Fist 2 Face Records have joined with Letters For Ranjini to support Aria, a metal drummer currently seeking refuge from Iran.

Aria, a former champion kickboxer, was forced to flee Iran after an underground metal concert was raided by Police. 60 people were arrested and musicians were taken in by intelligence officers due to a ban on metal music in Iran. Arriving in Australia by boat, Aria is currently detained on Manus Island and hoping for a life of freedom in Australia.

Aria described his experiences in a letter obtained by refugee advocates - “I have always loved music as long as I can remember. I started playing drums in Heavy Metal style which is my passion. In the last 4 years before I came to Australia this became very dangerous for me. I did playing with lots of difficulties. Because Heavy Metal is completely prohibited and illegal in Iran, it’s known as “Evil Music.” Government officials and the Religious who are in charge will arrest you and take you to Intelligence Department and anything can happen to you then.”

In an effort to help Aria during the mentally exhausting period of detention, Letters For Ranjini, Jackknife Music and Fist2Face Records have organised as a hamper of some of Australia’s best rock and metal CD’s and T-Shirts to send to Manus Island.

Fist 2 Face Records, located in Ringwood, donated albums from The Living End, House vs Hurricane, Karnivool and many more.“Running a record store, we see every day how important music and albums influence peoples lives.. and to think a government somewhere doesn’t allow people to create the sounds and songs they want.. it just boils my blood to be honest” said Gerard Pidoto, owner of Fist 2 Face.

Melbourne record label Jackknife contributed CD’s and T-Shirts from their artists, including The Bennies, Foxtrot and releases from The Smith Street Band signed with messages of hope from the band.

Anthony Bieniak, founder of Letters For Ranjini, was blown away by the support of the music community.

“I always knew that the Melbourne music scene was a generous place, but I was still blown away by the donations we received. Music has the power to give hope and inspire people, and I hope these CD’s are able to keep Aria strong in the tough conditions on Manus Island”

MEDIA CONTACT
Anthony Bieniak
anthony.bieniak@gmail.com
0419 342 164

PRESS RELEASE:

Federal MP’s Demand Answers From News Limited

Federal MP’s Rob Oakeshott and Steve Georganas have joined Welcome To Australia and Letters For Ranjini in challenging the Daily Telegraph and reporter Gemma Jones to justify their front page story on healthcare provided to refugees and asylum seekers.

“I am interested to learn what The Daily Telegraph is suggesting Australia does with pregnant women and people with poor eyesight in asylum.” Said Mr. Oakeshott.
“If the point they are making is to encourage an even better standard of healthcare for all Australians, then I totally 100% agree. But if it’s to bang the drum of xenophobia and, by doing so, marginalise asylum seekers and refugees more than what is already done, then I disagree. So I’m left wondering what the point of the article is and am genuinely interested in the response.”

Labor MP Steve Georganas said that he was deeply disappointed with the article.

“Health care is a human right”  he said. “But the Daily Telegraph appear to have decided that some people in this world deserve human rights more than others”.

“It is an unsettling to read an article suggesting that a new mum with a mental health condition struggling to take care of her baby should be denied assistance” he said.

“Anyone choosing to sow fear and division instead of building tolerance and understanding should understand that they are damaging the Australian community as a whole” he said.

The MP’s comments were echoed by multicultural organisation Welcome To Australia and refugee advocacy group Letters For Ranjini.

“The use of fear and prejudice to sell papers shows contempt for Australians by prioritising profit over social harmony and community health” said Brad Chilcott, director of Welcome To Australia.

“The more we dehumanise others in our words, policy and attitudes, the more we dehumanise ourselves. Our complicity with prejudice is costly socially, economically and ethically. Is there any level on which an article like this builds a more inclusive, harmonious Australia?”

Letters For Ranjini founder Anthony Bieniak was disgusted by the further demonisation of an already vulnerable group.

“In a period where the demonisation of asylum seekers and refugees has become increasingly intense, Gemma Jones has lowered the bar even further. I never thought I’d see the day where the provision of basic health care to vulnerable people would be criticised on the front page of a major newspaper.

I would urge Gemma Jones to consult her conscience and consider the impact that such a virulent and divisive campaign has on the people she has targeted”  he said.

MEDIA CONTACTS:

Anthony Bieniak

0419 342 164

anthony.bieniak@gmail.com

Brad Chilcott

0410 548 637

brad@welcometoaustralia.org.au

Two big things happened this week that didn’t seem to get anywhere near the public attention they deserve. In the lead to what Tony Abbott has said will be an election about trust, his own party has been playing loose with the truth.

It started on Wednesday when the LNP began to slowly back away from their commitments on ‘stopping the boats’. Their original promise to stop the boats within weeks has now become much more vague – in fact, Scott Morrison is now refusing to put a timeframe on it. Immigration Minister Brendan O’Connor goes into that in more detail here.

While that change was occurring, so did a change in the Opposition’s language – with Michael Keenan, Tony Abbott and Scott Morrison all using the term ‘illegal’ in press conferences, press releases and even in a disgusting question to the Government in Parliamentary Question Time. This is dishonest, it is never illegal to seek asylum, and surely it can’t be allowed to happen in an election about trust

Essentially what we’ve seen from the LNP is their language becoming stronger while their policy commitments become weaker. 

This is outrageous behaviour from people who are putting themselves forward as an alternative Government. Demonising and defaming an innocent minority as ‘illegals’ achieves nothing for this wonderful country – it seeks to destroy and divide the social cohesion that Morrison incomprehensibly clings to as defense for his offensive campaign.

We can do just fine without the attitude, remember that at the ballot box.

-Anthony

P.S – Michael, Scott or Tony – if you can explain any of this, email me, I’m more than happy to publish a response.

(Hit the Tweet button to send a message to the Abbott, Morrison and Keenan.)

Tweet

The Freedom Award is my little way of thanking the many, many people who have done amazing things to contribute to seeing an end to Indefinite Detention and the legal black hole that Ranjini faces. 

In February we were asking people to chase their MP for a position on indefinite detention, and we had so many amazing letters to the Government from Ranjini supporters all over Australia. Our February winner of The Freedom Award is someone who didn’t just contact their MP, but actively pursued them for an opinion!

Congratulations to Karen Bruce-Allen from South Golden Beach, NSW – winner of the February Freedom Award.

Karen wrote to her local member, Justine Elliot, 3 times without any response (including one fantastic reply to a mailing list message) before she finally got an offer from Ms. Elliot to take the case to Minister O’Connor. We never thought this would be easy, but if you continue to pursue your member and spread Ranjini’s story, great things can happen.

Congratulations Karen!

On Tuesday I posted a note calling for courage from our Parliamentarians, and last night our good friends at ChilOut and GetUp launched a campaign which shows exactly why courage matters. 

Their new website - http://outofsight.org.au/ - is quite incredible, featuring drawings, letters and an interview with people on Manus. Detention is no place for children, especially the new island prisons of Manus Island and Nauru.

This is where courage is needed, the political courage to stand up to the fear campaigns and declare that detaining children is morally indefensible – and the courage to refuse to vote for policies which make it legal.

This is a call that Minister O’Connor has to make – it is up to each one of us, and each MP to contact him and leave him in no doubt how the community feels about children in detention.

Read more at http://outofsight.org.au/

I try to refrain from using this site for reasons outside of showcasing your letters and the amazing amount of support in the community for an end to the draconian and cruel practice of indefinite detention, however yesterday I received an email that I felt deserved a more considered response. 

“Thank you for contacting me with your offer. I really appreciate it, however, as a cabinet minister, it would be inappropriate for me to be added to the list.

I wish you well with your endeavour.

Best wishes,
Tanya”

This was an email I received from Tanya Plibersek in response to my offer to add her to the Honour Board on The House.

Before I begin, I want to thank Minister Plibersek for her honesty and availability to her constituents – she is a Minister who I have great personal respect for and I don’t want this to be perceived as an attack on her or her character. The mere fact she has responded to both my correspondence and another letter from a constituent puts her above the many who have ignored the question completely.

I debated releasing this email at all as I don’t want this campaign to become about politician bashing. I believe that many, if not most, politicians understand the problems that Ranjini’s case highlights – a sheer denial of justice and life in a a legal black hole – but are unable to comment publicly for a variety of largely political reasons. Many have simply ignored the letters sent to them by constituents in the hope that it might just go away, so I again commend Minister Plibersek for her response.

The reason I decided to publish this was that it raises some questions that I think are worthy of consideration. The nature of politics can often mean that the line of what is ‘appropriate’ becomes blurred, sometimes breaking a promise in favour of achieving a better outcome for the country is an ethical decision for example.

What I find remarkable is that in the face of a baby growing up in jail, a mother facing her life in prison without any access to justice – it can be considered more appropriate to stay quiet and let it happen than to possibly rock the boat so close to an election. I’m glad that we have fantastic people like Russell Broadbent and Steve Georganas who are brave enough to say ‘what we are doing is wrong’, but i’m disappointed that it happens so rarely. Dissent should be natural in politics, issues should divide parties and it shouldn’t be a media circus when it happens. Rather than sniffing around the backbenches for the slightest taste of a leadership struggle – wouldn’t we be better served to have a media chasing the people who refuse to say what they believe in?

The big story shouldn’t come from political disagreement – it should be about MP’s who, through a lack of courage or an excess of ambition, insult us all by staying quiet when their voice is needed. Leadership demands courage, and as voters we should demand it too.