Fear of the stranger
19.01.2009
Fr Woodruff writes about how one woman’s work with refugees made them feel welcome.
How could our national government treat desperate refugees with such appalling disrespect?" Such was the question that came to Mary Holland's mind on seeing the photos of the Tampa incident in 2001, which was used effectively by former Prime Minister John Howard for electoral purposes. Both outrage and indignation provoked in Mary and others the determination to show another face of Australia - that of compassionate solidarity.
She points out that in the course of the world's history there have always been waves of refugees. Australia has previously opened its doors to refugees, two recent moments being the post World War II influx from ravaged Europe and, 30 years later, the exodus from the south of Vietnam following the north's victory in the civil war. Why do we insist on going back to the national fear mentality that motivated the so-called “White Australia Policy"? she asks. After all, it took us so long to undo that infamous policy.
A major response to the Tampa incident was the formation in Bowral, NSW, October 2001 of Rural Australians for Refugees (RAR). The proposal of a ten point plan of action facilitated the rapid development of a national network. Mary went to an inaugural meeting of a group in Castlemaine, Victoria in 2001; soon after, another group got underway in Bendigo.
Mary lives in Bendigo with her husband, Paul. They have three grown daughters. Mary is a doctor working in general practice.
With the support of her husband and other concerned citizens, Mary began raising awareness of the plight of refugees and the inadequate response of the Australian government.
Marion Le, a Canberra based migration agent and refugee advocate, asked the local RAR group to settle six Afghani men who were arriving from Nauru. Mary and Paul and two other Bendigo families billeted two each and helped them find work. Following that, Mary joined the Bendigo Karen Refugee Project soon after it was started. Later the organisation underwent a name change to Bendigo Friends and Mentors.
Over 150,000 Karens from Myanmar have been obliged to leave their homes and go to refugee camps in Thailand. It seems that the Karen Liberation Army (KLA) is facing imminent defeat as their support base of towns and villages has all but been occupied or eliminated by the Burmese army. Civilian and military casualties of this war have been horrendous.
Even though the now sizeable Karen community continues to need some support, emerging leaders have begun to help their people look after their own needs.
Moving into work with refugees has been, for Mary, a highly charged emotional journey of passionate anger and joyous wonder. Also, even though she might experience much to be grateful for, there can be moments of profound weariness - when will it ever end? Some refugees have touched her life briefly, but profoundly, and then moved on.
Many look to her for a long-term relationship, similar maybe to that of an extended-family member. She has been a major part of their first contact with Australia so they expect her to remain a friend for life - she is significant for them. Even though they may seldom meet, the telephone lets them stay in touch; Mary often takes the initiative.
I asked Mary what kept her going and, after a few moments of silence, she replied, "Wanting people from other countries to feel part of our community and feel welcomed." 
Also, she assured me that she feels supported by her immediate family and many others. The support network is now bigger and more broadly based.
Mary took me to the home of a family of Karen refugees from Myanmar where I began to get an inkling of the extent to which she empathises with them. We were greeted by smiles, chatter and laughter. The parents and three children made us feel at home immediately. All I needed to do was sit down, listen and watch.
Lah Su was 15 years of age when, in 1984, he joined the KLA. His wife, Kyaw Pyaint, and children moved to the Mae La refugee camp in Thailand around 1995 when their second child, Bu Gay, was born. Their son, Soe Lay, was born in 1993 and their youngest daughter, Pan Mar Lar, in 2000. Lah Su has two basic skills, farming and soldiering, but after he lost a leg to a landmine in 2000 he was restricted to hanging around the refugee camp.
They have now been in Australia for two and a half years so the children are progressing well in English but their parents have less opportunity. Lah Su and Kyaw Pyaint have not found fulltime jobs (Kyaw Pyaint does a little cleaning) but they are planning to work at traditional Karen weaving when the made-in-Australia hand-looms are ready. The men will be involved in constructing the looms and the women will do the weaving.
They told stories about their life in Australia, laughed and joked about making mistakes and came across as so happy to be together. Their kindness towards each other moved me. They have so little and the future, at least by the standards of most Australians, is pretty bleak. Yet they form a family at peace within itself. Maybe their Buddhist faith helps them cope with the vicissitudes of life in this new land.
Fr Peter Woodruff is currently working at the Columban Mission Centre in Essendon.
For more information see: Rural Australians for Refugees: www.ruralaustraliansforrefugees.org.au
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)