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‘Why not me?’: Australian refugees desperate as others are released | Refugee Stories

Melbourne, Australia – Australian militants and refugees have welcomed the release of four men detained in Melbourne, but authorities say they should release more men who remain in state prisons, especially at the city hotel where half of the detainees were detained COVID-19.

Among the men released on temporary visas on Saturday was Ahmad Zahir Azizi, a refugee from Afghanistan.

A 37-year-old man, who has spent eight years in prison, plus six years in a prison in Papua New Guinea, told Al Jazeera he did not believe he was free.

She said she enjoyed breathing fresh air and feeling the sun on her skin.

“First I [went] going to the mosque… and walking I looked [back], I thought it might be safety [was behind] me! ” he said with a laugh.

They are now waiting for their ID and bank account. While he is happy with his release, he said he wants the Australian government to give the same rights to those who remain at the Melbourne’s Park Hotel, where many inmates caught coronavirus last month.

Their release brings to 178 the number of asylum seekers released from prison since December 2020.

Campaigners say 81 refugees are still being held. Forty of them are at the Park Hotel.

Many of them were brought to Australia from maritime centers in PNG and Nauru in 2019 out of concern for their health.

A man who still lives at the Park Hotel said that while people are still in prison, it hurts when someone is released.

One commented that he was greatly distressed by questions about why he was not granted the same freedoms. “What’s the difference between me and them?” the 32-year-old asked. “Why not me?”

“You do not know when [will] exit… If [the authorities told] you ‘in the next two, three months’ you will be happy. You’d say, ‘Oh, two, three months is nothing.’

“But he wants to keep you in the dark. So you don’t know anything. This makes you very sad and unhappy. He wants you to suffer. ”

Graham Thom, a refugee counselor at Amnesty International Australia, agreed.

Although he received the release of four asylum seekers, he said, “The unresolved practice of elections, which leaves about 40 men in custody while COVID-19 is spreading in the hotel, is unacceptable.”

“All asylum seekers detained in prisons around Australia should be released immediately,” he added.

There was no immediate comment from the Australian government. It did not say what methods were used in the decision to release Azizi and three others.

Continued uncertainty

Meanwhile, some activists have suggested that the Australian government should provide more assistance to deported refugees.

In the meantime, many are exempted from the temporary visa that allows them to work in Australia. But they are not given financial assistance beyond the $ 100 Australian vouchers ($ 73.5).

“[The released refugees] they are told they have a place to sleep for three weeks and then they stay alone, ”said Chris Breen, of the Refugee Action Collective. “She has no money and has just been given $ 100 Australian Woolworths [a supermarket chain] vouchers that do not specify how to use or where to use them. ”

The men are “being dumped in the area without assistance,” he said.

Jana Favero of the Asylum Seeker Resource Center (ASRC) also complained about the lack of a way to accommodate the large number of Australian refugees who were deported.

“Some of them are on their way to the United States or have asked for Canada to be established there,” he said. Some have to take longer.

The fact is, though, that most of these men continue to face uncertainties about their future even after their release from prison.

“First, they are released with the help of the government, but for a few weeks … what happens when the day comes?” he said. “So their final visas can be up to five months. What happens after that date?”

Moz Azimitabar, a asylum seeker who was released from the area earlier this year, said he should apply to renew his visa every six months when he wants to stay in Australia.

The 35-year-old Kurd said he was still struggling with the pain he had spent in prison for eight years and was terrified of being around people.

“I do not want her to come near me, stay close to me or come closer to me,” he said. “While in prison … I had my body examined more than 400 times.”

“If I say check,” he added. “… It just touches, touches my whole body [and] I heard [like they] they give it to me. ”

Back at the Park Hotel, detainees continue to await their release from permanent prison.

The 32-year-old refugee who spoke earlier also said how many people “could not be alone for two weeks”.

“But we have been here for over eight years,” he said.

“We are just suffering,” he added. “We are refugees. We are innocent people. We should not be here. ”




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