Ruth Halbert
artist, weaver
Paper boat Rud.jpg

Blog: Dear Prime Minister

On July 30 2016 I started writing letters to the Prime Minister of Australia to protest against the imprisonment and torture of the asylum seekers in the offshore detention centres of Manus Island and Nauru. I started with the intention of writing a letter a day for every person in detention until they are all freed. There are more than 1800 asylum seekers in off shore detention. These are those letters and any response from Mr Turnbull.

End offshore detention #241

Dear Prime Minister,

Have you been following the case of the (ongoing) attempted deportation of Saeed?

I guess the actions of DIBP in denying him legal process and sneaking him to Sydney in the middle of the night give an answer to my question from yesterday. The 'nowhere' state that the detainees in Manus Island find themselves seems to now extend to people like Saeed on the Australian mainland.

Is this the best you can do for Australia, Prime Minister, to show our fear and our weakness by punishing people who mistakenly put their trust in Australia's imagined qualities of fairness and opportunity?

lawRuth Halbertrefoulement, illegal detentionComment