Unfortunately for much of the past week or so we’ve been
confronted with shocking images of Syrian refugees fleeing war and attempting
to find safety in Europe. Not since World War II have there been so many
displaced foreigners seeking refuge in Europe. To me this is an absolutely
sobering situation.
The events of the past week aren’t just a new thing though.
The situation in Syria has been dire for some time now with countless innocents
experiencing atrocities we couldn’t even begin to imagine. For many of us going
about our daily lives in such a carefree and safe country, it is easy to turn a
blind eye and distance ourselves from the situation.
It wasn’t until last week when the horrific imagine of the
little boy who drowned along with his brother and mother was made public that
many people sat up and took notice of the situation. This image struck an
emotional chord with everyone I know. I can’t imagine anyone not being both
horrified and moved by it. Personally I felt an enormous
amount of sadness and grief when I saw it - the young boy and his brother were
similar ages to my own grandchildren. It’s hard for me to look at the photo and
not think of them.
As well as sadness I also felt incredibly lucky that my own
family never had to face such hardships. When my wife Anita and I, immigrated to
Australia with young children we were welcomed into the local community with
open arms. My children were given every opportunity to succeed in their adopted
home and so too will my grandchildren. Being given the chance to relocate to
Australia and call this amazing place home has been one of the luckiest things
to have ever happened to us.
I’ve been thinking what our response, as the lucky country,
should be. Surely we can’t just bomb the guilty. We must also help the
innocent. In an ideal world everyone would have the right to live in safety,
where their children have access to an education and where basic services that
we take for granted in Australia are freely available. But just because it is
not an ideal world, it doesn’t mean we should accept the fate of others and not
do anything to create change. That is why I am so heartened by the Australian
public’s outpouring of support towards the Syrian refugees, and so pleased to
hear that the Australian Government yesterday announced it will resettle a further
12,000 refugees (on top of our existing commitments) fleeing the conflict in
Syria, with the first to arrive before Christmas. There will be scores of
Syrian families that Australia (and the world) may never be able to help. But
for those lucky 12,000, their resettlement to this country will mean the world
to them. And I for one am proud that I’ll soon be able to share the
wealth of opportunities in this country with the newly arrived families from
Syria.
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