Dear Supporters,
My name is Anna, and I’m Senior Director for Research
at Amnesty International.
In July, I managed to get onto the island of Nauru
where refugees trying to reach Australia are being
held indefinitely. I was repulsed by the sheer scale and
inhumanity of the abuses and neglect I witnessed. You
may have seen that this has since been covered in the
global media.
Please end the refugee nightmare on Nauru. Take
action now.
I interviewed 58 people during my week on the island.
People who had fled wars, who’d lost family members and
friends, who’d been tortured - and who are now stuck on
Nauru, in anguish and despair about their future.
More than 1,200 women, men and children from
countries such as Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Somalia, Bangladesh,
Kuwait, Afghanistan, have spent months or
years in appalling conditions in a detention camp funded
by Australia.
With no prospect of leaving this tiny island, these
people are effectively facing a future of indefinite,
arbitrary detention. As a result, they are breaking down.
I’ve worked in conflict zones for 15 years, but I’ve never
seen such high rates of mental trauma, self-harm, and
suicide attempts – in children as well as adults.
What’s worse, as remote as Nauru is, it’s actually closer
than you might think. Right-wing European politicians
have been touting the “Australian model” of offshore
asylum processing as a solution to the European refugee
“crisis”.
The exposure in the Nauru Files of what this “Australian
model” is like in reality, which has had extensive coverage
in Europe, is crucial. It brings hope that Australia will
finally fulfil its international obligations and allow
refugees to settle where they can get the assistance they
need and the protection they deserve.
Please show Australia and the rest of the world that
Nauru is not the answer. Take action and tell Australia to
close Nauru now.
Thank you for your support.
Anna Neistat
Amnesty International
My name is Anna, and I’m Senior Director for Research
at Amnesty International.
In July, I managed to get onto the island of Nauru
where refugees trying to reach Australia are being
held indefinitely. I was repulsed by the sheer scale and
inhumanity of the abuses and neglect I witnessed. You
may have seen that this has since been covered in the
global media.
Please end the refugee nightmare on Nauru. Take
action now.
I interviewed 58 people during my week on the island.
People who had fled wars, who’d lost family members and
friends, who’d been tortured - and who are now stuck on
Nauru, in anguish and despair about their future.
More than 1,200 women, men and children from
countries such as Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Somalia, Bangladesh,
Kuwait, Afghanistan, have spent months or
years in appalling conditions in a detention camp funded
by Australia.
With no prospect of leaving this tiny island, these
people are effectively facing a future of indefinite,
arbitrary detention. As a result, they are breaking down.
I’ve worked in conflict zones for 15 years, but I’ve never
seen such high rates of mental trauma, self-harm, and
suicide attempts – in children as well as adults.
What’s worse, as remote as Nauru is, it’s actually closer
than you might think. Right-wing European politicians
have been touting the “Australian model” of offshore
asylum processing as a solution to the European refugee
“crisis”.
The exposure in the Nauru Files of what this “Australian
model” is like in reality, which has had extensive coverage
in Europe, is crucial. It brings hope that Australia will
finally fulfil its international obligations and allow
refugees to settle where they can get the assistance they
need and the protection they deserve.
Please show Australia and the rest of the world that
Nauru is not the answer. Take action and tell Australia to
close Nauru now.
Thank you for your support.
Anna Neistat
Amnesty International