On Sunday, the Refugee Action Collective and Tamil Diaspora Association of Queensland marched through Brisbane calling for the Australian government to grant refugees in Brisbane permanent visas in place of the rolling three month bridging visas, which means they can’t get steady work, housing or Medicare. They say they are unable to go back to their countries of origin as it’s still too dangerous.
Some of these refugees are still on these bridging visas, some for more than a decade. They ask for permanent security in the country with a permanent residency in order to continue contributing to the community and access the public benefits that a permanent residency would grant them.
Netta Finney spoke with protesters at the march.
Image: Image: Shutterstock – paintings
Produced By: Netta Finney
Featured In Story: Sudesh Somu, Member of the Tamil Diaspora Association of Queensland, Gulmi, a Sri Lankan Tamil refugee, Jonathan Sriranganathan, Greens candidate for Lord Mayor of Brisbane, and
First aired on The Wire, Wednesday 1 November 2023