LETTERHEAD (IF APPLICABLE)

DATE

Dear INSERT MPs NAME HERE

Re: The crises unfolding as a result of Australias refugee policy

This letter is to alert you to my concern, as a member of your electorate, regarding the path of
injustice that has been paved by our nations policy of the indefinite offshore detention of
asylum seekers and refugees. It has been a policy which has been championed by both of our
major parties for a number of years now, but I believe it was a flawed approach from the
beginning and that its end is now well overdue. I am writing to ask of you, as a member of
Opposition, that you begin to formulate an approach to the crises which offers a real
alternative to the status quo and which changes the trajectory of depravity that we are on.

I write at a time when significant trauma is unfolding at the Australian run facilities on
Manus Island as a result of our national refugee policy. It has raised many serious issues for
our nation, which we must confront, including the harm being done to detainees, our
violation of the United Nations refugee convention to which we are signatory, and our
standing as a nation.

I believe it unbefitting of our nation, with its respect for the rule of law, to tamper the balance
of the scales of justice such that it is in favour of the deprivation of liberties of the vulnerable.
I believe it is unbefitting of our nation, built on a history of cooperation and a spirit of
admiration between newly arrived people from across the world, to deny others the
opportunity to make their contribution to our national story. I believe it is unbefitting of our
nation, home to the oldest continued civilisation on earth and with a breadth and depth of
Indigenous knowledge, to put an abrupt end to the journey of survival and hope of others.

I note the Oppositions position is largely aligned with that of Government, with some minor
amendments here and there. This is a missed opportunity, to right past grievances, and to
provide the Australian people with a meaningful alternative, come the 2019 election. It is
reasonable to believe that there are many of us who would support a party which has the
courage to confront and change the failed refugee policies of the past decade. There is a
pathway forward which protects Australias sovereignty while also upholding the human
rights of others.

In light of the above, I am asking that as a member of Opposition, you use your position and
influence to develop a path forward which includes the three requests listed below:
First, I ask that the detainees on Manus Island are provided with immediate safety.
This includes finding a safe and ready place which removes detainees from harm and
from the possibility of brutality which has unfolded on numerous occasions on the
island. I also request that you provide detainees with the urgent medical attention they
need. To this end, I echo the pleas of the professionals of the Australian Medical
Association and of the Doctors Without Frontiers, calling on Government to grant
their access to detainees.
 Second, I ask the long-term safety of the detainees on Manus Island to be negotiated,
either through settlement in Australia or in other countries not hostile to their
presence, noting the offer made by the Government of New Zealand to aid in
resettlement. In particular, immediate safe-haven should be provided for the many
detainees who have been granted bona fide refugee status.
Third, in order to ensure that such travesties do not take place again in the name of the
Australian people, the policy of indefinite offshore detention should be abolished and
new alternatives explored.

I implore you to listen to the growing chorus of voices that are singing from a songbook
significantly different to the version circulating the chambers of Australian Parliament. As a
member of Opposition, it is perhaps timely and to the benefit of your party to, not only take
the just and responsible course of action, but to galvanise the growing discontent. I would
urge you to find ways to fulfil the above listed requests and to resonate with those of us who
would like a true alternative to the current refugee and asylum seeker policy.

I look forward to your reply.

Sincerely

YOUR NAME AND SIGNATURE BELOW