owner-sievx-news
Mon, 13 Oct 2003 18:05:27 -0700
On the eve of the second anniversary of the sinking of SIEVX, Senator Bob Brown and writer Steve Biddulph are about to launch a major new initiative to commemorate the 353 asylum seekers who drowned in Australia's border protection surveillance zone on 19 October 2001. Other anniversary events are listed below. ===================================== SENATOR BOB BROWN AND STEVE BIDDULPH TO LAUNCH NATIONAL MEMORIAL PROJECT TO DROWNED SIEVX ASYLUM SEEKERS Media Release Senator Bob Brown will host a press conference on 16 October in Senate Committee Room 1S4 at Parliament House in Canberra, to launch a national memorial project to commemorate the 353 SIEVX asylum seekers who lost their lives in the waters between Indonesia and Australia two years ago. [The conference will commence at 1.40pm but visitors should arrive at least half an hour earlier in order to be signed in.] 146 children, 142 women and 65 men drowned when the tiny unseaworthy Indonesian fishing boat on which they were crammed, (later dubbed SIEVX for Suspected Illegal Entry Vessel X), went down. Renowned Australian psychologist and author Steve Biddulph, together with Uniting Church Reverend Rod Horsfield, have developed the two- year project, inviting school students from around the nation to design a permanent memorial on the shores of Lake Burley Griffin in Canberra. Called 'A Young People’s Art Collaboration', the project is non- competitive and will exhibit designs submitted from schools around the nation in regional and state capitals. The best elements of the works will then be combined into a design, which will be an appropriate, evocatively beautiful and educational site in the national capital. Senator Brown said 'We hope that the project will raise awareness of the SIEVX tragedy. The memorial will be a permanent reminder of the courage of the families who were on the ship and will help to build compassion in a younger generation of Australians, for those who seek safety from persecution.' Steve Biddulph said, 'Its very important that this huge loss of childrens' and parents' lives is known about and remembered. A memorial will give back a sense that we care about innocent lives, and our caring doesn’t stop at our own borders. Everyone regardless of their politics, is appalled that this happened, and determined it must never happen again.' The design project is a joint initiative of Rural Australians for Refugees, and the Uniting Church in Australia. Art teachers nationally are being consulted on the design of the project which will be targeted primarily at art students in years nine and ten in secondary schools but is also open to other age groups. Steve Biddulph will also outline the project at the SIEVX Forum at the ANU on Saturday October 18th. Further information: Lynn Camilleri, Debbie McInnes PR 02 9997 6057 0412 798872 Ben Oquist, Office of Senator Bob Brown 02 62773170 or 0419704095 ===================================== AN INVITATION SIEV X sunk on October 19, 2001. As people all over Australia reflect in solitude or prepare to group together in acknowledgement of the second anniversary of the tragedy, JANNAH THE SIEV X MEMORIAL invites you to add your personal condolences to the list of heartfelt and moving messages from many wonderful people throughout the world... http://www.refugeeaction.org/jannah/invitation.html ===================================== SIEVX ANNIVERSARY EVENTS ADELAIDE ===================================== SIEVX ANNIVERSARY EVENT: 1pm Saturday 1st November Moseley Square, Glenelg: street theatre, speakers: Kate Reynolds (Democrats) and Kris Hanna (Greens). ===================================== BRISBANE ===================================== Rally on the second anniversary of the sinking of the SIEV-X 2pm Sunday 19 October King George Square To remember the 146 children, 142 women, and 65 men who died at sea in 2001. Speakers: Senator Claire Moore Senator Andrew Bartlett Tayeb Sadeghian (Association of Iranian refugees) Hassan Ghulam (Hazara Ethnic Society) Towfiq Al-Qady (Iraqi refugee community) Frederika Steen (Romero Centre) Music will be performed by Ghulam Sakhi Hazara. Balloons will be released at the rally as symbolic gesture to the lives lost in this tragedy and in recognition of the dangers faced by refugees worldwide. The rally is an opportunity to reflect on this tragedy, in which 353 lives were lost at sea, and on the dangers faced by refugees worldwide in their journey to find a new home. A focus of the rally is the need for a judicial inquiry into the sinking of the SIEV-X to obtain eyewitness accounts from survivors. Only then will the truth be known. For more details about the rally phone Nicole on 07 38442443 or email [EMAIL PROTECTED] Refugee Action Collective, Brisbane http://www.rac-qld.org ===================================== CANBERRA ===================================== Inter-Faith Service - Saturday 18 October 2003 11am, Lennox Gardens, adjacent to Flynn Drive, Yarralumla, behind Albert Hall, near Lotus Bay on Lake Burley Griffin. Speakers include: Catholic Bishop Pat Power and Canberra Islamic Centre President Ahmed Youssef, Anglican Bishop George Browning. Public Forum: SIEV X - A Crime Against Humanity 2pm Saturday 18 October 2003 Haydon-Allen Tank, Australian National University, Canberra Speakers: Tony Kevin (currently a Visiting Fellow at the ANU Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies; former Australian Ambassador to Cambodia and to Poland; commentator and public interest advocate on SIEV X) Jack Waterford (Editor, Canberra Times) Margo Kingston (Senior Journalist, Sydney Morning Herald) An opportunity to learn more about the scandal of SIEV X which resulted in the death at sea of 353 people on 19 October 2001. (If large numbers attend, the meeting will move to the Manning Clark Theatre) http://www.refugeeaction.org/rac/campaign_news.html#commem ===================================== PERTH ===================================== SUNDAY 19th OCTOBER ---->> SIEV X Day Rally <<---- WHEN: 1pm-? WHERE: TBA CONTACT: 0417 904 329 146 Children, 142 women, 65 men drown off the Australian coast The Australian Government offers no rescue attempt, gives contradictory reasons why not, and then subjects a Parliamentary inquiry to a cover up. Two years on - the Australian people DEMAND ANSWERS. Is this another manifestation of Australia's horrific abuse of human rights in the quest to keep Asylum Seekers out? Rally to show the Government you will not forget the sinking of the SIEV-X and the tragic loss of 353 lives. Australia must start to acknowledge its international responsibility to Asylum Seekers. http://www.active.org.au/perth/local/about/ac-31-8-2003.html#sievx ===================================== WHYALLA ===================================== Whyalla Rural Australians for Refugees (WRAR) plan to observe the 2nd Anniversary of the sinking of SIEVX with a public act of remembrance. Date: 19th October 2003 Time: 3.53 pm Location: Whyalla North Beach Brief Introduction to Siev X Lighting of Remembrance Candle by a Child Two Readings pertaining to the people and the tragedy of SIEV X Tolling of gong 353 seconds of silence Reading- One survivor's story Play Track of CD - Scattered People - all sing Three prayers - Buddhist, Christian, Muslim Extinguish Candle Symbolic action - Scattering 353 Roses on the sea Tolling of gong ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This list is hosted by http://sievx.com SIEVX-NEWS is a low-traffic list for disseminating news about the SIEVX Affair. To unsubscribe: send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with 'unsubscribe sievx-news' in the body. All other requests/comments to [EMAIL PROTECTED] ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~