Friday, October 20, 2006

A reminder of how we treat people who come to us for help

Writing in The Age, Arnold Zable recounts stories from five years ago when 353 people died in the ocean trying to reach Australia.

"TODAY marks the fifth anniversary of the largest maritime disaster off Australian waters since World War II. At 3.10 on the afternoon of October 19, 2001, a 19.5-metre fishing boat carrying 398 refugees sank en route to Australia. A total of 353 Iraqi and Afghan asylum seekers drowned, including 146 children and 142 women desperate to join fathers and husbands living in Australia on temporary protection visas."

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