Why is this project important?
Advocates from a wide range of organisations, community groups and individuals are deeply concerned that Australia’s current response to asylum seekers is
- In violation of fundamental human rights, and a number of international conventions
- Deliberately and unnecessarily harsh
- Primarily designed to discourage people from exercising their right to seek asylum in Australia.
While successive governments have been very successful in using popular media to promote their policies and to create support in the community for their harsh approach, the advocates who are wanting to see a more human and compassionate approach have been relatively less successful in promoting an alternative approach, and influencing public opinion.
The coverage of asylum seekers in much of the popular media is generally mirrors the government’s account of the issues and does not explore human rights issues, or possible alternative approaches. People seeking asylum are consistently represented as illegal, and making illegitimate claims on our compassion, when in fact, these people have every right to claim asylum, and for their claims to be assessed fairly. Under the UN Refugee Convention Australia has an obligation to offer protection to people who are found to meet the criteria for refugee status.
What will this project do?
The Refugee Advocacy Media Project will enable the refugee advocacy sector to work with a number of media outlets to achieve more balanced and informed approach to reportage on the issue of asylum seekers. This will have a positive impact on public opinion, and help to strengthen the momentum for policy change.
How will the project work?
The Refugee Advocacy Network will co-ordinate the project on behalf of the wider refugee advocacy sector. The project will focus on electronic and print media, and also develop a social media presence. The project will enable the Network to:
- Employ a person with media experience to undertake media liaison and co-ordinate the project, and
- Provide media training to a number of people from refugee backgrounds, academics, and people currently engaged in advocacy, to create a pool of spokespersons available to provide comment and information to the media.
The project will:
- Promote co-operation between those refugee advocacy groups which are currently engaged with the media, to promote an agreed set of key messages and proposed alternatives
- Work with a range of news providers, commentators and opinion makes, and also utilise social media
- Generate new stories about asylum seekers and refugees which are informative and which highlight the circumstances in which people may seek asylum, and stories about the successful resettlement of refugees in our communities
- Provide informed responses to news stories
- Provide informed commentary on policy announcements and relevant developments
- Provide support and further development opportunities for the media spokespersons
How will the project be resourced?
The Refugee Advocacy Network will seek funds through crowd sourcing to enable members of the general public to support this project. The Network will also seek funding from other donors and philanthropic trusts.
The amount we are seeking to commence this project is $34,000, for media liaison and co-ordination and to support the initial media training for the media spokespersons. A crowd sourcing campaign is being established for this amount.
The intention is to build up the funding for this project to increase the media liaison role significantly. Ideally we will source sufficient funding to employ a media liaison person for 20-25 hours per week.
Contact for more information:
Marie Hapke, Convenor, Refugee Advocacy Network
trconcepts@netspace.net.au
0409 252673