Of New Things

“To suffer and endure is the lot of Humanity,” said Pope Leo. Should we then, just accept the inhumanity that we sometimes see and hear around us? And if you don’t think that it happens in Australia, just think about our detention centres, both here and on off-shore islands, and we allowed that to happen – by not speaking out loudly enough to make sure our politicians knew how we really felt about it.  No other country that is a signatory to the UN Conventions – The Universal Declaration of Human Rights – has detention centres like Australia. Former Prime Minister, Malcolm Fraser said in 2001, “It would seem clear that our approach to the problem is indeed in breach of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Conventions. It would seem to be in breach of the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights. This view is supported by the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission. It is also in breach of the Convention of Rights of the child. Current practice runs counter to UNHCR guidelines on detention. Australia is seriously out of step in these matters…What we do damages Australia’s name as a compassionate and humane country.”

And we have all seen those pictures of children in our Detention Centres.

Think about some of the stories that have, and still do, circulate about newcomers to Australia. You’ve all heard them – about what some refugees are supposedly given, about what some refugees are supposedly doing and believing. These urban myths that dehumanise the people about whom they are said are responsible for the violence that we see all too often on our streets. Then there is the bullying we hear about in our schools – what have we done to curb this; and who is to blame for it, the students or their parents for what they have taught their children?

But how do we combat the injustice and disinformation that we see and hear around us? It’s a simple process, but not an easy one. First become aware that you CAN do something. Whenever you see something, or when you are told something that is not right, or is unjust, speak out. Say out loud, “This is wrong.” Little by little others will see what you see. If enough people had done this in Germany in 1933, the horrors of WW2 and the Holocaust may not have happened.

If you tell two people, and those two people tell two others each, by the time you have told sixteen people, the total number who know of the problem will number 32,768!

  As John Donne said, “No man is an island unto himself…Every man’s death diminishes me, for I am involved in mankind. Therefore, send not to ask for whom the bell tolls: it tolls for thee.”

We are all involved in each other – we are all part of the great web of life that spreads throughout the entire universe, and nothing demonstrates that more clearly than the Law of Karma. Whenever injustice is done, our world becomes poorer for it, and the lives of those who support injustice become darker. When a suicide bomber succeeds in his or her plans, the terrorists’ family and society are themselves the worse for it. When the World Trade Centre was destroyed, and when the London Underground was bombed, not only were America and the United Kingdom damaged, but so were we, and so were the families and the nations of those who perpetrated that act of terror.

So remember, whenever someone tells you of something they “know” about refugees or people from other ethnic backgrounds, ask them where they got their information – was is from a reputable source, or is it just rumour and innuendo that is being passed on. Don’t just accept what you’re being told – find out for yourself; and then tell others the truth. This way we can build a better society, and a better future.