Around 50 people held a protest at Brisbane’s immigration detention centre, BITA (Brisbane Immigration Transit Accommodation), yesterday Sunday 11 June.
The protest called for the release of Hamid, an Iranian refugee brought from Nauru to Australia in February this year.
Hamid had been held on Nauru for over nine years. But, while other refugees and asylum seekers, similarly transferred from Nauru, have been released, usually within a week or two of their transfer, Hamid remains in detention four months later.
Since 2019, Hamid has been cruelly separated from his two adult children when Peter Dutton refused to transfer Hamid to Australia with his children, under the Medevac laws. Despite representation to the Labor government on Hamid’s behalf, there has been no explanation for the continued separation of the family or Hamid’s detention.
The “Freedom For Hamid” rally ended with a powerful Haka by New Zealand immigration detainees – video clip available here.Â
From over 70 people in December last year, there are just 13 refugees left on Nauru, as Labor has progressively transferred them to Australia, yet they are paying the notorious detention company MTC, $420 million for garrison services until September 2025.
For more information contact Ian Rintoul 0417 275 713.