Cath News report: The community needs to show "compassion and understanding" over government plans to move asylum-seekers into new detention centres near Perth and Adelaide, says the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference delegate for refugee and migrant issues.
"You can understand any change in people's lives is going to cause an uncomfortableness and anxiety," Bishop Joseph Grech told The Catholic Weekly. "On a human level, any change will do that."
"I would hope though people can have some compassion and understanding for the challenges that confront asylum-seekers."
He said the government is obliged to provide the necessary assistance so that the local community "will not experience hardship and strain on local services".
The report said immigration officials were jeered as they tried to reassure residents at a recent public meeting in the Adelaide Hills that having the asylum-seekers in their communities would be a positive and rewarding experience.
Residents fear schools could be overwhelmed and crime could rise. http://www.cathnews.com/article.aspx?aeid=23985
"You can understand any change in people's lives is going to cause an uncomfortableness and anxiety," Bishop Joseph Grech told The Catholic Weekly. "On a human level, any change will do that."
"I would hope though people can have some compassion and understanding for the challenges that confront asylum-seekers."
He said the government is obliged to provide the necessary assistance so that the local community "will not experience hardship and strain on local services".
The report said immigration officials were jeered as they tried to reassure residents at a recent public meeting in the Adelaide Hills that having the asylum-seekers in their communities would be a positive and rewarding experience.
Residents fear schools could be overwhelmed and crime could rise. http://www.cathnews.com/article.aspx?aeid=23985
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