Refugees

Refugee Activity

Australia’s Refugee Dilemma!

A refugee is: Someone who is outside their country of residence and are unable or unwilling to return to that country due to a well founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion.

Please complete the following activity on your blogiste

Imagine if....

The following is an example of an imaginary scenario that can be used to encourage students to think about what it means to be a refugee.

Imagine that your mother or father arrives home from work one day and tells you that the police are about to arrive to arrest the whole family, because of your family’s religious beliefs.  You are told to pack a small backpack and be ready in 2 minutes. A family friend drives you overland to Darwin where you climb aboard a yacht. Your parents hand over thousands of dollars in cash. Six weeks later the yacht leaves you on a Japanese beach.  Police arrive and take you to a detention centre which is prison and home to refugees like yourself from various parts of the world, all speaking different languages. Only a few other people speak English.  The guards, canteen staff, doctor etc. all speak Japanese.  Your parents tell you that they are applying for refugee status in Japan, which means you will be allowed to live in the country, go to school there and eventually get a job. 

1.      What would you pack in your backpack?

First-aid kit, my teddy bear, photos and clothes.

2.      What would you miss most if you had to leave your home, your school, Australia?

My friends and the way of life.

3.      What would be some of the problems of living in a detention centre in a foreign country?

You probably wouldn’t speak the language and the culture would be very different.

4.      What would be the biggest challenges for you if you and your family were accepted as refugees?

Learning a new language, trying to make friends while knowing you may not be able to stay.

5.      Why is this ‘imagine’ story a very unlikely one?

It is very unlikely as Australia is a democratic and free country in which people are not usually persecuted for their religious views.