Grandmothers raise plight of refugees

THE core members of Grandmothers for Refugees – Bendigo have been meeting for almost seven years, but their advocacy work is far from over.

Coordinator Di O’Neil said the senior citizen group made up of grandmothers and FROGs – a friend or relative of a grandmother, are horrified by the Federal Government’s treatment of refugees and asylum seekers.

“We are people who feel quite offended by the way the current and previous governments have interpreted what we consider to be our ethics and values as Australians,” she said.

“We are lately offended by the inhumanity of the way refugees have been framed and treated for, largely, political reasons.

“The behaviours that follow, and the companies employed to look after refugees, have to carry on that nasty policing… but we believe there’s a much more humane way to work with people who are fleeing terror and horror in their own countries.”

Meeting most weeks, the Grandmothers write letters to “put pressure on” politicians, spark conversations with the public and encourage them to act, meet all together for a chat over coffee, or peacefully protest on street corners.

In solidarity, they wear purple for the refugee cause.

“We’re easily identifiable, and people will come up and ask, ‘who are you?’ We often have our photo taken,” Ms O’Neil said.

“It’s important for us to be seen and accessible. Although we’re an advocacy group with a strong message, we’re well accepted around Bendigo and often people will come up to encourage us.

“I feel like we’re getting people aware of the issue, we just need people to take the next step.”

Many members support refugees directly, beyond their Grandmothers’ advocacy, by volunteering with other likeminded groups.

Between 150 and 160 people from the Bendigo electorate are on the local GFR mailing list, and their Facebook page reaches up to 8000 people some months.

With a founding core group of about 12 people, GFR – Bendigo is also a social space where friendly connections are made.

“The core group have known each other since 2014, we meet regularly, know each other well and the skills we bring to the group, and have even got to know each other’s families and grandchildren.

“At the moment, we’re very happy so many refugees are being released, and more again in Brisbane and Darwin, but we are concerned those people are put on a temporary visa for six months with no certainty about what happens next, and with very minimal support in that time,” Ms O’Neil said

“We don’t often see people in that category here in Bendigo, but we’re picking up the support of those people along with our fellow Grandmothers in other parts of the state.”

GFR – Bendigo are supporters of the Home to Bilo campaign, calling for the release of the young Biloela family on Christmas Island.

Visit bit.ly/3kw0yfU and grandmothersforrefugees.org for more information about the advocacy work of local and broader Grandmothers.