Boat People

The refugee debate is ongoing in Federal Parliament. The government's plan to send some of our refugees to Malaysia in exchange for 4,000 of their refugees is a strange plan. Australia would get to place 800 of our refugees in appalling conditions in Malaysian camps and at the rate of arrivals we are experiencing, those 800 would be replaced by new arrivals in but a few weeks.

Sadly, recent deaths of refugees travelling to Australia from Indonesia, are the result of overcrowding on unsafe boats. Australia routinely destroys refugee boats arriving on Australian shores. For the people smugglers, it would not make economic sense to lose a newer, more seaworthy craft, on a one-way trip to Aus.

The newspapers are full of unkind comments about refugees. Most negative comment centres on the boat people jumping the queue. I doubt there is a queue in Afghanistan from where most of the boat people come from. I believe that most of the boat people realise that once the war back home is scaled down, the Taliban will eventually come back and gains made since they were driven out will be lost.

No school for females for starters.

Australia's refugee problem is minuscule compared with most European countries where there are no longer policed border crossings.