Neil Para 1,000km Walk for Freedom
This week, somewhere on a country road north of Canberra, refugee and Ballaarat resident Neil Para most likely took the millionth step in an epic, 1000km Walk for Freedom, to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s electorate in Sydney’s inner-west.
Neil is walking this incredible distance from Ballaarat to Marrickville, to ask Mr Albanese for fairness and permanence for thousands of men, women and children who’ve lived as part of our community since they came for safety a decade or more ago.
Since setting off from Ballaarat four weeks ago, Neil has walked over 750km – but the PM still hasn’t responded to his request for a meeting.
Can you send a short message to the PM now, using your own, polite words? Please ask Mr Albanese to make time for a brief meeting with Neil and hear why people who came for safety a decade ago need a clear path to permanence now.
Neil and his family have lived in Ballaarat in regional Victoria since 2013, after escaping war and persecution in Sri Lanka.
But like thousands of other people who’ve been part of our communities since they came in search of safety a decade or more ago, Neil’s family have been left without a clear path to permanence.
So far, Neil has braved over 750km of winter weather and blisters, putting one foot in front of the other in his epic effort to give strength to the voices of thousands of people seeking safety who’ve been denied fairness and permanence for a decade or more.
But this government is yet to offer a clear path to permanence for the 10,000 or so men, women and children who came seeking safety a decade ago, who were failed by an unfair refugee system which was stacked against them from the start.
Let’s get behind Neil, and the many other men, women and children who need certainty to truly rebuild their lives as part of our community. Please show your support by sending a quick email to the PM now.
In solidarity,
Ogy Simic
Director of Refugee Leadership & Advocacy
Click the image below to read Neil’s story.
