Category: News

During Lent I have joined some dear friends to lament Australia’s treatment of Asylum Seekers. I have prayed to find a way to encourage my fellow Aussies to re-discover our compassion. As I prayed I got this weird kind of idea about walking to the capital of our country, to appeal to the heart of the nation. And when I discovered that Tri Nguyen was already doing it, I asked him if I could walk alongside him, on the last leg of the journey.

In 1982 Tri Nguyen came to Australia as a boat person, seeking asylum, after fleeing the war and its aftermath in Vietnam. On his arrival he remembers being welcomed by Australians. His family ‘stayed at the Midway Hostel in Maribyrnong “where there was no barbed wire”. Locals ‘taught them English, gave them clothes and meals, and helped his father find a job at Australia Post’. And a group from Moonee Ponds Baptist Church helped bring the rest of his family to Australia eight years later. He says 60 Aussies went to the Melbourne Airport at 2am in the morning to welcome them!

Tri Nguyen walked from Melbourne to Canberra in 35 days towing a home-made wooden boat (an idea inspired by a Leunig cartoon of a man and a duck towing a trolley) as his own gentle plea for better treatment of Asylum Seekers. Tri says when we arrived ‘we were traumatised, but were immersed in hospitality’. I feel ‘very sad the [asylum seekers] coming now don’t experience the same welcome that (we) did’. Tri says we need ‘to change the national conversation about asylum seekers’, which is too negative. ‘We are at our best when we show compassion and work for justice for those who are oppressed’.

Over the Easter weekend I joined Tri Nguyen and three other asylum seekers, Linda, Daniel and Majid on the last leg of their walk from Melbourne to Canberra to take that message to the heart of the nation.

This is the message Tri delivered on the grounds of Parliament House:

‘Thank you Australia. Thank you for the gift of refuge that you have given me and my family. Thank you for giving this gift of refuge to generations of migrants who have sought asylum in this land.

“While I was a stranger, you welcomed me. While I was a boat person seeking asylum, you responded with compassionate hospitality. While I was vulnerable and without hope, you cared for me and welcomed me into a safe community where healing could begin.

“Thank you to all the elders, past and present, the traditional custodians of this land for your gracious welcome of all people seeking refuge in this land. In your vulnerability you call me your brother. In your suffering you call me your sister. You affirmed to me that together we are God’s family.

“Thank you Malcolm Fraser, it was your Government, which sought a bipartisan approach, working in collaboration with other countries, that responded to a generation of Vietnamese refugees. We are forever grateful.

“Thank you Australian Parliament for continuing to seek ways to respond to the great need of people in the world fleeing war, persecution, oppression, marginalisation … seeking asylum. For many Australia is their last hope.

“Thank you to my wonderful friends Linda, Daniel and Majid for walking with me from Melbourne to Canberra, sharing in the laughter, tears, the pain and the joy in our common humanity receiving welcome and hospitality. You are an inspiration!

“I too have a dream! That in thirty two years time, your children will walk from towns and cities to Canberra to thank the Australian people and the Australian parliament for giving their parents the gift of refuge.

“I too have a dream, that Australia will continue to be a nation that welcomes the strangers, that cares for the vulnerable and gives a fair go to all who are seeking refuge.

“That’s the Australia to be proud of.”

http://australia.isidewith.com/news/article/the-walker-meet-the-former-refugee-walking-from-melbourne-to-can

With the country commemorating the Anzac Centenary between 2014 and 2018, Friday 25 April will mark one of the most important national occasions on our calendars this year. At South Bank, we are honouring this day with a week of free family-friendly events in the parklands.

Film screenings at Rainforest Green

Free movie screenings will be held nightly at Rainforest Green between Tuesday 22 and Sunday 27 April from 6:30pm. The movies have been chosen to reflect the theme ‘A World at War’ and include The Great Escape and War Horse. Pack a picnic blanket and enjoy the evening with your loved ones. No bookings required.

Tribute Exhibition: Love in Wartime

The Tribute Exhibition will feature poignant photographic and literature based on the theme ‘Love in Wartime.’ This free display will be set up outside The Courier-Mail Piazza from Tuesday 22 to Sunday 27 April.

ANZAC Eve Concert at the Piazza

Queensland Symphony Orchestra and RSL (Queensland Branch) unite to present a free community ANZAC Eve Concert on Thursday 24 April at The Courier-Mail Piazza to honour current and ex-serving men and women, remembering those we have lost in past and present wars. The concert starts at 6:30pm and will also be streamed live on the Rainforest Green big screen. No bookings required.

War Stories at the Piazza

War Stories includes a range of free entertainment such as story-telling, music, a reading area and postcard station where you can write a message to a loved one. This event takes place on Saturday 26 and Sunday 27 April from 10am to 3pm in The Courier-Mail Piazza. No bookings required.

South West Chamber of Commerce Event

James McNamara’s mission is to “inspire and educate people to become contributing leaders”. James teaches refreshingly practical approaches to leading teams towards better engagement and ultimately higher performance

James is an experienced group facilitator, keynote presenter and one on one coach. He has a proven history of working with Business Owners, Managers and Sales People to help them ‘solve the people puzzle’.  He has a detailed working knowledge of the leadership and communication skills which will influence people to follow your lead willingly.

Whether it’s leading a team, managing difficult behaviour, selling a product/service, or making you and your business sound sensational in print, James provides unique and practical insights into how to improve your results.

Typical feedback for James’s work includes;

“Worth its weight in gold.”P. Strother, Cairns

“Great, energetic and full of useful material – great!” P. Sith, Cairns

“All managers and supervisors should do this course. If you get these
skills right, the rest is easy.” M. Kerl, Qld Transport

“The most beneficial training I have done in the past 10 years. Perfectly related and specific to my current role and situation. A genuine eye opener.” S. Gettings, Brisbane

“James has this uncanny way of tailoring his presentations to totally tap into where you are at in your own workplace” J Excell, Sydney

An article in the Guardian last month is doing the rounds because of the implications for the role of governments and the banks.

The article starts with a 1030’s quote from Henry Ford, that it was a good thing that most Americans didn’t know how banking really works, because if they did, “there’d be a revolution before tomorrow morning”.

It goes on to say, “Last week, something remarkable happened. The Bank of England let the cat out of the bag … they stated outright that most common assumptions of how banking works are simply wrong, and that the kind of populist, heterodox positions more ordinarily associated with groups such as Occupy Wall Street are correct. In doing so, they have effectively thrown the entire theoretical basis for austerity out of the window.”

The challenge for us as ordinary citizens and borrowers, however, is exactly what we can do with this new knowledge.

On one level, we can use it to put pressure on governments to stop waving austerity measures as a stick to undermine social welfare programs and further enrich the already wealthy. The value of that approach is limited, though, because without the fiction of a balanced budget as a handbrake governments might speed up the process of robbing the poor to enrich the wealthy. A useful source of practical economic information along these lines is BillMitchell’s BillyBlog

On another level, we could use this evidence of the unreal nature of money to undermine the debt cycle that has most of us trapped as wage slaves. We could simply disengage from the banks. The divestment programs currently underway, take the first step in this direction, depriving the investment community of its lifeblood, cash. This e next question becomes, what do we do with our money now?

The capacity to live well without borrowing is something that we can manage in our communities by returning to the gifting economy and the social values that have served humanity well for about ten millenia before the renaissance invention of double entry book-keeping made economic rationalism possible.

We live in an era that was imagined and created by those far sighted revolutionaries of the enlightenment and our current social and ecological dilemmas prove once and for all that the WORSHIP of money is indeed a malevolence that poisons society.

The fact that the bank of England is now ‘fessing up to the illusions that have propped it up for so long means that something is afoot. There is a change in awareness that may well be the harbinger of real economic change. The reality is, though, this can only take place if we as individuals are prepared to make the real changes in our daily lives that will usher that change into existence.

Search Westender for divestment or feudalism to see some of the articles we have published on this topic. Keep them coming. Creating a new economic roadmap is a critical task for those of us taking responsibility for building the post-carbon world.

In its 17th year, the goa billboards Project has made some exciting changes for 2014.

In a new initiative, goa billboards Project in 2014 will welcome anyone with a love or flair for photography to participate in this competition alongside Brisbane secondary students.

Participants are asked to explore their personal experience, opinion and perspective in response to the theme of ANZAC through the medium of photography.

2014 marks the beginning of the ANZAC Centenary, which will run until 2018. Today, the term ANZAC commemorates not only those who served on the shores of Gallipoli, but also those who have served our country over the past one hundred years.

Submission Categories

The 2014 goa billboards Project will feature two submission categories.

• Secondary Schools
  Sixteen schools have applied to undertake a free artist-in-school photographic workshop, led by artist, Henri van Noordenburg. These workshops will assist students in furthering their photography skills and understanding of the concept.
• Open Category
  Anyone can participate in this category.

Awards & Exhibition Opening

Fifteen images will be selected from each category by an expert panel. These images will feature on various goa billboards throughout the Brisbane CBD and will form part of a curated exhibition during Brisbane Festival.

Awards will be presented in each category on the opening of the goa billboards Exhibition, scheduled to take place onTuesday 16 September 2014. These awards are:

• Panel Selections
  The panel will select one winner and two runners up from each category.
• People’s Choice Award
  The selected images will be uploaded to the Brisbane Festival Facebook page and the image with the most ‘likes’ in each category will be awarded the People’s Choice Award.

Cool Man-The excitement is building as preparations are made for the annual JUMP UP Party to be held in West End on 31st May 2014. In it’s fourth year at the South Leagues Club, Davies Park, and the Jump Up Party means only one thing – big party time, Caribbean style.

Trinidadian entertainer Alvin Rostant has banded together with his fellow countrymen to give the Caribbean community of Queensland a chance to celebrate and share all things Caribbean with Australia…The culture, The food, The music, The costumes, The liming, The chippin’ and The roti and rum.

It’s amazing to think 1000’s of little islands tucked away in the Caribbean Sea have had such a profound influence on the world. Think calypso and reggae music, cajun food and jerk chicken, white and brown rum, feathers and sexy costumes, the limbo dance , and the ultimate party CARNIVAL. Sporting hero’s come to mind, Sir Viv Richards and Usain Bolt, and trail blazing merry makers Harry Belefonte, Bob Marley and Rhianna.

The Jump Up Party is all about authenticity. Caribbean people are very fussy about their food so celebrity caterers “JA Joint” of Jamaican descent and Bluesfest fame, will be manning the stoves for the hungry crowd.

The best of Caribbean rums will be available at the bar, especially shipped in for the evening. The live band, direct from Caribbean concentrates on an all inclusive repertoire, all genres for all generations with top DJ’s spinning the latest Carnival beatz.

The authenticity doesn’t end there- The Rivercity Steelband will be in attendance to delight the audience with their competition pieces, having won third place at Australia’s inaugural Steel Drum Festival 2013. Its a beautiful experience to see and hear the whole steel band play under the huge, brightly lit Fig tree. The steel drums are so unique.

The crowd can dress up or down, it’s a very relaxed affair. Authentic vintage costumes worn at Trinidad’s Carnival some 30 years ago will be on display to inspire. Carnival headpieces and feather boas are advised, but not compulsory! The Caribbean community, though small in numbers really know how to dance. Historically the dance floor is full from the very first song and more West Enders and Aussies are joining their ranks as they hear about The Jump Up Party. There’s plenty of room for chippin’ and wineing Carnival style.

Tickets include complimentary rum punch on arrival and a fork dinner. Tables can be booked. Tickets may be purchased through Moshtix.com.au or The Caribbean Arts and Entertainment Company (07) 5548 7843. On the night tickets will be available at the door (cash or EFTPOS). Free parking and easy public transport are available. Places are limited so its advisable to book early. Children are welcome in the company of an adult.

Dust off your shoes, its Carnival vibes all round…HOT HOT HOT!