Hi NEVILLE,

More good news from Manus!

Two weeks ago GetUp was first to break the news about the Government’s decision to fly sixty-five asylum seekers, including children and their families, off Manus Island. Over the weekend newspapers reported on GetUp’s visit to the Inverbrackie detention facility, where we covertly filmed face-to-face interviews with asylum seeker families who had been detained on Manus and feared for those who still remained behind.

Today, we received word that 42 asylum seekers, including the remaining twelve children on Manus and their families, have been transferred to Christmas Island.

This latest development is testament to you and the tens of thousands of other GetUp members who helped make this happen.

Watch the video of our Inverbrackie interview and read the media coverage from over the weekend here: www.getup.org.au/end-manus

Since beginning the campaign to ‘Shut Down Manus’:

• 49 801 GetUp members have signed the petition,
• 6995 have emailed their MPs calling for more humane treatment of asylum seekers,
• 1917 have donated to help continue the campaign, including enabling us to travel to speak with asylum seekers and learn first-hand about their experiences on Manus,
• and 1203 postcards have been sent to MPs around the country, calling for the immediate closure of Manus.

This serves as proof of the strength of our movement – but the campaign for more humane treatment of asylum seekers is far from over.

Unfortunately, the asylum seeker debate has been hijacked by those exploiting a humanitarian issue for political gain. In the past few days we’ve heard ridiculous language like “border security”¹ and “economic migrants”² used when discussing asylum seekers, this behaviour represents a serious blight on Australia’s reputation.

We still don’t know what asylum seeker policy will look like under the newly reinstated Rudd Government, but one thing’s for sure – our movement won’t shy away from fighting the good fight just because it’s unpopular. We’ll keep pushing for what’s right regardless of attempts by politicians to politicise and cheapen our treatment of some of the world’s most vulnerable people.

Want some facts that will help you speak about this issue with friends and family who are caught up in the ugly rhetoric? Click here to learn the facts and hear what the experts are saying: www.getup.org.au/end-manus

Thanks for staying strong,
the GetUp team

[1] Asylum-seekers fiasco the stone sinking Labor, The Australian, 8 June 2013
[2] FactCheck: are asylum seekers really economic refugees?, The Conversation, 2 July 2013

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GetUp is an independent, not-for-profit community campaigning group. We use new technology to empower Australians to have their say on important national issues. We receive no political party or government funding, and every campaign we run is entirely supported by voluntary donations. If you’d like to contribute to help fund GetUp’s work, please donate now! If you have trouble with any links in this email, please go directly to www.getup.org.au. To unsubscribe from GetUp, please click here. Authorised by Sam Mclean, Level 2, 104 Commonwealth Street, Surry Hills NSW 2010.