Edmund Rice Justice Bulletin

"There is a 14 year old boy still in detention in the Port Augusta residential housing project. Between April 2002 and July 2002, the boy (then detained at Woomera) attempted to hang himself four times, climbed into the razor wire four times, slashed his arms twice and went on hunger strike twice. The boy’s mother was hospitalized due to her own mental illness during this whole period. There is a 13 year old child who has been seriously mentally ill since May 2002. This boy has regularly self-harmed. Mental health professionals have made more than 20 recommendations that this child be released from detention with his family. But he is still there."

So said Dr Sev Ozdowski, Human Rights Commissioner in a recent media release. He was commenting on the failure of the Australian government to act on the findings of the recent HREOC report.

In the meantime in an address to thousands of people in St Peter's Square, Pope John Paul recalled the theme of this year's World Refugee Day, "A Place to Call Home: To Rebuild Lives in Security and Dignity" and said that every person needs "a safe environment in which to live." Pope John Paul went on to express his appreciation and encouragement to all those who work alongside refugees and appealed to the international community for a renewed commitment to remove the causes that have forced people to flee their homes.

The most recent edition of Ozspirit also addresses the issue of refugees in a series of articles and teaching/learning activities.