Twelve groups supporting refugee rights met on April 10 to discuss the possibility of joint actions.
The meeting was initiated by the Refugee Action Collective, which felt that the attacks on refugees by the opposition Coalition and the federal Labor government were becoming so great that groups needed to pool resources.
Called at short notice, the meeting was well attended, reflecting the breadth of the movement. Some of the groups attending included the Refugee Council of Australia, Asylum Seekers Resource Centre, Amnesty International, the Uniting Church, Labor for Refugees, the Greens, Researchers for Refugees, the Brigidine Sisters and Victorian Immigrant and Refugee Women's Coalition.
The meeting organised a press conference to respond to the government's suspension of processing new applications for asylum from Tamils and Afghans. The press conference was reported on SBS TV, SBS Radio, the Herald Sun and Sin Radio.
The main project for the group is to organise a big World Refugee Day rally on June 20.