Recent polls say the refugee rights movement is in the minority on the issue. An Essential Report shows 61% of Australians support the “PNG solution”, which proposes to expel all refugees that arrive by boat to Papua New Guinea.
But we can win people over on this question because we have truth and justice on our side.
I am old enough to have taken part in the movement against the Vietnam War. I remember that at the start about only 30% of the public was against that war. But the anti-war movement went on to decisively win the battle through a persistent campaign out in the streets.
It was a movement that didn't tire of marching. However, it was more than a movement of marches and demonstrations. You could say it was a campaign of “marches plus” that won the battle for hearts and minds.
In the process of building mass demonstrations that consistently reached out to wider and wider layers of the population, there were hundreds of thousands of discussions and debates in campuses, schools, workplaces and in homes. I remember having heated arguments with my father. I never felt, at that time, that I won any of those debates with dad. But years later I found out that some of those arguments struck home and today my parents are opponents of war and oppression.
The mass demonstrations were then – and remain today – the best available way to mobilise that army of thousands of persuaders, thousands of fighters in the battle for hearts and minds. It was the best way of maintaining and building morale, sharpening arguments and driving us into discussions that eventually won over the great majority to opposing the Vietnam War.
We won that battle and we can win again against the racist policy of detaining, torturing and deporting asylum seekers today.
This racist policy is a weapon of mass distraction whose objective is to scapegoat refugees for the pain and insecurity imposed on ordinary people through an agenda of serving the interests of the billionaires and their corporations ahead of the interest of people and the environment.
They try to keep the focus on “people smugglers”. This is a complete distraction from the real story of the 40 million or more people globally displaced by war, persecution, starvation and catastrophic climate change.
These millions of desperate people driven from their homes are a direct consequence of a world now more grossly unequal than ever before, creating a permanent and growing refugee problem. Most refugees take shelter in some of the world's poorest countries. Only a tiny minority ever get near the borders of rich countries. But nevertheless these rich countries are building even higher walls to lock out these refugees.
This is the real discussion. Not the cynically constructed discussion about “smashing the business model” of the people who sell refugees some rickety ladders to try and scale these walls our governments have built.
There are much more despicable business models that need to be smashed. How about smashing the business models of the arms traders? How about smashing the business models of the corporations that have invested or committed to invest $200 billion in the hope of turning Australia into a future “gas Qatar”? How about smashing the “business model” of Serco and Toll Holdings which make a billion dollars a year from incarcerating refugees?
Those are the business models that badly need smashing.
To win the battle on refugees, we need to talk about real solutions to the global refugee problem.
We need to talk about how to end Australia's active involvement in perpetuating global inequality through wars and occupations.
We need to talk about putting into place a proactive policy of bringing more refugees to safety. This is the least that a rich and deeply complicit state like Australia should do.
Until then we will be taking to the streets, again and again, to tear down the walls: the real walls that lock up and lock out refugees and the walls of prejudice, hatred and ignorance that block people from confronting the real refugee problem, with understanding, humanity and solidarity.
The Socialist Alliance seeks to build the broadest possible movement to fight against the Kevin Rudd government’s policy and work to strengthen the existing campaign committees. The Socialist Alliance is also working to get as many trade unions, trades and labour councils, trade union leaders, delegates and activists to follow the example of Geelong Trades Hall, the Victoria Trades Hall and the South Coast Labour Council in opposing this policy.