Fifth anniversary of drowning of asylum seekers
A reminder of how we treat people who come to us for help
October 19, 2006
Five years ago 353 people died in the ocean trying to reach Australia, writes Arnold Zable.
TODAY marks the fifth anniversary of the largest maritime disaster off Australian waters since World War II. At 3.10 on the afternoon of October 19, 2001, a 19.5-metre fishing boat carrying 398 refugees sank en route to Australia. A total of 353 Iraqi and Afghan asylum seekers drowned, including 146 children and 142 women desperate to join fathers and husbands living in Australia on temporary protection visas.
There were 45 survivors. On the morning of the fourth anniversary, I met one of seven Australian-based survivors, Amal Basry, at Melbourne Airport. We were to fly to Canberra to take part in an event marking the fourth anniversary of the tragedy. I had first met Basry in mid-2002 soon after her arrival in Australia. She saved her life by clinging to a corpse for hours.
As we waited to board the plane, Basry recounted an anecdote I had not heard before. She could not sleep the previous night because she was haunted by the memory of the sinking. When her son Amjed arrived home after midnight, they tried to remember what they were doing four years ago at that hour.
Basry recalled that in the early hours of October 19 the winds began to rise. The boat rose and fell in deepening troughs. Many passengers panicked. "God, save us. The ocean is angry," some cried. The cries of frightened children filled the air. Amal noticed a group of women on the crowded deck writing on a piece of paper. They were composing a letter to the angel of the ocean, they told her. "Angel of the ocean please protect us," they had written. "Angel of the ocean look after our children. Angel of the ocean, do not abandon us." They folded the letter and threw it into the water. That afternoon they were no longer alive.
This is one of many stories I have heard from survivors over the past five years. Each one records moments that sear the imagination. Survivor Faris Kadhem remains tormented by the memory of his seven-year-old daughter, Zahra, and wife, Leyla, slipping from his sight into the ocean.
To read the full article from The Age, click on:
The Age
October 19, 2006
Five years ago 353 people died in the ocean trying to reach Australia, writes Arnold Zable.
TODAY marks the fifth anniversary of the largest maritime disaster off Australian waters since World War II. At 3.10 on the afternoon of October 19, 2001, a 19.5-metre fishing boat carrying 398 refugees sank en route to Australia. A total of 353 Iraqi and Afghan asylum seekers drowned, including 146 children and 142 women desperate to join fathers and husbands living in Australia on temporary protection visas.
There were 45 survivors. On the morning of the fourth anniversary, I met one of seven Australian-based survivors, Amal Basry, at Melbourne Airport. We were to fly to Canberra to take part in an event marking the fourth anniversary of the tragedy. I had first met Basry in mid-2002 soon after her arrival in Australia. She saved her life by clinging to a corpse for hours.
As we waited to board the plane, Basry recounted an anecdote I had not heard before. She could not sleep the previous night because she was haunted by the memory of the sinking. When her son Amjed arrived home after midnight, they tried to remember what they were doing four years ago at that hour.
Basry recalled that in the early hours of October 19 the winds began to rise. The boat rose and fell in deepening troughs. Many passengers panicked. "God, save us. The ocean is angry," some cried. The cries of frightened children filled the air. Amal noticed a group of women on the crowded deck writing on a piece of paper. They were composing a letter to the angel of the ocean, they told her. "Angel of the ocean please protect us," they had written. "Angel of the ocean look after our children. Angel of the ocean, do not abandon us." They folded the letter and threw it into the water. That afternoon they were no longer alive.
This is one of many stories I have heard from survivors over the past five years. Each one records moments that sear the imagination. Survivor Faris Kadhem remains tormented by the memory of his seven-year-old daughter, Zahra, and wife, Leyla, slipping from his sight into the ocean.
To read the full article from The Age, click on:
The Age
posted by Pax Christi @ Thursday, October 19, 2006
<< Home