Villawood: detainees petition (2002)
The following petition was faxed to Free the Refugees Campaign by detainees following the protest outside Villawood March 31 2002. The petition was accompanied by a support letter for refugee rights actions.
PETITION (Signed by over 180 inmates of Stage 3, Villawood)
1. MORE TELEPHONE LINES
In stage 3 alone there are about 180 residents but only 3 outgoing and 2 incoming telephone lines available. Almost every hour of every day, a dozen residents need to queue for hours for telephone call. This horrible scene
have quite often created a dispute and end up with physical aggression due to extreme frustration, which seem to be deliberately set up by the ACM, so they have a good reason to brand us ‘animals’. Such incidents shouldn’t have happened if we had enough telephone lines, so we strongly demand to urgently install 10 outgoing and 5 incoming lines. WE NEED IMMEDIATE ACTION, NOT JUST A PROMISE, (we’ve been invited to a number of meetings with the ACM managers for years with the same issue. In these meetings they kept explaining that they have a problem with telephone lines. To fix the problem they need thousands of dollars. They claim there’s no budget for telephone lines but they have the budget to newly install an expensive VIDEO (SPY) CAMERA on us!)
2. GET RID OF THE FENCES SPLITTING STAGE II AND STAGE III
In the past there was NO fence between stage 2 and 3, suddenly they build fences dividing us. Both stage 2 and 3 residents are NOT ILLEGAL PEOPLE, NOT CRIMINALS, but why is ACM so cruelly separating us with fences, aren’t they happy enough to imprison us?? and then they need to mentally and physically
torture and isolate us??? What is your next step ACM?? Because of these atrocious fences we are denied being able to socialise with our ‘brothers and sisters’. Because of these fences, stage 2 residents can still have
easier access to the visiting area, food and medication, while stage 3 residents need a long queue and tiring argument with the rude officers before we are granted permission. We need to be equally treated, not
discriminated against. SO WE STRONGLY DEMAND GETTING RID OF THE FENCES BETWEEN STAGE 2 AND STAGE 3.
3. VARIETY AND QUALITY FOOD
The quality of the food is a disgrace, due to its non-nutritional content, tasteless and poor variety. We need a more variety of food like Asian, European and other nation’s cuisine, also soup would be highly appreciated
too. NOT THE SAME MENU EVERY SINGLE WEEK PLEASE!
4. MORE TOLERANCE AND LONGER VISITING HOURS
Our visitors are our main supporters. While we are dealing with this unjust imprisonment, they bring us love, joy, news, cash and not to mention our traditional food, that we much love and miss. Because of a significant
increase of the residents in this detention centre lately, many of our visitors experience an increasing trouble at the reception office. They stand for too long in a queue before they are allowed to get in. They queue for hours outside in the rain, burnt under the sun, and quite often they get sent back home at 6.14PM even before they are allowed to see us or talk to us, as visiting time is over. There are very few officers at the reception to serve and yet too many procedures to be completed before they can get into the visiting area. But the pain is not over yet. Our visitors have to be patiently waiting us to come to the visiting area. It is our lucky day if we! have the opportunity to reach the visiting area in 15 minutes. There are many good reasons for the ACM to keep our visitor waiting for hours, like they wrongly pick the resident name, wrongly pronounce the resident name, etc etc. These bad experiences are inhumane and of course will stress away our visitors. The result of our visitors’ absence is an increase of our frustration. With the absence of our visitors we’re paralysed. It’s just like the end of the world. Again evil wins the battle. So before things are getting worse and worse, we strongly demand MORE FLEXIBLE ACCESS, BETTER RECEPTION SERVICE AND LONGER VISITING HOURS, NOW PLEASE!
5. AMENITIES FOR THE VISITING AREA
We request to immediately provide a few toilets in the visiting area as it is very uncomfortable for both the visitors, and the residents who often need to go back to there stage’s (2 or 3) toilets and are not allowed to
come back into the visiting area once we’re leaving the visiting area. We request to immediately provide a proper shelter for our visitors whilst they are in the queue at the reception office. At this moment they have to be prepared to get soaked in the rain and get dehydrated under the sun.
6. NO MORE RUDE OFFICERS
Though we are desperately waiting for our freedom, but we have faith that the day will come soon, it’s simply ecause we’re NOT ILLEGAL people. We are NOT CRIMINALS. We have the right to be treated with respect, not always to be bullied and threatened by the inhumane officers. To have better understanding and cooperation between the ACM officers and the residents, we strongly demand of NO MORE BAD EGG OFFICERS IN THE VILLAWOOD DETENTION CENTRE LIKE MARTIN AND STEVE (SUPERVISORS).
Villawood Immigration Detention Centre, 31 March 2002