Years ago, when I was planning to migrate to greener pastures, I had three choices. Australia, NZ or Canada.
Australia was the best of the three. Geographically closer, easier immigration dept, fair point system, shortest waiting period and least expensive.
But I didn’t want to migrate to Australia because I was against the govt policies that kept illegal immigrants in remote detention sites for years all in the guise of processing their application.
I didn’t want to go to NZ because I know not much of sheep farming! ( i think the sheep:human was 20:1)Just kidding. it was more to do with the per capita and GDP plus I felt between NZ and Canada, my children will have a better future in N. America.
When I came to Australia, it was meant only for a year. Just so the children and I could live in the continent, swim in the southern ocean..see a kangaroo etc.
Now here I am..whoring my ideologies..
I pay tax to a system that treat illegal immigrants like criminals..
sad eh?
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Not sure how ideology and 'illegal' go together. How should a government treat people who violate the law of any land? How does even India treat people who were natural born citizens who took citizenship elsewhere? Like CRIMINALS – if they even fail in an iota of a document … so what makes us think 'illegals' should have legal rights? (I use the term “rights” rather loosely)
Jolly: how far away back you know your history? 1788 white settlers arrived in Australia..were they legal inhabitants of the land?? Aboriginal people were here way before that.. they were the legal owners of the land.. so now in 2011, people who were illegal themselves 200 odd years ago get to keep people in detention centers becaue they are illegals? Sorry, tht is not right.
This has nothing to do with India's treatment of people who gave up their citizenship.( India wouldn't keep u in a remote jail in the dessert!) This has to do with humane treatment of people.. Before they kept the aboriginal people in inhumane conditions ( they still do..palm spring case comes to my mind)..now they treat illegal immigrants inhumane.
Sarah,
Good points. Totally agree with you. Feel bad for aboriginal north Americans too. There is nothing we can do to alleviate their loss. I hope at least, these capitalists leave the North free from abuse(for oil, water, etc).
Jolly, weren't Indians violating the law of the land 64 years ago to get their rights?
Even though an immigrant, don't we still expect equal treatment in foreign nations. Even forgetting that we would miss these equal treatments in nations like India?
On the other hand, paying back forward by helping those who are unlucky is the best possible means of doing something good. I hope to do that soon.
Good luck Sarah
Thanks for clarifications.
I was not particularly speaking of the people of Australia. It had more to do with ‘encroachment’ into another land and then the claim of legality, such as it may be India < by Bangladesh, Nepal, Sikkim, Pakistan etc > or other parts of the world such as the illegal migrations of Mexican/other people to the USA and now seemingly some parts of Europe.
If truth be told, the other than Aboriginal population (of whatever existed), it is said that Australia was the land where British dumped their criminals. It became later on; a land of more European settlers.
US 400 years ago did not have any Anglo, but the so called ‘American or Native Indian’. Can they roll the clock back and claim the country back? To be fair to USA, the approach to the Natives, it can be read or said as, is better now. But most Natives of the USA were, if history is somewhat correct, where killed by the European settlers. IS anyone holding the USA accountable?
We cannot roll the clock centuries back. I do not disagree there is ill treatment of fellow human beings in the world.
Jolly: the thing with history is that it is a great teacher, only so long as you are willing to learn. You know from history that the land ( be it in Australia or US or where ever)once belonged to someone, you know from history how you treated the original owner..all I am asking is to give the same welcome the aboriginals gave to the new comers to the people who are now being treated as illegal immigranta. There is absuloutely no need to keep them in detention centers. Process their visa in a systematic efficient way. deport them if there is a criminal history, but don't keep them in isolated centers for years..that is akin to being imprisoned without a trial and I feel bad that the tax that I pay is funding the detention centers