THE welcoming attitude of Gannawarra residents toward refugees was on full display in Cohuna on Sunday at a gathering of locals and Afghan people from Swan Hill.
The second annual Family Fun Day was organised by the Gannawarra Refugee Support Group to foster friendship and understanding between locals and refugees.
“We want to dispel myths and misinformation and show that as a community we are most welcoming to refugees,” group founding member, Jacqueline Hibbert said.
“It’s great to see a cross-section of the community here to support these people.”
Ms Hibbert said negative attitudes toward refugees were often based on misinformation and false assumptions.
“Refugees just want a better life and peace for themselves and their families and hopefully we are slowly but surely showing people that, because we don’t want the division present in other parts of the world,” she said.
“If you look at previous waves of refugees, they have been positive members of their communities and that is what these people want to be as well – positive contributors to Australian society.”
A small group of Hazara men from Swan Hill joined close to 50 local people for food, fun and games at Apex Park in Cohuna.
Rohullah Hussaini said up to 80 people had been intending to travel down from Swan Hill, but a funeral meant a change of plans.
“But it’s great to come here and talk to each other and share our stories with the local people – talk to them about who we are and why we came here,” he said.
“Lots of Australian people don’t know why refugees are coming here.”
Mr Hussaini, who fled war-torn Afghanistan before eventually coming to Australia by boat, has twice cycled from Swan Hill to Canberra to raise awareness about rights for refugees.
While Mr Hussaini has at times been on the receiving end of ignorance and hatred, he said Australians were generally good people.
“I know thousands of really good people for two or three silly people,” he said.
Gannawarra Refugee Support Group member, Judy Worrall said more events were planned in the shire to counter that ignorance.
Next up is a screening of Frame by Frame, a film that documents the repression of free press and photography during the Taliban’s rule of Afghanistan.
“It is very confronting but it will give people a picture of what these people have been fleeing from,” Ms Worrall said.
“People are changing their minds about refugees and we feel that as people come to understand they will share their understanding with others.”
Ms Worrall said the group was campaigning to make Gannawarra an official Refugee Welcome Zone – a proposal that was voted down 4-3 when it was last put to council.
“We’re doing our best to make Gannawarra a Refugee Welcome Zone and we will put it to council again,” she said.
Ms Hibbert said the group also wanted Gannawarra to become a designated work area for the new Safe Haven Enterprise Visas, which are yet to be signed off by the State Government.
“We see this area as ideal so we have been writing to Mr Andrews to ask him to sign off and make Gannawarra and Swan Hill designated areas for these visas,” she said.
If signed off, people who currently hold Temporary Protection Visas would be transferred to Safe Haven Enterprise Visas, enabling them to work and contribute to the community.
