Andrews sparks anti-African abuse: community
October 9, 2007 - 10:18AM
Source: ABC
The African community in the south-west New South Wales city of Wagga Wagga says it has faced abuse since federal Immigration Minister Kevin Andrews said African refugees were slow to integrate.
Mr Andrews has slashed the intake of African refugees in favour of increased numbers from the Middle East and Asia, citing a report he said revealed concerns about violence and race-based gangs.
The community has called a public meeting in response to what it says is vilification sparked by the Minister.
Sudanese community leader John Moi says while some of Wagga Wagga's 300 African residents have received phone calls of support, others have been abused in the street or at work.
"We have been hearing incidences on the street and the market places that the people are being called black people - 'Go back to Africa'," he said.
"Those are some of the incidences we are starting to hear but it is also isolated. If this is not stopped now it might lead to more comments like that."
He says part of the meeting is about calling for calm.
"I even try to pass that message out to the community to be calm, not to create fear in themselves with a few isolated cases of insult or abuse or things like that," he said.
Mr Moi has invited local MPs and police to Saturday's public meeting and says he hopes the Federal Government clarifies its views on African refugees by then.
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