Dandenong businessman Abdul Khaliq Fazal wants to voice his ideas about how asylum seekers and boat people could be better dealt with to stop lives being lost at sea. 58634
By Bridget Cook
A DANDENONG businessman is pushing the Australian Government to come up with a more effective policy to deal with asylum seekers and boat people, so no more lives are lost at sea.
Abdul Khaliq Fazal, who is also the Afghan Australian Association of Victoria president, wants to get the word out that something needs to be done soon to stop these tragedies occurring, like the recent Christmas Island incident.
Mr Fazal said that each time a tragedy occurs there was lots of hype about the issue of boat people in the media and within the government.
“However when these days are over, then the boat people and their tragedies seem to be forgotten until the next tragedy occurs,” Mr Fazal said.
He said he now wants to raise the issue again and get his word out about what he believes could be done.
“The issue of asylum seekers and boat people has been going on for ages, but up until now the government hasn’t found a complete solution to it,” he said.
“I’m not saying that the government can come up with a miracle, but there are issues that need the right policy and strategies to be put in place so innocent people don’t die at sea.
“Most boat people are coming here in peace to find comfort, but their lives are lost on the way.”
Mr Fazal said he has a number of things he believes could be effective.
“Refugees and special humanitarian intake has to be boosted for Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq and Sri Lanka, where most of the boat people are coming from,” he said.
“I am sure once these refugees know that they can come here through legal channels, then they would not take the extreme way of paying people smugglers to get here.”
Mr Fazal said he also believed that finding a way for the smugglers to be captured would also be helpful.
He believes that a television ad campaign in the countries the boat people are coming from could be effective.
“The ads should tell that it is dangerous and how many people have lost their lives over the past 10 years,” he said.
He also said that the Federal Government could call a regional ministerial conference for finding the right way of putting an end to the problem.
“Representatives of those countries which their citizens are coming to Australia by boat should also be invited, after all it is also a matter of national security,” he said.
