CONCERNED residents from the West Australian town of Northam may find themselves excluded from a town hall meeting scheduled to discuss the proposed detention centre.
Residents in Northam, situated around 100km east of Perth, are upset by the federal government’s decision to place a detention centre in their community without any prior consultation.
On October 18, Prime Minister Julia Gillard revealed plans for Australia’s largest mainland detention facility to be constructed in Northam, which will accommodate up to 1500 single male asylum seekers.
Prime Minister, do you truly understand Australians? It appears you might not. If you did, you would recognize that the majority of Australians are likely opposed to this.
Julia, can you assure us that these individuals will assimilate into Australian life? Are there mechanisms in place to ensure they adopt the Australian way of living?
This may seem drastic, yet similar situations unfold throughout Europe at present. These individuals will increase in number…and as the government continues to cater to them, their demands will grow while Australians may be overlooked.
Eventually, we Australians might seek another country to reside in, and those who remain may lack loyalty to Australia. This scenario will hardly concern Julia Gillard and her peers, who will be enjoying their latter years in financial comfort, oblivious to the struggles of the average Aussie searching for a better living situation…and by then, viable options may be scarce…perhaps only the Antarctic remains.
Tonight, a public meeting is slated in the Wheatbelt town to address residents’ concerns, with anticipated attendance estimated between 1000 and 3500.
However, Northam Shire president Steve Pollard noted that the venue can only accommodate 390 attendees, indicating that more people will regrettably miss out on participating in the meeting.
Mr. Pollard expressed worries that the intense feelings within the community could be heightened by the venue’s limited size, prompting increased police and security presence.
Among the most vocal opponents of the Gillard government’s decision is resident Chris Shannon, who criticized the announcement as being thrust upon the community without any forewarning.
“I was completely unaware until I heard Julia Gillard’s remarks on the radio and had to do a double-take…was she serious about a detention centre coming to Northam?” remarked Mr. Shannon.
“I called my wife to confirm what I just heard. That was my initial indication that something was amiss.”
On the Facebook group No Detention Centre In Northam, projections suggested 3500 would attend the meeting, though Mr. Shannon suspects the actual count will be closer to 1000.
One comment reads, “This town meeting should be quite interesting, hope everyone is prepared for the fireworks show.”
Shire president Mr. Pollard mentioned that even if the predominant sentiment at the meeting is against the detention centre, there is little that can be done to prevent it.
“The truth is, the shire lacks the authority to reject it outright,” he said.
“We do not possess the administrative power to obstruct the federal government’s actions.”
Mr. Shannon asserted that the town’s economy would be severely affected by the detention centre, anticipating a drop in property values as a consequence of the government’s choice.
He also stated that the area’s already overburdened hospital would face additional strain, mentioning that the Immigration Department had warned them that in case of an emergency at the detention centre, the hospital’s services would be needed.
“The primary hospital in the region…is already significantly understaffed, with half of it essentially unused due to staffing shortages,” said Mr. Shannon.
All Australians must take action; otherwise, we’ll end up in dire circumstances, much like the UK.
Today it’s merely a town, but tomorrow…
by Milo Johnson