UNHCR Forum: Boats, asylum and public perceptions

Australia’s handling of asylum-seekers is the subject of intense public and political debate. Five high-profile guest speakers will discuss the effects of this debate in a special forum tonight.

The right to seek asylum and the need to protect refugees in accordance with the Refugee Convention are well-established principles of international law.

The panel will examine whether the public debate on asylum-seekers arriving in Australia by boat is undermining these fundamental principles.

They will look at how the public really perceives asylum-seekers and refugees, and how those perceptions are formed and changed.

Hosted by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) together with The Herbert and Valmae Freilich Foundation in the ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences, Boats, asylum and public perceptions will feature presentations by the panellists, followed by an interactive question and answer session.

Speakers are:
• Richard Towle - UNHCR Regional Representative for Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and the Pacific
• Andrew Markus - Monash University professor tracking Australian attitudes to immigration and asylum-seekers
• Imogen Bailey - Actor, advocate and participant in SBS TV’s Go Back to Where You Came From series
• Ahmed Dini - Community leader and founder of the Australian Somali Football Association
• Debbie Whitmont - ABC Four Corners journalist who has won awards for her stories about asylum-seekers in detention

The discussion will be moderated by ANU expert on international human rights and refugee law, Professor Penelope Mathew.