SSI CEO Violet Roumeliotis reflects on NAIDOC Week.

Tatjana Lukic-Co was just 13 years old when her family was forced to flee her home in former Yugoslavia, seeking temporary refuge in Germany before gaining asylum in Australia.

SSI’s history is inextricably linked to its membership base.

Through the generosity of community minded individuals and organisations, the SSI Mosaic Gala raised a record  $50,000 to support refugees on the pathway to employment and education.

Confusing Australia’s humanitarian migration intake with the broader issues of border control and population policy harms our country’s reputation as a responsible global citizen. Earlier this week, as I heard about Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s proposed freeze on Australia’s refugee intake during an impassioned call for greater control over who calls Australia home, I couldn’t help asking, "Why now?"

We live in a world where nearly 20 people are forcibly displaced every minute as a result of conflict or persecution. A record number of people having to flee their homes and everything they know in search of safety cannot be the responsibility of a few countries, let alone the world’s poorest; it’s a global emergency that warrants global action. 

Canada is recognised globally for the welcome it offers to refugees, evident in everything from the Prime Minister personally greeting airport arrivals to its settlement of 30,000 Syrian refugees in a four month period. It was with great delight then that SSI CEO Violet Roumeliotis recently accepted a Canadian government invitation to talk about SSI’s work in this area.

Much has been said about Malcolm Fraser’s courageous support of refugees, particularly Vietnamese refugees, since his passing on Friday. SSI’s own Thanh Nguyen, Manager Early Intervention & Capacity Building, gives thanks to Mr Fraser for granting him and his family protection in Australia in the 1970s. “He did Vietnamese families, including my own, a huge service,” he said. “He allowed my family to make a life here.”

SSI began searching for a suitable office in the Bankstown area in September 2014, to accommodate staff and service needs of the SRSS program, the Multicultural Foster Care Service and Ability Links NSW, along with meeting, interview, training and function rooms. “(SSI General Manager) Peter Zographakis suggested that we check out a brand new site called Little Saigon Plaza, which was so good that we assumed it would be too expensive for SSI to lease in,” said Janine Stainer, SSI Facilities and Operations Manager.

Thank you Premier Mike Baird. Your comments at a recent Australia Day function in support of refugees and asylum seekers were positive reinforcement for all of us who work to help these people make the most of their lives in Australia. I had the pleasure of hearing Mr Baird say emphatically that NSW was in a position to support more refugees and asylum seekers and that the state would welcome them.