spalen

Interesting that everyone seems to be able to spot this particular people.. How does one identify these somalians? Did they have their passports on them and wave them around as they were nicking the food in sainsbury's? Or perhaps they had 'somali rules' T-shirts on? I'm intriqued.

elmtree

Don't pretend to be THAT naive !

sassenach

Well i vote and i am an australian citizen and as such have a right to comment .

sassenach

I did state that other immigrants bring with then undesirables .We hear plenty about the Sword boys ,Lebanese gangs ,The KGB ,The African Kings and most of these are split along racial lines ie aboriginal ,vietnamese ,lebanese ,african,but i have yet to hear of a group based on british lines who go out slashing people up and mugging them .
The somalians as we all know are blacks and i hope they can integrate and be welcomed into australian society ,but from what i have seen of white australians in general they are not as welcoming as they appear to be ,i fear the somalians may have a up hill battle on their hands and i hope for theirs and australias sake they wont be marginalised and ostracised like the true australian the aboriganal is .
About the only group that is reasonable accepted in australia that is vaguely of colour is the Maori and is that because they appear less black?not only that they are all big guys and wouldnt take any crap from a jumped up little white redneck.

rugbymatt

Thought i would just pop in and offer a few views.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/w...re/4995132.stm

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/4759420.stm

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/4719296.stm

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/south_east/4673846.stm

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/5256906.stm

Five views, all different, read them then try to make up your own minds!
I lived in the middle east and i know how they are treated there when they are no longer useful!

sassenach

Obviously people are presuming ,but i would imagine it is their general appearence which is although their skin is black their face is very europeanised and the women are very easy on the eye ,they are an attractive people and my wife has told me they are great fun to work with and socialise with .Just another generalisation i might add

rugbymatt

Really without trying to start a race riot, they are VERY distinctive if you are fairly used to seeing Africans, they tend to hold themselves in a different way and are facially distinct, quite similar to the Ethiopians who they share some cultural connection with.

mrsperthforme

Fair enough, as I said my opinion. Dont want to cause offence. But it would be interesting to know if the OP is a citizen

elmtree

I am the OP and am a citizen of the UK, hoping to be a citizen of Oz.

As I mentioned in OP, being originally from Cardiff - which has a large Somali population - I was just interested to know about Somalis in Perth.

mrsperthforme

Best thing is come over and see for yourself. I personally have had no probs with any nationality in perth and theres lots. Every nationality brings something from their own culture its up to them how they integrate into society

Banksia

My wife works as a volunteer settlement officer for refugees so I am able to write with some authority.

How would you like to arrive in Australia as a single mother with six children under 15 ALL of whom were born in a UN refugee camp in the Sudan? Within a year, all the children (with the possible exception of the eldest) are doing well at school and speaking good English.

Would any migrating pom like to have swapped places with her? Australia's borders are drum tight. Even returning Australian passport holders are more closely scrutinised when they get off the plane than at any border they may cross when abroad as tourists.

An accepted refugee in Australia has had to work pretty hard to be accepted as such.

Grayling

So why is Australia active encouraging increased immigration from India?

Theuy would not do that if they not accepted would they

elmtree

... and quite right, too; everyone has the right to WORK hard and do the best for themselves and their families. And that is usually why people are prepared to face the massive upheaval of going to another country. That is exactly why we are now going through the arduous and frustrating task of proving that we have something to offer the Australian economy and its' society in general.

We had a recce in Perth earlier this year and made the decision that it would be a better place for us as a family to live.

We will make every effort to integrate with our hosts and won't just 'stick with our own'. Nor will we try and force our ways on the locals. It is their country after all.

I certainly would not want to face the appalling situation that so many from Sudan have had to face. I presume the Sudanese are from the Darfur region, are they ? If so, they SO deserve a chance at a decent life. Rape, murder, displacement and ethnic cleansing. We Poms don't have it quites so bad after all, do we ?

JackTheLad

Its to cut down on the telemarketing costs.

"Hi, My names Darren and I'm calling you from Sydney"

"No its not, and no you are not, goodbye"

JTL

spalen

somali so goody