stevenglish

I used to work in the channel tunnel for many years, and would now and again see illegal immigrants (or clandestines) sneaking in between carriages.

It's easy for someone who's not seen the results of some of these journeys to de-humanise these people, but when you find a fella who's fallen off and had his brains splattered over the track, it becomes more difficult. They're trying to make a better life for themselves and their families, as we would if we lived in war zones. Some people are way too quick to condemn

It's their own fault though isn't it


Ponyrama - if you're down Diceys tonight I'll buy you a beer, agree with you 100%

ponyrama

Cheers mate but I'm off to Gunnedah to see a woman about a horse! Next time.

paulry

Clearly in terms of vocal and popular support I'm on the losing side. But what does the vote say?

freebo

Computer says "No" - and I haven't voted, I asked the question because I thought it was debatable.

iamthecreaturefromuranus

People get pissed off by a constant stream of asylum seekers, who are no more than economic migrants. I worked with a guy some years back, for a short time, who was an Iranian and he had made it to the UK and gained access via the asylum route. He then brought over all his family.

Fair enough I suppose, apart from the fact that he had, once in the UK, committed some bizarre passport scam, that the Iranian Embassy seemed to actively encourage, and as a result felt quite happy to nip back and forth to Tabriz on a regular basis to see the rest of his family.

Really didn't seem to meet the criteria that governs asylum seekers.

Weebie

Of course they should be flown to Sydney it's Australia's responsbility. it's not illegal to seek asylum.

ponyrama

And therein lies the judgement. One man commits a crime and all his countrymen are tried for it. I blame the Daily Mail.

ponyrama

that's a bit like saying the x factor votes are a true reflection of talent!

paulry

Don't make me laugh! So are you saying that anonymous votes are to be discounted in favour of drinking buddy support?

hoofie2002

No they are not entitled to it - if I die in a boat somewhere off the coast of WA will the government pay for my wife to get there ? Will they buggery; she would need to pay everything and the cost of getting me back to Perth. I have no problems with the government paying for funerals etc but the whole thinks smacks of the government pandering to the media and the intelligensia.

The majority of these people are NOT Asylum seekers; they are economic migrants trying to rort the immigration system. If they truly needed asylum and were fleeing persecution why didn't they stop at any of the 6 or 7 countries between the Middle East and Indonesia ? Likewise, why does the UK have a continual flow through the channel tunnel and other entry points despite the fact many of the people involved have gone through numerous countries in Europe first ?

Australia could easily multiply x 10 their intake from the UNHCR programme but the whole asylum seeker debate here has been hijacked by pressure-groups screaming at the top of their voice [which has the reverse effect of stoking latent fears]; meanwhile GENUINE asylum seekers sitting in refugee camps in places like Thailand wait 10 years just because they can't scrape up $10k per head to get on a boat.

As to the poster who is basically advocating Australia losing control of its borders - could I remind them there is a country not that far north from here with a population of 240 million in a landmass a quarter of the size of ours ?
Please leave your ivory tower of idealism and see the real world.

One other VERY important point - the nine year old boy who lost his parents - releasing him was the correct decision and he should be allowed to stay but why is his name and face plastered all over the media ? Surely he is entitled to anonymity under the law, illegal imigrant or not ? Whoever released that information to the media is scum.

ponyrama

No. That isnt what I said. What I said was that a high number of votes should not be equated to the reality of the situation. Because in reality people will vote for any old shite and not necessarily give a rats!

Which poster is that then? Cos if you mean me - pleas re-read and understand what I have actually said and base your judgement on that, not on what you think I've said. Much obliged.

stevenglish

There's a massive difference between advocating the opening of borders and the advocating of human compassion. It's the 'I'm here so close the doors" attitude that I find puzzling.

Whatever their reasons for getting to the UK, Aus, wherever, they're clearly willing to risk their lives to get here. That at least has got to tell you something, they're not economic migrants because they want to upgrade their beemer to the next model up but can't do so in Iran

They've obviously fallen for the aussie line 'the best country in the world'

iamthecreaturefromuranus

It would be interesting to know what percentage of Iranian asylum seekers actually meet the UN criteria. I believe that all Iranian's can just catch the train to Turkey, no visa required... so why catch a boat to Australia?
To 'escape' whatever it is they are escaping... or because of economic reasons?

Genuine question by the way... ones to which I have no idea of the answers.

Deancm_MKII

The New World Order...

Deancm_MKII

There is no such thing as equality, even with equality laws.