The Margaret River branch of Amnesty International will host a letter signing post in the town’s CBD starting next week.
The group will open the signing post in Settlers Arcade (near Riverfresh IGA) on the morning of Saturday March 25.
The post will be open until April 1, and will give shoppers and local supporters of the group’s cause the opportunity to send a letter to Federal politicians, calling for improvements on the Australian government’s human rights accountability.
Amnesty Margaret River spokesperson Rod Whittle said the group’s street letter writing campaign is “in direct response to the failure of Australia to meet rights obligations, as outlined in the recent Amnesty International Report 2016/17 The State of the World’s Human Rights.”
It is unacceptable that Aboriginal kids continue to be abused in prison and are 24 times more likely than non-indigenous children to end up there, separated from their families and communities.
- Rod Whittle, Amnesty Margaret River
“The report finds that the Federal Government continues to fall well short of humane norms in its response to several issues, and that is a disgrace,” Mr Whittle said.
“It is unacceptable that Aboriginal kids continue to be abused in prison and are 24 times more likely than non-indigenous children to end up there, separated from their families and communities,” he said.
“It is unacceptable that innocent people, including children and families, continue to be traumatised by indefinite imprisonment in Australia’s offshore detention centres.
“These are basic rights issues with numerous possibilities for fair solutions that should be determined and implemented”.
Shoppers will be invited to sign their own letter at the stand to send to politicians for a gold coin donation and support the group’s call to government to correct the failures as outlined in the report.
For more information visit www.facebook.com/amnestymargaretriver