A Fitting Memorial - Beyond Foreignness

On or around 14 November 2010 another 97 men, women and children lost their lives as asylum seekers crossing the sea to Australia. The recent Four Corners report (which focussed also on the people smuggler network involved) explored something of the lives of those lost. We here record their names, and what few details that Four Corners published concerning their lives. Such a listing can never be a fitting memorial.

Among them was 24 year old Mohammad Rezaie whose fiance waited for him in Melbourne. He left home the day after his sister’s wedding.

Ayad Al Kazami his wife and Hiba and Huba, their two daughters, were also on the boat. They also had family in Melbourne.

Ahmed Hadad had a brother in Sydney.

Abdul Hai left his family of five at home in Afghanistan to make his way to Victoria, Shepparton where he had family member living.

None of them arrived.

The boat that was lost in 2010 has a similarity to another boat that was lost on 2 October 2009. The 2009 boat carried 105 Afghan asylum seekers. In both cases family members were left not knowing what happened to their relatives long after the boat disappeared. Both cases involved inaccurate or false information concerning the continued safety of the boat which added to the suffering of relatives.

Customs have published information held by them on the 2009 case via their FOI page. The 2009 vessel was reported to have come within 100 nautical miles of Christmas Island. Further information on the loss of the boat is published by the Sydney Morning Herald at http://m.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/as-108-drowned-they-cried-pray-for-us-20120602-1zoix.html and

http://m.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/australias-bungles-and-coverups-exposed-20120602-1zoiy.html

Among the lost on the vessel, as reported by the Sydney Morning Herald were:

Fatima nek Bakht and her sons, Mujtaba (aged 11) and Asif (aged 13). They had a family member in Townsville,

Mirza Hussain Jaffari aged 26,

Mohammed and Karim, two brother,

Golafroz, a widowed mother and her son Sajjad (aged 17),

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