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Recently, I was admitted to hospital -- no-thanks to unusually strong Aussie flu. The complications developed due to the lack of salts in my body during a course of ordinary flu tablets. These salts, doctors explained, were knocked out by regular high-blood pressure medication which I had been taking for 5 years! With diarrhoea and some vomiting, the doctors at Ryde Hospital immediately administering sodium & potassium solutions with IV fluids. After discharge from hospital, my personal GP told me that the case, indeed, is quite a serious one.

Friends, we have been running the #EvacuateNow campaign in a while. For my part, I had written in February 2017 to my local Federal MP, the Hon. John Alexander, Senator for NSW Marise Payne, both of them from LNP [#1]. In addition, I had communicated to Andrew Wilkie MP (Independent, Tasmania) and Adam Brandt MP (Greens, Melbourne), asking the motion to be set at Australian House of Representative to evacuate asylum-seekers held offshore detention centres (Haven't seen anything being done on that front).

This certainly has been a sad week as one of our refugees on Manus Island, Hamed Shamshiripour was found dead. But my friends, we must keep marching on with recent transcript of Trump-Turnbull phone conversation. There has been various Australian NGOs commenting on about it, which you could find in the following link [#01]. The most pointing comments came from the NGO workers of the Human Rights Law Centre and the GetUP!

Summary of Allegations

1. The Commonwealth Government of Australia has perpetrated the crime against humanity of enslavement of asylum-seekers. A total of 2,200 asylum-seekers, who are of entirely civilian characters have been confined in Manus Island of Papua New Guinea and in Republic of Nauru for four years. The detention companies Broadspectrum and Ferrovial have co-perpetrated in the crime of enslavement. The governments of Papua New Guinea and Republic of Nauru also have co-perpetrated in this crime.

My activist friends, lately there have been a fair bit of talks within our forums about current state of refugee rights movement. Some express concerns about the lack of unity, direction or even, leadership. Some complaints the movement has been lacking the participation from those who have 'real refugee' experiences (see [#1]).

(excerpt) " The Government and elite power groups conducting such an act of profiteering from detention of displaced people and refugees, undoubtedly, is a form of slavery and, hence, it is a crime against humanity. As such, the international condemnation of Australian government for its inhuman conduct is no longer enough.

Friends, regarding with the evacuation of offshore asylum-seekers, the responses from two major parties, i.e. LNP and Labour, are of the same: to do NOTHING! We in the general public know that our cause is just and this particular request is entirely do-able. For the moment, we shouldn't waste our time analysing or be bothered about why the LNP Government and Labour Opposition have not been making bipartisan motion to evacuate these offshore asylum-seekers.

The modern day internet facilities, in particular the Facebook and WWW, have no doubt been helping the refugee rights movement and the activist community in special ways. This new technology has been playing central role in disseminating appropriate information to counter-balance the evil influence of mass media. Every grassroots activist has been empowered, in substantial way, by this new technology.

Friends, our inspirational refugee supporter Adam Richard, with his son Ned, had successfully completed their 1,200Kms Adelaide-Canberra journey in early February-17 [#1]. I am sure he has earned a few more friends along the way to Canberra. The mass media wasn't entirely insensitive to his concern re: refugees detained offshore; he has had coverage by few print & electronic media(SBS, Canberra Times and some radio station, I gathered).