Home to Bilo

21 April 2018

This is urgent.

I need you to join me in showing your support for Priya, Nades and their two beautiful little girls, Kopika and Tharunicaa by Wednesday 2 May.

In March, Peter Dutton’s Border Force took this beautiful family from their home in Biloela, central Queensland.

Since last minute legal action postponed their removal from Australia, Priya, Nades and their two little Australian-born girls have been isolated in a Melbourne detention centre.

But time is running out for this much-loved family.

On Wednesday 2 May, the family’s lawyers will appear before the Federal Circuit Court in Melbourne.

I’m coming to Melbourne to support Priya and Nades as they face the terrifying possibility that they and their beautiful daughters could be forced back to a life of danger and uncertainty.

If you live in Melbourne, I urgently need your help to bring Biloela to Melbourne for Priya, Nades and their two little girls.

Please join me at the Flagstaff Gardens on the morning of Wednesday 2 May.

I’ll have dozens of “Welcome to Biloela” signs and cardboard cockatoos (the symbol of our town) and I’ll need your help to hold them on the day.

Find out more and tell me you’re coming at: https://www.facebook.com/events/368013960367348/

No matter where you live, please help me to bring the spirit of Biloela to your town or suburb by taking a photo with your own, home-made “Welcome to Biloela” sign at a local landmark before 2 May.

Please send your photos to me at hometobilo@gmail.com and share them on social media with the hashtag #hometobilo.

Priya and Nades’ lawyers are doing everything they can to protect this family from being forced from Australia to danger.

But the courts can only make a decision on narrow legal questions.

I wish that the courts were allowed to consider how Priya used to bring her home-made curries to the doctors up at the local hospital.

I wish they could know how Nades volunteered for Vinnies before getting his job at the meat works.

And I wish they were permitted to hear how little Kopika asks constantly to see her friends from Biloela, unable to understand that she is far, far away from home.

Unfortunately, that’s not how our legal system works when it comes to people seeking safety.

But Mr Dutton is allowed to listen. 

Under Australian law, the Minister for Immigration has the power to intervene at any time.

Mr Dutton can allow this beautiful family to remain here in Australia, where they are welcome and wanted.

Over the last few weeks, I’ve learned that when it comes to standing up for people seeking safety, it doesn’t matter if you live in a big city or a little town.

Biloela has a population of less than 6,000, but over 95,000 people have signed our petition, thousands have responded to a call to send-hand written letters to Prime Minister Turnbull and we’ve seen peaceful protests, vigils – and even a mural! – right around Australia.

I know that with your help, we can show Mr Dutton how much we care for this beautiful family.

On behalf of Priya, Nades and the people of Biloela – thank you.

Angela Fredericks

7 May 2018

Last week, I travelled the 1,800km from Biloela to support Priya and her family as the Federal Circuit Court heard her plea to remain in Australia.

Melbourne people put on a beautiful display of support outside the court, spelling out “Welcome to Biloela” in big yellow letters, waving dozens of cardboard cockatoos and singing “I am, you are, we are Australian”.

I told them that Biloela’s message to Mr Dutton is simple: “We want our friends back.”

I told them that regardless of the outcome of Priya’s case, under Australian law, Mr Dutton has the power to pick up the phone, pick up his pen and bring this family home to Bilo.

And I called on Mr Dutton to find it in his heart to let little, Australian-born Kopika and her family come home to Bilo in time for her 3rd birthday, this coming Saturday 12 May.

We Biloelans are an optimistic bunch. That’s why we’re planning a birthday celebration for Kopika in our local Lions Park on Saturday.

It’s a long way to Bilo. So we would love you to join with other friends of this beautiful family to celebrate Kopika’s birthday in Sydney (http://bit.ly/KopikaSyd) and Melbourne (http://bit.ly/KopikaMel).

If you can’t make it to an event then why not join in the celebrations from your home.

Upload a video, singing happy birthday, blow out some candles and make a wish that Minister Dutton will free Kopika and bring her family #HometoBilo.

As I said, we’re an optimistic bunch.

We know Mr Dutton has the power to make this happen. We believe he can put compassion above politics.

But if he does not hear us in time, on Saturday, we will make sure that Kopika always knows that she comes from a town, and a country, that loves and wants her.

Our town will never give up on this family.

With your help, we know we can bring them #HometoBilo.

Thank you,

Angela

21 June 2018

This morning, 108 days after Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa were snatched from their Biloela home at dawn, family friend Simone went to the Federal Circuit Court.

She was there to learn whether Priya’s plea to remain here in Australia – birthplace to her two beautiful daughters Kopika and Tharunicaa – would be sent back to the Immigration Assessment Authority for reconsideration.

For more than three months, I’ve been hoping against hope that our complicated immigration system would give Priya another chance.

I couldn’t believe it when I heard that the answer was “no”.

When Priya heard the news, she called our friend, Chandra.

Between heartbreaking sobs, all Priya could say was: “Please, please Biloela is my home. Please, help my babies.”

Incredibly, Mr Dutton chose yesterday – World Refugee Day – to pay tribute to rural and regional communities “who have provided a very open welcome and a very warm welcome to those from the most vulnerable parts of the world.”

“There is nothing quite like a country welcome,” he said.

Now, Priya and Nades urgently need your to help show Mr Dutton how just how welcoming Australia can be.

Under the Migration Act, he alone can intervene to bring this family home to Biloea.

Please click this link (http://bit.ly/2tfy8gR) to Mr Dutton’s facebook page and help us flood his World Refugee Day speech with positive comments in support of Priya and Nades.

Biloela will never give up in this family. Thank you for standing with us.

Angela.

PS We are all upset about today’s news and we know you will be too. But for Priya and Nades’ sake we need every comment in support to be both heartfelt and respectful (yes, even towards Mr Dutton).

24 June 2018

On Friday night, Priya called. She was crying, terrified and distressed.

She and Nades had just been given notice that they would be forced from Australia to Sri Lanka.

The date on the notice was Tuesday 26 June. Tomorrow.

We don’t have much time. The action we take in the next few hours will be critical.

Please join me in asking Qantas and eleven other airlines not to let Mr Dutton use their aircraft, pilots and crew to force this beautiful family from Australia, by signing this new petition: https://www.change.org/p/qantas-fly-these-queensland-born-sisters-home-to-biloela-not-to-danger

We’ve written letters. We’ve made phone calls. We’ve delivered a 100,000 strong petition to Mr Dutton.

We even persuaded a Liberal Senator to take up our cause.

After all this, tomorrow Mr Dutton plans to force two Queensland-born children and their loving parents from Australia to danger.

But he can’t do it without the help of pilots, flight attendants and ground crew.

Last week, the world was shocked by the cries of migrant children separated from parents in the name of “borders”.

It made me think of how frightened little Kopika and Tharunicaa must have been when Border Force separated them from their loving parents during the long journey from Biloela to Melbourne’s harsh detention centre.

President Trump backed down from this barbaric practice after six commercial airlines said they would not let their aircraft and crew be used in this way.

If it can happen in the US, it can happen here.

Please help me to send a powerful message to Qantas and eleven other airlines operating flights to Sri Lanka right now: https://www.change.org/p/qantas-fly-these-queensland-born-sisters-home-to-biloela-not-to-danger

Thank you,

Angela

29 June 2018

Last night I spoke with Priya. After days of fear and terror, I was so glad to hear some lightness in her voice.

We may need to call urgently for help again. But for now I have just request.

Please sign our new petition urging Qantas and other airlines to fly this family home, and share it with your friends: https://www.change.org/HomeToBiloela

It has been an emotional rollercoaster of a week. On Friday night, Priya and Nades were given notices telling them they could be forced from Australia as soon as the following Monday.

So we put out a call for help. Your response was amazing.

As Priya and Nades’ incredible legal term moved heaven and earth to prepare an urgent injunction, you flooded Mr Dutton’s voicemail and facebook page with messages and comments.

By Sunday, we had written confirmation that no deportation would be attempted before Tuesday.

We knew we had to do more.

Inspired by the US airlines refusing to fly children far from their parents, we launched a new petition calling on Qantas and eleven other airlines to refuse to fly Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa anywhere but home, to Biloela: https://www.change.org/HomeToBiloela

That night, we came together for a candlelit vigil in the Biloela Lions Park.

It was an evening full of love and community spirit, and we watched the children of Biloela run around the park in their home-made, “DESTINATION: BILOELA” aeroplanes, wishing that three year old Kopika was here to join them.

Monday morning brought huge relief as the courts granted an injunction to stop Priya and Kopika’s deportation, giving lawyers a precious few weeks to prepare an appeal.

But with the relief came fear.

I can’t hope to explain the legal technicalities, but the complexities of our immigration system mean that Nades and Tharinucaa are not protected by the injunction.

Government lawyers said that they don’t usually split up families. But after everything else Border Force has put Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa through, we need to stay alert.

Priya and Nades both send their love and tremendous thanks to each and every one of you, for taking them into your hearts and standing up for their safety.

With eternal thanks,

Angela

PS I want to add my own heartfelt thanks. I have been strengthened by the number of messages I have received from people. I apologise if I haven't gotten back to you personally, but please know it means the world to me to have your support.

26 July 2018

Last week, something terrible happened.

Border Force defied the UN by forcing a 30-year-old Sydney dad, Thileepan, from Australia to danger, permanently separating him from his wife Karthika and their 11-month-old baby Najomi.

This happened just a few days after Karthika, a recognised refugee, was granted safe haven in Australia.

Karthika begged Border Force not to tear her family apart. But not even the UN couldn't stop this cruelty.

For five months, my friends Priya, Nades and their Australian-born daughters, Kopika and Tharunicaa have been trapped in a Melbourne detention centre.

And Border Force are still trying to send them from Australia to danger.

Yesterday, I found out that Priya’s appeal to the Federal Court will be heard on 27 August.

If the appeal is successful, Priya will gain the right to have her plea for protection reconsidered.

A decision in Priya’s case would also include her daughter Kopika, that cheeky three-year-old Bilo girl we all miss so terribly.

But Australia’s complicated, ever-changing immigration laws mean that whatever the outcome of Priya’s appeal, husband Nades and baby Tharunicaa will have no legal protection against being forced back to danger.

In June, government lawyers told the court that they don’t “usually” separate families.

But after seeing what happened to another Tamil family last week, we can’t afford to take any risks.

Mr Dutton has the power to step in to keep Priya, Nades and the girls safely together in Australia.

He can choose to bring them home to Biloela, where they are loved and wanted.

We need to send a powerful message to Mr Dutton. We have a plan, but we’re going to need everyone to pitch in – so please stay tuned.

For now, if you’re in Biloela or Melbourne, please join us next Wednesday 1 August for a night of togetherness over a traditional, Tamil feast.

For one night, let’s remind ourselves what it means to be part of a caring, welcoming community.

Melbourne Tamil Feast for Biloela: https://www.trybooking.com/WYMW Biloela 

Community Tamil Feast: https://www.trybooking.com/XBMH

Thank you for everything!

Angela Fredericks

PS Don’t wait until the last minute to book – places are limited and tickets are selling fast!

2 August 2018

Will you help me bring this beautiful family home to Biloela by crowd funding a massive billboard in the heart of Peter Dutton’s Brisbane electorate? You can chip in here: chuffed.org/project/hometobilo

Last night, Priya and Nades’ Biloela friends and neighbours shared a traditional Tamil meal in a local church hall.

It was our way to help Priya and Nades say “thank you” to everyone fighting to bring them home to Biloela.

This morning, Priya and Nades woke up to day 150 of their ordeal.

Another day of isolation in Melbourne’s harsh detention centre. Another day of fear and worry for the future of their gorgeous, Australian-born girls, Kopika and Tharunicaa.

Since Border Force took Priya’s family from our town in a dawn raid, 118,000 people have called for this much-loved family’s return.

Friends and neighbours have made the 3,600km round trip to Melbourne to comfort and support them.

Two of us went on QandA and convinced a Liberal Senator to take up our cause.

But Mr Dutton isn’t listening – yet.

Right now, I need your help to do two things.

First I need to make sure Priya has the best legal support when the Federal Court hears her appeal on 27 August.

Then I need to bring Priya and Nades’ story to the people with the power to make Mr Dutton listen: the fellow Queenslanders he was elected to represent.

Will you help me cover Priya’s legal support? You can chip in chuffed.org/project/hometobilo

And remember - once Priya’s legal support is covered, every extra dollar will get us closer to our goal of putting up a massive billboard a few hundred metres down the road from Mr Dutton’s Brisbane electorate office.

Thank you for all your support for Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa. Together we can bring this family #hometobilo!

Angela

6 August 2018

We did it! In just three days, we crowd funded the $10,150 we need to make sure Priya has expert legal support when she appeals to the Federal Court at the end of August.

Now, every extra dollar will bring us closer to our goal – a massive billboard in the heart of Peter Dutton’s Brisbane electorate: chuffed.org/project/hometobilo

Last Wednesday night, as we gathered in a local church hall for Biloela’s first ever “Community Tamil Feast,” Priya joined us by speaker-phone.

“My life started in Biloela,” Priya told us. “Biloela people are my family.”

“I miss you Biloela.”

Six weeks ago, this would have been impossible. Thanks to successful legal action by the National Justice Project on behalf of 80 detained asylum seekers, Priya and Nades can use their mobile phones to stay in touch with us.

But it is going to take much more than successful legal action to bring this family home to Biloela.

Incredibly, Australia’s confusing, contradictory immigration system means that Border Force could tear Priya’s family apart. Husband Nades and baby Tharunicaa could be forced from Australia – even if Priya’s appeal succeeds.

Regardless of what happens in court, we need Mr Dutton to use his power under Australian law to bring this beautiful family home to Biloela. That's why I need your help to send Mr Dutton a sign he can’t miss.

Will you help me put up a massive billboard a few hundred metres down the road from Mr Dutton’s electorate office in Strathpine, Queensland? You can chip in at chuffed.org/project/hometobilo

And if you have already chipped in – thank you so much!

Angela

PS Don’t forget to share our crowdfunder on facebook and Twitter!

10 August 2018

On a Friday night three weeks ago, my gorgeous friend Priya called me in tears. She and her husband Nades had just been told they would be forced from Australia within days.

As Priya’s legal team worked frantically to keep Priya, Nades and their two Australian-born girls in Australia long enough to lodge an appeal, we knew we had to do more.

Days before, we’d heard that US airlines were refusing to fly children separated from their parents by immigration officials.

So we launched a new petition calling on Qantas and 11 other airlines to refuse to fly Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa anywhere but home to Biloela.

Now, a powerful coalition of human rights advocates are calling on Qantas to refuse to participate in forcing asylum seekers like Priya and Nades from Australia to danger.

And Qantas has agreed to meet with them - tomorrow!

Today, I need your help show Qantas how many people want to bring Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa home to Biloela.

Please take a photo of yourself with this sign (bit.ly/QantasDontDeport), post it on facebook or twitter and tag Qantas by including @Qantas – handmade signs are fine too!

Thank you everyone for your continuing support. With your help, I know we can bring this family #hometobilo!

Angela

PS If you haven’t already, please sign and share our petition to Qantas and other airlines.

3 September 2018

Two things happened on the weekend.

Our petition received it’s 120,000th signature. And Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa spent their 180th day in detention.

We’ve held vigils in our local Lions Park. We’ve raised money for legal costs. We’ve hand delivered our petition to Mr Dutton’s office. We even went on Q&A and convinced a Liberal Senator to take up our cause.

But Mr Dutton isn’t listening to us. And last week, we found out who he has been listening to.

We learnt that Mr Dutton used his discretionary powers to stop the deportation of European au pairs, at the request of mates and political donors.

Enough is enough. This Saturday 8th September, we’re bringing Biloela to Brisbane. And we need your help. Please join us for this peaceful, family-friendly event: https://www.facebook.com/events/307267863428665/

Biloela is known for welcoming people from all around the world. I’d like to think that young working holiday-makers from France and Italy would be given the same warm welcome as Priya and Nades.

But it’s just plain wrong that Mr Dutton could intervene to release a French au pair in the “interests of Australia as a humane and generous society”, but leave this family locked up in detention for six months.

There’s so much uncertainty hanging over Mr Dutton’s position right now.

But with a Federal Court decision on Priya’s case due any day, Border Force could still try to force this family from Australia to danger. For Priya and Nades’ sake, we can’t afford to watch and wait.

That’s why we’re asking for your help to bring Biloela to Mr Dutton’s Brisbane electorate this Saturday: https://www.facebook.com/events/307267863428665/

Help us tell them that under Mr Dutton’s watch, Border Force took this Queensland-born toddler and baby and their loving Mum and Dad from our town, locked them up for six months and tried to force them from Australia to danger - not just one, but twice.

Help us make sure that the people who will decide his future remember these names when they vote: "Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa".

Thank you for everything,

 Angela

5 September 2018

When young mum Vashini lived in Biloela, she and Priya loved to take long evening walks together, talking over the events of the day.

Vashini moved away from Biloela. But her friendship with Priya is still strong.

I know we all sign a lot of petitions. But this Saturday, I’m inviting you to step out from behind the computer and join Vashini as she takes a stand for Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa in the Brisbane suburb of Strathpine: http://bit.ly/StandWithPriya

Let me explain.

After Border Force snatched Priya and her family from our town in March, Vashini went to the Brisbane office of Mr Dutton’s Department of Home Affairs. She held up a picture of her friends and leafleted passers by.

In May, as little Kopika faced her third birthday in detention, Vashini organised a “birthday party” in her local park. Kids birthdays are a big deal in Tamil culture, and Vashini’s cake was a sight to behold!

In June, Priya’s friend Simone and I travelled to Mr Dutton’s electorate to deliver a 99,000 signature petition to his Strathpine office. Vashini was by our side.

And yesterday, when we learned that the billboard you helped us to fund was being installed 500 metres from Mr Dutton’s Strathpine office, Vashini rushed there to speak to the media.

This Saturday 8 September, Vashini is coming back to Strathpine, to stand beneath the billboard a second time.

I wish I could stand with her, but right now I’m on the other side of the world, re-connecting with friends and family in the UK. And I know that Vashini can’t do this alone.

Before I go to bed on Friday night, UK time, I’d love to send Mr Dutton a photo of our billboard, but this time with dozens of peaceful, positive people standing strong with Vashini, for Priya and her family.

There will be dozens of cardboard cockatoos (the symbol of our town) to hold. All you need to bring is you. And a friend.

To tell Vashini you’re coming, please click through to the facebook event now: http://bit.ly/StandWithPriya

Oh, and bring an umbrella. It’s looking like rain …

Thank you,

Angela

12 October 2018

Last month, Priya’s dear friends Vashini, Margot and Marie brought Biloela to Mr Dutton’s Brisbane electorate. Over 100 people braved the rain to join them beneath a giant billboard calling on Mr Dutton to bring Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa home to our little Queensland town.

Singing “I am, you are, we are Australian” and waving the famous Bilo cockatoos, they marched on Mr Dutton’s office to honks of support from passing locals.

Today I have been listening to the stories coming from psychiatrists and psychologists who have been on the frontline working with asylum seekers and refugees on Nauru. They speak of the significant deterioration of mental health they have witnessed and of people losing all sense of hope and the spark to live.

In the 7 months since our lovely family was taken from Biloela and detained, I have listened to the exhaustion and despair grow in Priya and Nades' voices. I’ve listened to their concerns for their two girls, who are no longer displaying their normal cheeky, happy personalities but instead cry, pull their hair and beg for 'Bilo'.

This Saturday, the people of the Sydney electorate of Wentworth will vote in a byelection that could change everything for these kids. The Liberal candidate for Wentworth, Dave Sharma, says: “I want to help build a better future for Australia, for my daughters and all the other children out there like them.”

Will you help me ask Mr Sharma to speak up for three-year-old Kopika and one-year-old Tharunicaa by leaving a polite, respectful comment on his Twitter account and facebook page? Even better, if you live in the Wentworth electorate, give Mr Sharma's campaign office a call on (02) 8317 1163 and ask him to advocate for these two Australian-born girls to be released from detention.

Nobody should have to live in limbo, and especially not children. So I am not stopping there. This Tuesday 16 October, I’m joining Rural Australians for Refugees as we converge on Canberra to tell the government that Australians say NO to kids in detention.

If you are in Canberra I would love for you to join me at this event: www.facebook.com/events/259480451373392 and help hold the Biloela cockatoos, demanding that all these children and their families are set free.

Let's help these children reclaim their childhoods!

Forever grateful,

Angela

22 October 2018

Last weekend, I flew from Biloela to visit Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa in the Melbourne detention centre where they have been held for seven long months since Border Force snatched them from our town.

Priya, Nades and I watched little Kopika run around the visiting area, greeting all the different people. Priya told me that this is the happiest she sees the girls, who are starved of contact with other children.

It’s hard to believe, but Priya and Nades are still at risk of being forced from Australia to a war-town country their two Queensland-born girls have never known.

That’s why we’ve called on Qantas and eleven other airlines to refuse to fly this family anywhere but home to Biloela.

Right now, Qantas shareholders are deciding whether to vote for pro-human rights resolutions that could end their company’s involvement in forcing asylum seekers like Priya and Nades from Australia to danger.

But you don’t need to own Qantas shares to make a difference.

Superannuation funds hold shares in companies like Qantas on our behalf. And thanks to our friends at the Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility, you can tell your super fund to vote FOR the Qantas human rights resolutions in less than one minute.

Today, please use your “super powers" to change everything for this family and others like them by clicking through to accr.org.au/vote-your-super-form now.

Forever grateful,

Angela

PS This Friday, I’m taking Priya and Nades’ story to Brisbane as Qantas shareholders gather for their company’s Annual General Meeting. If you live in Brisbane, please join me for this peaceful event outside the AGM: www.facebook.com/events/1932538706811180

20 Dec 2018

I just found out that the Federal Court is handing down its decision on Priya's appeal today. Yes, today - Friday 21st December.

Please – I need you to act now to help me save this beautiful family.

I’m hoping and praying for a positive decision. But I know that Australia’s weakened immigration laws offer little safety to people like Priya and Nades.

And I know that in June, Border Force handed Priya and Nades a deportation notice just one day after a court decision.

This time, we can’t afford to wait for a deportation notice. 

I know it’s a busy time. But today, please take a break from your Christmas shopping or end of year celebrations to help me save this beautiful family.

Here’s the plan. As soon as you get this e-mail, I urgently need you to use the few business hours remaining in the year to call the offices of the Minister for Immigration, David Coleman (02 6277 7770) and the Minister for Home Affairs, Peter Dutton (02 6277 7860).

Politely explain to their staff that you would like the Ministers to immediately use their power to intervene and allow this family to remain in Australia. And ask for a guarantee that Border Force will not issue a deportation notice during the holiday period.

Three-year-old Kopika and one-year-old Tharunicaa were born and bred in Biloela. Our “little cockatoos” should be flying home for Christmas. But within days, they could be forced to a war-torn country they have never known.

For ten months now, we’ve been fighting to bring this family home to Biloela. Twice, Border Force have tried to smuggle them from Australia to danger. And twice, we’ve stopped them. 

Let’s show that no matter what time of year it is, we will not rest until this family is brought safely #HometoBilo. 

Thank you for everything,

Angela

PS Over 140,000 people have signed this petition. Lots of us will be trying to get through to the Ministers’ offices at once. If both lines are busy, please set a reminder on your phone to try again later in the day. And if you can’t get through on Friday, please set a reminder to try again on Monday.

23 December 2018

On Friday, the Federal Court dismissed Priya’s appeal for re-consideration of her plea for safety.

Will you help me bring to this beautiful family home to Biloela by crowd funding legal costs to take Priya’s plea for safety to the High Court?

You can chip in at chuffed.org/project/6-weeks-to-save-these-little-aussies

The Federal Court decision restrained Border Force from deporting this beautiful family before 1st February, giving us just a few short weeks to act.

This latest blow has left Priya and Nades devastated and fearful. But as they struggle with the news that they could be forced to Sri Lanka within weeks, their greatest fear is for the future of their two beautiful, Australian-born girls.

When I learned that the remains of children have been found in a mass grave uncovered in the north of this troubled, war-torn country, I truly understood their fears.

I wish I wasn’t sharing this distressing news just before Christmas. But I need you to know how urgent it is we do everything we can to bring this family home to Biloela.

This is a busy time for us all. But if you are reading this on Christmas Eve, please take a few moments to call the office of David Coleman, the Minister for Immigration on 02 6277 7770. Politely insist that Mr Coleman use his power to intervene on behalf of Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa.

But we can’t afford to stop there. We need to be ready to take Priya’s case all the way to the High Court. Please chip in at chuffed.org/project/6-weeks-to-save-these-little-aussies to help secure Priya the best possible legal support.

And no matter where you are in Australia, please keep Saturday 19th January free to join with us in showing your support for Priya and Nades (more details to come).

Finally – and I hesitate to even repeat this – after 10 months of silence, on Saturday Mr Dutton took to the airwaves to accuse these gentle, loving parents of using their adored daughters as “leverage”.

Mr Dutton does not know Priya and Nades. He has not lived alongside them as friends and neighbours for four years. He has not witnessed the joy and hope that little Kopika and Tharunicaa have brought not only their loving Mum and Dad, but to all who meet them.

I know that Priya and Nades would do anything to keep their precious girls safe. And we will not rest until we bring them home to Biloela.

Wishing you all Merry Christmas and a safe, peaceful New Year,

Angela

1 January 2019

Four days before Christmas, the Federal Court dismissed Priya's plea for safety.

A court order stopping Border Force from forcing Priya, Nades and their Australian-born daughters to danger runs out on 1st February. We only have a few short weeks to act.

That pre-Christmas phone call to Priya was one of the hardest I've had to make. Through tears of distress, Priya told me her greatest fears are for the safety of her two daughters, Kopika and Tharunicaa.

I told Priya that over 150,000 of you have signed this petition. I told her I would come up with a plan to turn your signatures into an avalanche of action that the politicians cannot ignore.

I need your help to put this three-step plan into action right now:

Step 1: Please show Priya and Nades you will stand with them on Saturday 19th January by clicking through to tell them you'll be joining one of these peaceful, family-friendly events:

Gladstone: https://www.facebook.com/events/1866712956760839/ 

Brisbane: https://www.facebook.com/events/293622374623775/ 

Sydney: https://www.facebook.com/events/218774595693763/ 

Melbourne: https://www.facebook.com/events/2351636344911734/

Step 2: Between now and Friday 11th of January, please send an email requesting intervention to the Minister for Immigration, Mr David Coleman at immigration.minister@homeaffairs.gov.au and another to your local Federal Member of Parliament. You can use your postcode to find your Federal MP's e-mail address (or online contact form) and phone number here: http://bit.ly/yourlocalMP

Your own, polite words will have the strongest impact. But if you need some ideas on what to write and say, you can find some examples here: Letter to Minister for Immigration, Letter to Local MP

Step 3: Between Monday 14th and Friday 18th January, I need you to follow up your e-mails to Mr Coleman (ph: 02 6277 7770) and your local MP with a polite phone call to each. I can't emphasise the importance of your follow up phone calls enough. An e-mail by itself is easily ignored. But an e-mail followed by a phone call sends a powerful message.

I know this is a lot to ask at a time when most of us are enjoying our summer holidays or returning to work, but I also know that this beautiful family's safety depends on all of us joining together to send a message that cannot be ignored.

Wishing you all a safe New Year,

Angela

PS. Thank you all so much for your support, with your help we have crowdfunded over $20,000 to take Priya's case to the High Court. A High Court action could see this family detained for many more damaging months - with no guarantee of success - Mr Coleman has the power to right this wrong with the stroke of a pen. That is why I'm asking you to speak up for Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa now, while there is still time.

6 January 2019

Between Christmas and New Year, while most of us enjoyed a well-earned break, Margot and her partner Kev travelled from Queensland to the Melbourne detention centre where Priya, Nades and their Australian-born daughters have been trapped for 10 long months.

Margot’s visit came one week after the Federal Court dismissed Priya’s plea for safety. Now, with this beautiful family facing deportation to danger on 1st February, we need to spring into action.

Right now, I urgently need everyone reading this to send two e-mails: one to the Minister for Immigration, Mr David Coleman at immigration.minister@homeaffairs.gov.au and one to your local MP. To find your Federal MP's e-mail address (or online contact form), enter your postcode at bit.ly/yourlocalMP.

Your own, polite words are best. But if you need ideas, here is a sample letter to the Minister for Immigration and letter to your local MP.

Margot is Kopika and Tharunicaa’s unofficial “Australian Grandmother”. She has been tireless in her love and support for this beautiful family. Last year, she questioned a Senator on the ABC’s Q&A program and led supporters in a peaceful march to Peter Dutton’s Brisbane electorate office.

Margot writes:

While waiting to enter the visiting area, I could see Kopika through the pane of glass, jumping and waving, a big smile on her face. When I walked through the door she ran to me and hugged me so tight, laughing and hugging me more.

More than anything, right now this family needs hope. That’s why I’m asking you to click through to one of these peaceful, family-friendly events and show Priya and Nades that you will be standing with them on Saturday 19th January:

Gladstone: www.facebook.com/events/1866712956760839
Brisbane: www.facebook.com/events/293622374623775
Sydney: www.facebook.com/events/218774595693763
Melbourne: www.facebook.com/events/2351636344911734

Thank you to everyone who has already done the above and thank you to everyone for your continued support!

Angela xxx

11 January 2019

Yesterday, we held a community letter-writing stall in Biloela’s Lions Park – the same park where we gathered when Priya and Nades were taken from us all those months ago.

After fighting so hard for this beautiful family for so long, it’s hard to believe Priya, Nades and their two beautiful, Biloela-born girls could still be forced from Australia to danger.

But unless Immigration Minister David Coleman steps in to help before February 1st, that’s exactly what could happen.

As the kids coloured in the paper cockatoos that have become the symbol of our campaign, we hand-wrote heartfelt letters to Mr Coleman. But we also made sure to write to our Federal MP, Ken O’Dowd.

Why? Well, I’ve always said: “Biloela is a small town, but we have a big voice.”

Biloela’s population sits at around 6,000. Small town.

But that’s three times the number of votes which decided who was elected to represent us in Parliament at the last Federal election. Big voice.

I know we all sign a lot of petitions. But I also know that this beautiful family needs and deserves so much more from us all than a click on a mouse or a swipe on a screen.

To everyone who has already written to your own Federal MP and to Mr Coleman – thank you. Next week, I’ll be asking you to amplify the effect of your e-mails with a couple of polite phone calls.

If you haven’t got around to sending your two e-mails yet, please take a moment now to find your Federal MP's contact details at bit.ly/yourlocalMP and write to Mr Coleman at immigration.minister@homeaffairs.gov.au.

As always, your own, polite words are best - but there are sample letters to get you started at Local MP letter and Immigration Minister letter.

With love and hope,

Angela xxx

PS With only 15 working days left to persuade Mr Coleman to step in, every last e-mail and every last phone call in support of Priya and Nades matters more than ever.

13 January 2019

Before Border Force snatched Priya and Nades from their Biloela home almost one year ago, they were looking forward to enrolling little Kopika in a local kindergarten.

At two, Kopika was already a bright, sociable toddler, running to people she knew and taking delight in the world around her.

But when her Biloela friends start kindy on Tuesday next week, Kopika and her baby sister Tharunicaa will wake up to their 322nd day behind the security fences and locked doors of Melbourne’s harsh detention centre.

And unless Immigration Minister David Coleman steps in to help, these Queensland-born girls and their loving Mum and Dad could be forced from Australia to danger as soon as February 1st.

To everyone who wrote to Mr Coleman and their local MP last week - thank you. Now, with time running out for this family, I urgently need your help to step things up with a phone call.

Will you ask Mr Coleman to step in and bring this beautiful family home to Biloela?

With no other children to play with and only brief access to a sparse, outdoor courtyard for short periods each day, 10 months of detention have taken a terrible toll on our “little cockatoos”.

But the isolation and confinement pale in comparison to the dangers this beautiful family will face if they are forced from Australia to war-torn Sri Lanka on February 1st.

As members of Sri Lanka’s persecuted Tamil minority, Priya and Nades have every reason to fear for their family’s safety.

Tamils are routinely detained by Sri Lanka’s feared security forces at the airport. According to the UN, torture of detainees is “endemic and systematic” in Sri Lanka.

Please click this link for Mr Coleman’s phone number and some talking points to use in your call.

Mr Coleman has the power to bring this beautiful family home to Biloela at the stroke of a pen.

I don’t know exactly what it will take for him to use that power. But I truly believe that if somehow, all 164,000 of us could act together to make this simple phone call, Kopika and her family would be home to Bilo in time for her first day of kindy.

Thank you for everything you are doing,

Angela xxx

PS Your phone call to Mr Coleman will be one of the most powerful steps you take to help me save this family. But we need to do this now, while there is still time.

16 January 2019

“I’m sorry to see the circumstance, which is of their own making.”

That's what Mr Dutton has to say about his plan to force Priya, Nades and their QLD-born girls from Australia. It could happen as soon as February 1st.

Today, I need you to pick up the phone. Let’s show that Mr Dutton's negativity will never defeat our love for this family.

I know how much joy Kopika and Tharunicca brought to Priya and Nades’ lives when they were born in the Biloela Hospital.

So I was shocked to hear Mr Dutton claim that Priya and Nades “were told before they had children that they were not going to settle ever in Australia”.

The truth is that little Kopika was born in May 2015, a full two years before Mr Dutton first made a decision regarding Priya’s plea for safety. One month later, Tharunicaa was born.

Yesterday, I picked up the phone and spoke to one of Immigration Minister David Coleman’s staff. I told him (politely) how I felt about Mr Dutton’s comments. I told him that Mr Coleman MUST intervene on humanitarian grounds. He promised to pass on the message.

Today, will you pick up to phone to help me save this beautiful family?

I know a polite phone call doesn’t sound like much. But I truly believe that if all 165,000 of us who have signed this petition could find a minute to make that call, Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa would be home to Biloela in a flash.

Thank you for everything you are doing,

Angela xxx

5 February 2019

If Mr Dutton can help European au pairs, why won’t he help when 178,000+ Australians ask him to bring a Tamil family home to Biloela, QLD? As PM, when will you tell him to do the right thing?

I need PM Scott Morrison to answer this on Facebook Live at 4.45pm today. Can you go to the Facebook Australia page to post your own question now?

At 4pm last Friday, a court order protecting Priya and three year Kopika from deportation ran out. As I watched the minutes and seconds tick away, I could only imagine how this must feel for Priya and Nades.

At the last minute, Priya’s lawyers obtained an undertaking from Mr Dutton’s legal team. Mr Dutton agreed not to remove Priya and Kopika from Australia while their application to the High Court is pending.

I breathed a huge sigh of relief.

But I know that there is no guarantee that the High Court will grant Priya leave to appeal.

And I know that the very best the courts can do is send Priya and Kopika’s case back to the beginning of Mr Morrison’s so-called “fast track” process, which failed them so badly almost two years ago.

And I know that even if Priya and Kopika somehow clear all of these hurdles, Nades and one year old Tharunicaa could still be forced from Australia to danger.

The truth is, this family is still in a desperate situation. We need the Minister for Immigration or the Minister for Home Affairs to step in immediately. And for that to happen, we need Mr Morrison to hear the voices of the 178,000 Australians who have signed this petition.

Today, at 4.45pm (3.45pm QLD time), Mr Morrison is appearing at a Facebook Live event. He’s inviting Australians to ask “whatever you like”.

Please click through to the Facebook Australia page to post your own polite question for Priya and Nades now.

Thank you for everything you are doing,

Angela x

PS You can help make sure Mr Morrison hears Marie’s wonderful poem by pasting this link at the end of your question: bit.ly/AussiesLookAfterTheirMates

20 February 2019

Mr Dutton attacked this beautiful family in a full-page ad in Biloela’s local paper. Can you chip in to give Priya and Nades the right of reply with a powerful ad in Queensland’s Courier-Mail newspaper?

On Tuesday 5th March, it will be exactly one year since Border Force snatched Priya, Nades and their gorgeous, QLD-born girls from our town.

Three-year-old Kopika has no other children to play with. Eighteen-month-old Tharunicaa is not eating properly. Both girls have dental problems and vitamin deficiencies.

In the last year, over 180,000 people have signed our petition to bring Priya, Nades and the girls home to Biloela.

When Mr Dutton publicly attacked this beautiful family, I had to do something. So I paid $1,000 to set with record straight with a local paper ad of my own.

For me, $1,000 is a lot of money. But when I heard the response from my local community, I knew it was worth every cent. And that gave me an idea.

Together, we’ve raised funds for legal support. We’ve put a giant billboard in Mr Dutton’s electorate. We’ve led peaceful, joyous marches on the offices of Mr Dutton, Immigration Minister David Coleman and our own local MP, Ken O’Dowd. We’ve even questioned the politicians live on national TV.

Today, I need your help again. Will you chip in to help me put a powerful ad in the Courier-Mail?

The truth is that Mr Dutton still believes he can win votes by forcing this beautiful family from Australia to danger.

That’s why, today, I need your help to reach 500,000 of Priya and Nades’ fellow Queenslanders with a powerful ad in the Courier-Mail, Queensland’s daily newspaper.

We don’t have much time. To send the strongest message, I need this ad to appear in the Courier-Mail on Tuesday 5th March – exactly one year since Border Force took Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa from their home.

At the same time, I need to build an emergency legal fund to make sure Priya can continue exercising her right to appeal to the High Court.

I can’t thank you all enough for everything you’ve done for Priya and her family in the last year. With your help, I truly believe we can bring this beautiful family home to Biloela.

In hope,

Angela x

26 February 2019

In just three days, we crowd funded the cost of a powerful ad in Queensland’s daily newspaper!

If you’ve chipped in to make this possible – THANK YOU!!! Now we need to build an emergency legal fund to ensure Priya can continue exercising her right to appeal to the High Court.

A few days before Christmas, I had to give Priya the distressing news that her appeal to the Federal Court had been unsuccessful.

I knew that without the protection of the courts, there would be nothing to stop Mr Dutton forcing this beautiful family from Australia to danger. I had to take action – and fast.

As most of Australia hit the beaches and BBQs, we hit the phones and sent urgent e-mails in a frantic effort to put together a legal team with the expertise to take Priya’s case to the High Court.

It wasn’t easy. But somehow, we did it – in the New Year, Priya’s legal team lodged documents seeking “special leave” to appeal to the High Court.

On February 1st, we had another massive hurdle to clear as a Federal Court order temporarily protecting Priya and three year Kopika from deportation ran out.

I knew that when the court order ran out, Mr Dutton could have forced this beautiful family from Australia to danger within days.

At the last minute, Priya’s legal team obtained an undertaking that Mr Dutton would not remove Priya and three year old Kopika from Australia while their application to the High Court is pending.

I don’t know how long the High Court will take to decide whether it will hear Priya’s appeal. And while we’ve put together a capable and experienced legal team, it’s impossible to know if an appeal will succeed.

But I do know that without the support of 468 incredible people who chipped in for legal costs, Priya could not have accessed the high level expertise needed to lodge a High Court appeal and negotiate with Mr Dutton’s taxpayer-funded lawyers.

Our campaign to bring Priya, Nades and the girls home to Biloela is 100% people powered.

While Mr Dutton has spent an estimated $1.2 million in taxpayers’ money to keep this beautiful family in detention, we rely entirely on community support to keep our advocacy and legal action going.

It has been this powerful combination of community advocacy and legal action that has kept this family safe – so far.

We’re doing everything we can to support Priya’s right to appeal. And with your help, we’ve also put a massive billboard in Mr Dutton’s electorate, flooded Immigration Minister David Coleman with phone calls and lead peaceful marches on the offices of key MPs.

In the weeks between Christmas and February 1st, we crowd funded $23,765 towards the cost of Priya’s High Court appeal.

It’s impossible to predict precise legal costs in advance. But I know that it could cost $65,000 or more to appeal to the High Court.

I need to make sure we are ready to respond to the next step in the legal process. That’s why I’m asking you to help me build an emergency legal fund for Priya.

Will you chip in today to make sure Priya can access high level legal support?

On Tuesday 5 March, it will be 365 days since Priya, Nades and the girls were taken from their Biloela home. I’m so grateful to everyone who was supported this beautiful family in so many different ways over the last year. I honestly believe that with your help, we will bring them “Home to Bilo”.

Thank you for everything,

Angela x

PS If you’ve already chipped in to our new crowdfunder in the last few days – thank you, thank you, thank you!!! You’ve already made it possible to share Priya’s story with around 500,000 Queenslanders with a powerful ad in Queensland’s only daily newspaper. Watch this space!

5 March 2019

It’s exactly one year since Priya, Nades and their Australian-born girls were snatched from their Biloela home. To me, it still feels like yesterday.

Please, will you send a quick e-mail to tell your local MP this family needs to come home now?

It still sends shivers down my spine. When Border Force raided their home, Priya was warming a bottle for the baby. Nades was getting ready for his job at the local meatworks. Their Australian-born girls were asleep in their beds.

It was 5am.

A neighbour heard Priya’s terrified scream and ran into the street. She watched helplessly as baby Tharunicaa and toddler Kopika were separated from their parents for the long drive to Gladstone Airport.

Before most us had finished our morning coffee, they were gone.

Nades’ keys and wallet were found in his car. Meat for the evening meal was defrosting in the sink. There was a baby’s bottle left on the kitchen bench.

It’s hard to believe this beautiful family has endured 365 days in Melbourne’s harsh detention centre. But I can’t let this day pass without taking action.

Can you send a quick e-mail to your MP now?

Three-year-old Kopika and eighteen-month-old Tharunicaa are showing the damaging effects of isolation and stress. Both girls have dental problems and vitamin deficiencies.

Over 180,000 people have signed our petition. With your support, we’ve put a giant billboard in Mr Dutton’s electorate. We’ve led peaceful marches on the offices of key politicians. And today, we’ve put a powerful ad on page two of QLD’s daily newspaper.

Please don’t let this day pass without doing something to help this beautiful family.

You can find your MP’s details and send a quick e-mail from our action page in less than a minute.

Our politicians are meant to represent us. We have the numbers to hold them accountable - and I truly believe we are so close to bringing this beautiful family home to Bilo.

Thank you for everything you do,

Angela x

PS A big thank you to the 695 wonderful people who have already chipped in to put our ad on page 2 of Queensland’s daily newspaper today and build an emergency legal fund for Priya – thanks to you, we’re more than halfway to our crowdfunding goal! You can still chip in at bit.ly/home2biloela.

7 March 2019

As I write, that’s how long our politicians have left Priya and Nades and their precious little QLD-born “cockatoos”, Kopika and Tharunicaa, locked away in Melbourne’s harsh detention centre.

Can you use one of those minutes to tell your MP that Bilo wants them back?

When I started this petition, I never imagined that one year on, we would still be fighting to bring this family home to Biloela. And I could never have guessed that my little petition would grow to an incredible 180,000 signatures.

There are only 150 representatives in our lower house of Parliament. If every single one of the wonderful people who have signed this petition contacted their MP, we would average over 1,200 e-mails, letters or phone calls per MP.

We have the numbers. And I truly believe that if there was a way we could all act together, this beautiful family would be free to fly home to Bilo in an instant.

It you only have a minute, you can e-mail your MP using the template on our action page.

If you can spare more than one minute, you can greatly increase the power of your e-mail by adding your own personal message to your MP in your own words.

If you’ve already sent your MP an e-mail from our action page - THANK YOU!

Politicians get a lot of e-mails, but you can make yours stand out by printing it, adding a hand-written note and popping it in the mail. You should already have received a copy of your e-mail in your inbox and you can confirm your MP’s postal address by entering your postcode here.

With love and hope,

Angela xxx

PS If you’ve already received a reply to your e-mail from your MP - congratulations! Please help me keep track of what all the different MPs are saying by sending their reply to me via the form at www.hometobilo.com/contact

1 April 2019

Three-year-old Kopika remembers singing Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star at her Biloela playgroup. Now, the sound of her friends singing to her on Facetime makes her cry. Please, can you help me bring this beautiful family home to Bilo by chipping in to our emergency legal fund?

On Saturday, over 300,000 Queenslanders woke up to this heart-breaking story in Qweekend, the Courier-Mail’s weekend magazine.

Across four pages and 4,000 words, “A Town Like Bilo” finally tells the full story of our year-long battle to bring Priya, Nades, Kopika, Tharunicaa home to Biloela.

This is a huge media breakthrough. But with Kopika and her family still in detention, I can’t rest.

Tomorrow, Priya’s wonderful legal team need to take the next step in the long and complex process of taking Priya and Kopika’s case to the High Court.

It’s impossible to predict legal costs precisely. But as I write this, our emergency legal fund is still $18,219 short of the target we believe we need to reach to make sure Priya can access expert legal support throughout a High Court appeal.

Today, can you please help me to top up Priya’s emergency legal fund?

I’m so grateful to everyone who has already contributed to our crowdfunders over the last year.

With your support, we put up a giant billboard in Peter Dutton’s electorate. We placed a powerful ad on page two of the Courier-Mail.

And on February 2, with just minutes to spare, your support made it possible for Priya’s lawyers to obtain an undertaking from Mr Dutton not to remove Priya and Kopika from Australia while their application to the High Court is pending.

We believe that Mr Dutton has spent around $1.2 million in taxpayers money to keep this beautiful family in detention over the last year.

Meanwhile, our campaign to bring Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa home to Biloela is 100% people powered.

I know that many of you have chipped in to help this beautiful family more than once.

On behalf of Priya, Nades, Kopika, Tharunicaa and all of us fighting to bring them #HometoBilo - thank you for being the “stars of hope” in little Kopika’s sky.

With hope,

Angela x

PS If you missed Saturday’s Qweekend cover story, you can still read it online!

5 April 2019

It all comes down to love and hope.

Whether it’s chipping in for Priya’s High Court challenge, e-mailing your MP, calling the Minister or marching on Mr Dutton’s office, that’s what you’ve given to Priya, Nades and the girls. Love and hope.

Today, it’s a year and a month since Mr Dutton’s Border Force took this beautiful family from Biloela and locked them away in a Melbourne detention centre, 1800km from their home.

Over that time, I have been truly humbled by Priya and Nades’ extraordinary strength and resilience. And I’ve been blown away by the outpouring love and support that Australians have shown in taking action for this family, time and time again.

Priya and Nades have watched the number of signatures on this petition grow from a few hundred to over 180,000. They’ve read hundreds of messages of support on the #HometoBilo facebook page. The can see that over a thousand of you have chipped in for billboards, newspaper ads and critical legal support.

But every single day for the last 396 days, this much-loved family have woken to yet another day in detention. Another day without freedom. Another day of fear and uncertainty, not only for themselves, but for their two, beautiful, Queensland-born daughters.

During a recent facetime call with Queensland’s Courier-Mail newspaper, Nades said: Detention centre very, very hard. My kids every day ask, “Go Biloela?” Every day they ask, “Tomorrow? tomorrow?”

Priya said: Please, my two children’s life is very safe here … My life [in Australia] is six year’s safe life … please [let us] come home to Bilo. Thank you, thank you very much.

This week, Priya’s wonderful legal team took another step in the long and complicated process of appealing to the High Court.

Without the support of 1,227 amazing people who have chipped in to build an emergency legal fund, this simply would not have been possible.

In fact, hundreds of you have chipped in to support Priya, Nades not just once, but two, three or more times (special shout-out to the incredible Max - you know who you are!)

With only 3 days left to go, our crowdfunder is just a few thousand dollars short of its goal.

Please - can you chip in to help us reach our goal today?

To all of you that are taking action for this beautiful family in so many different ways - thank you. Your love truly does give hope.

Angela x

16 April 2019

On Sunday, Mr Morrison and Mr Shorten wished the Australian Tamil Community a Happy Tamil New Year. The same day, Biloela’s beautiful Tamil family spent their 406th day imprisoned in Melbourne’s detention centre.

This family needs more than wishes. Please, can you click through to bit.ly/emailyourMPnow and tell our politicians to bring them home to Bilo?

Tamil New Year (“Puthandu”) is a day for family, friends and new beginnings. After cleaning their home in preparation, Tamil people in Australia and around the world wake to a tray of fresh fruits and flowers before lighting a beautiful family altar.

The day is traditionally spent visiting friends, family and offering prayers at a local temple before the whole family sits down to a vegetarian feast.

Visitors to Melbourne’s harsh detention centre are not allowed to bring fresh fruit. Traditional incense and lamps are completely out of the question. But I can only imagine how hard it was for Priya and Nades to spend their second Tamil Puthandu so far away from their Biloela “family”.

Right now, our politicians are preparing for their own special day - the May 18 election.

I have always said that this family’s plight should be a bipartisan human rights issue. This is about four human beings who need to be kept safe, not about political point-scoring. But today, I urgently need your help to send a message that our elected representatives can’t ignore.

Today, can you take one minute to click through to bit.ly/emailyourMPnow and tell your elected representative to speak up for Priya, Nades and the girls?

A lot of people are predicting how the election will turn out. After fighting so hard for this family for so long, it would be so easy to sit back and do nothing.

But the truth is that no-one knows what will happen on May 18. And here in central Queensland, the fate of our local MPs will be decided by a handful of votes.

Over 180,000 of us have signed this petition. But to bring this family safely home to Biloela, we all need to make our feelings known to our local MPs now, before the election.

Together, let’s make sure that next year’s Tamil Puthandu is a day we can all be proud to celebrate.

Puthandu Vazthukal! Happy New Year!

Angela x

25 April 2019

Our politicians want to force two QLD-born kids and their loving Mum and Dad to unstable, war-torn Sri Lanka.

We need to act quickly. Please, can you click through to bit.ly/emailtheMinister now to tell Immigration Minister David Coleman to bring this family safely home to Biloela, QLD?

My name is Simone. I first met Priya and Nades teaching English in Biloela. In time, I learned about the suffering these gentle people overcame in their search for a safe, peaceful life.

In March 2018, Mr Dutton’s Border Force turned that peaceful life upside down when they raided the family home at dawn. They took this family 1,800km away to a Melbourne detention centre. Emergency legal action saw them taken off a deportation flight with only minutes to spare.

For Tamils like Priya and Nades, Sri Lanka has never been safe. Now, the Easter Sunday attacks have shown the world the violence and instability behind the tourist brochures.

If you have already contacted your MP - thank you. Now, I need your help to flood Immigration Minister David Coleman’s inbox with e-mails.

Before Priya and Nades met in Australia, war and violence had stolen many years of their lives. Neither thought they would ever have a family of their own.

In Biloela, Priya found the peace and safety she longed for. Nades found work at the local meatworks. They settled down to their new life and soon, their beloved little Kopika was born.

Priya and Nades are Tamil Hindus who find comfort in Christian worship. When doctors told Priya that Kopika's sister could be born with serious complications, she went to the local Catholic Church. “I prayed to God, to Jesus, help my baby please,” Priya told me. Thankfully, a healthy baby Tharunicaa was soon born, also in Biloela.

Incredibly, the politicians still want to force this family from Australia to war-torn Sri Lanka. Priya and Nades are terrified for the safety of their beautiful QLD-born girls. We need to act now.

Please - click through to our action page now and tell Mr Coleman to bring this family home to Biloela. I guarantee you can take action for this beautiful family in less time than it took to read this update.

On behalf of Angela and the home to Bilo team - thank you for everything you do.

In hope,

Simone

PS Angela is taking a long-planned holiday away from e-mails and petitions and has asked me to keep you updated and say thank you to everyone who has donated to Priya’s emergency legal fund. You can find Angela’s latest update on this here (under comments). If you would like to do something practical to help the survivors of the terrible violence in Sri Lanka, please consider donating to the Sri Lanka Red Cross Society: www.redcross.lk

1 May 2019

QLD-born Kopika turned three in a Melbourne detention centre. She’s about to spend her 4th birthday there too, but Mr Dutton is telling Australians that there are “zero kids in detention”. Please, can you chip in to our new crowdfunder and help me share the truth?

My name is Simone. On 12 May last year, I invited Melbournians to join me in celebrating Kopika’s 3rd birthday. Kopika is the Biloela-born daughter of my friends, Priya and Nades.

Two months earlier, Mr Dutton’s Border Force snatched Priya, Nades, Kopika and baby Tharunicaa from their Biloela home and locked them away in Melbourne detention centre.

Our party was one of three. Priya’s dear friend Vashini gathered Brisbane friends together for a picnic. Family friend Angela invited Kopika’s Biloela friends to play games in the local Lion’s Park.

We begged Mr Dutton to bring this beautiful family “home to Bilo” in time for Kopika to spend her birthday with her Biloela friends.

Mr Dutton left Kopika to spend her 3rd birthday in detention and has no plans to release her for her 4th. Now, he’s trying to win votes by telling Australians that there are “zero children in detention”.

I urgently need your help to share the truth. Please, can you chip in to help me share Kopika’s story with up to 315,000 voters with the power to make a difference?

We’ve held community meetings and peaceful marches. We’ve put a giant billboard in Mr Dutton’s electorate. We’ve placed a powerful ad in Queensland’s daily newspaper. We’ve commenced a high court challenge. 184,000 Australians have signed our petition.

Right now, political parties are spending untold millions on TV ads, billboards and Facebook advertising. We need to make the politicians listen now, before we vote.

Will you help me put Kopika’s story straight into the Facebook feeds of up to 315,000 voters in key electorates in Queensland and Victoria?

I’ll show them how quickly and easily they can send a powerful message to local MPs who are counting on their votes.

I know not everyone uses Facebook. But if we can hit our crowdfunding goal in the next few days, I can also put powerful, full-page ads in central Queensland’s local newspapers.

It’s heartbreaking to know that this family’s 433rd day in detention will not only be Kopika’s 4th birthday, but Mother’s Day.

Please, chip in today to make sure the politicians get the message before the day that matters most to them - the May 18 election.

With hope,

Simone

PS A big thank you to everyone who chipped in to Priya’s emergency legal fund. Angela is travelling away from e-mail right now and has asked me to keep you updated. Appealing to the High Court is a long, slow and complex process with no guarantee of success, but Angela and I will be sure to let you know as soon as we have any news.

3 May 2019

Tharunicaa wasn’t even one when Mr Dutton’s Border Force locked her away in detention. She’s about to turn two and she’s still locked up.

Now, inadequate medical care has left her in pain and unable to eat solid food. Please, I need you to make a polite, persisent call to Immigration Minister David Coleman right now.

My name is Simone. For fifteen months, I’ve been fighting to free Priya, Nades and their QLD-born toddlers from Melbourne’s harsh detention centre.

A couple of days ago, I had a distressing phone call with Priya. Two-year old Tharunicaa was suffering from a painful mouth infection. It was stopping her from eating solid food.

Priya is deeply concerned that her young daughters are not receiving proper medical care in detention. She says the operators of the detention centre frequently fail to provide a translator for medical appointments and detention staff are inconsistent and late in providing medication.

When an independent doctor from outside the detention centre was finally permitted to see Kopika and Tharunicaa, they reported that both girls were suffering from serious vitamin deficiencies, dental problems and stress induced behavioural issues. Now, Tharunicca is in pain.

Please, will you pick up the phone and call Immigration Minister David Coleman right now?

I need his staff to understand that many, many Australians expect the Minister to exercise his power to free Tharunicaa and her family from detention immediately. Not after the election. Not in a few days. Now.

The battle to free Priya, Nades and the girls has been long and at times exhausting. But I can’t rest while our politicians are inflicting such terrible suffering on these two beautiful, innocent little humans and their kind, loving Mum and Dad.

It’s easy to forget that the device you’re probably reading this on has the power to transmit voice.  But a polite, to the point phone call to the Minister’s office is one of the most powerful things you can do to get this family out of detention and home to Biloela.

You don’t need to be an expert. Just click here for the Minister’s phone number and some dot points to guide you during your call.

In hope,

Simone

PS Angela has asked me to keep you updated while she’s travelling away from email. If you’d like more information about Tharunicaa’s situation before you call, please read today’s story in The Guardian Australia - and remember to use the form on our action page to tell me what the Minister’s Office said.

9 May 2019

I couldn’t believe it. 30 seconds into last night’s Leader’s Debate, Scott Morrison told Australia: “We’ve got every child out of detention”.

But our two beautiful Australian-born bubs are suffering in detention right now. They've been denied proper medical care, fresh food and sunlight. Please - will you help me share the truth before it's too late?

My name is Simone. For the last 15 months, I’ve been fighting to get two Queensland-born toddlers and their loving Mum and Dad out of Melbourne’s harsh detention centre and home to Biloela, QLD, where they belong. Their names are Kopika, Tharunicaa, Priya and Nades.

Last week, I was horrified to learn that after months of severe vitamin deficiencies and dental problems, little Tharunicaa’s mouth hurt so much she couldn’t eat solid food.

Kids need sunlight to get vitamin D to grow strong teeth and bones. They need fresh, healthy food and access to proper medical care.

But Tharunicaa and Kopika have been locked indoors for most of the last 15 months. Fresh food is restricted and visitors are banned from bringing it with them. And when Priya begs for her kids to see a doctor, she is fobbed off with Panadol.

Please, can you chip into our crowdfunder to tell this family’s story to 315,000 voters with the power to make a difference?

In Biloela, Kopika and Tharunicaa were healthy and happy. They even had an “Australian Grandmother”, Margot, who told me yesterday that Priya and Nades “are examples of how parents should be”:

"They both ensured their children wanted for nothing when living in Biloela. But restrictions placed on them in detention mean they cannot even provide a decent diet or access medical assistance," Margot said.

Our Prime Minister knows that these kids are suffering in detention. But most Australians don’t.

A lot of people think they know how the election will turn out. It’s tempting to sit back and do nothing.

But we can’t afford to gamble Kopika and Tharunicaa’s future on the outcome of an election. We need to get them out of detention now. And we can’t let the leader of our country get away with denying that they exist.

Please chip in today at chuffed.org/project/kopika.

In hope,

Simone

On behalf of Angela and the #hometobilo team

PS Angela has asked me to pass on a big ‘thank you’ from her while she is on a long-planned holiday away from e-mail and petitions and keep you posted on Priya’s legal challenge. It’s a long and complex process with no guarantee of success, but we’ll be sure to let you know as soon as there is any news.

13 May 2019

I just heard. On Tuesday, the High Court will decide whether Priya’s appeal can continue. That's tomorrow.

I’m scared. Mr Dutton is desperate. If the appeal fails tomorrow, he could force this family from Australia to danger before the election to win extremist votes. Please help me protect this family from Mr Dutton by calling your MP today, while there's still time.

We have to be ready. As well as calling your MP today, I need all of Priya and Nades’ supporters in Melbourne to join their friend Brad at the Tamil community vigil this Wednesday night. Please click here for details.

A lot of people on twitter and facebook think they know who will win the election. It’s tempting to sit back and do nothing.

But this family can’t afford to gamble on the outcome of an election.

If you’re anything like me, you might never have called your MP before. But don’t worry - you don’t need to be an expert. Our action page includes easy to follow talking points and you can quickly find your MP’s name and number by entering your postcode.

Whatever the court decides, Priya, Nades and their Australian-born girls are counting on everyone who has signed this petition to do something to win their freedom - now.

Public pressure works. Ten days ago, Immigration Minister David Coleman intervened to stop the deportation of Kinley, a young Bhutanese man with a hearing impairment.

Last week, he quietly released a Tamil women and her seven year old son from the same detention centre that Priya and her family are trapped in.

But with Mr Dutton doubling down, we need to show our MPs that forcing this family from Australia will lose the votes they are so desperate to win.

And we can’t let them get away with leaving our friends to rot in detention while a High Court appeal drags out over months - or years.

This is it. Will you make one call to help me save this precious family today?

With hope,

Simone

PS Angela asked me to keep you updated while she was away from e-mail on a long-planned trip. She will be back in Biloela today and is ready to spring into action. And if you live in Melbourne, please  come to the community vigil on Wednesday.

15 May 2019

In the 24 hours since the High Court dismissed Priya’s appeal, immigration Minister David Coleman has been inundated with phone calls. But he still hasn’t stepped in.

Priya and her family could be forced onto a plane to war-torn Sri Lanka at any minute. Please - pick up the phone and call the Minister’s office on (02) 6277 7770 now. If you’ve already done that, please call your MP.

When the Minister’s staff had started asking callers which electorates they live in, I knew our calls were starting to have an impact. But with the election just days away, this is our very last opportunity to make the politicians listen.

Now, we need to contact any and every MP in Australia and let them know we won’t vote for politicians that sit back and do nothing as Dutton deports this innocent young family.

There are more signs the public pressure is working. Yesterday, for the first time in 15 months, four year old Kopika and little sister Tharunicaa were allowed to attend a playgroup outside the detention centre.

When I heard how Kopika couldn’t decide between the toy stethoscope and the stove, I thought: “That’s such an Aussie thing.” In Australia, an abattoir worker’s daughter can dream of becoming a doctor - perhaps in the small QLD town she grew up in!

Please - I desperately need your help to get Kopika and her family safely back to Biloela before Australia votes. Will you call the Minister’s office now?

If you’ve already made that call - thank you. Today, I urgently need you to follow up with a call to your local MP. You can find the number in seconds by entering your postcode at our action page.

Priya and Nades are doing their best to protect their children from the immense stress of knowing that the Border Force guards could come for their family again at any moment. But Kopika is a bright little girl. She knows something is very wrong.

If her family somehow evades the real, life-threatening danger they face in Sri Lanka, Kopika will find herself in a country with one of the world’s worst records on early childhood education. Local human rights organisations report that in the north of the country, the Sri Lankan military have literally taken control of pre-schools attended by thousands of children.

Right now, your calls are literally the only thing stopping Mr Dutton from forcing this beautiful family from Australia to danger.

Please, can you make your polite call to the Minister’s office - and then your local MP - today?

With hope,

Angela

16 May 2019

Last night we had a tremendous victory. Bill Shorten promised on national television to re-examine our family’s case on Monday if elected.

But we can't afford to gamble this family's future on an election. We need bipartisan support. And we need to show Mr Shorten we will hold him to his promise. That's why today, I'm asking you to please call your MP.

Let them know that tomorrow (Friday) a convoy is coming down from Biloela, straight to David Coleman’s Sydney office, to deliver this petition. We’ll be joined by former Socceroos captain and human rights defender, Craig Foster. We want the Immigration Minister to go one better than Bill and intervene before the election.

If your MP is part of Mr Shorten’s opposition, please say thank you and let them know you will be watching to see how quickly a Shorten government can review this family’s case. If they are one of Mr Coleman’s government colleagues, ask them if Mr Coleman will go one better than Mr Shorten and get this family home to Biloela before Saturday.

I’ve welcomed Mr Shorten’s promise. But Tharunicaa needs treatment now. Kopika needs freedom now. We simply cannot afford to gamble on the result of an election.

That’s why this Friday, I am bringing Biloela to David Coleman’s doorstep. I’m going to fly to Sydney to deliver our 190,000 strong petition. And I’m bringing Priya’s dear friend Marie and Tharunicaa’s Australian “Grandmother” Margot with me.

Mr Shorten’s promise shows that the politicians are feeling the pressure. And it is all due to the countless phone calls and emails our representatives are receiving.

Please - can you pick up the phone today?

With hope,

Angela.

18 May 2019

This week, Bill Shorten promised to review Priya and her family’s plea to return to Bilo if elected. Yesterday, we delivered over 190,000 signatures to Immigration Minister Coleman. But they're still locked up, awaiting deportation to danger.

Please - will you share this facebook post to help Australians hold this family in their heart today?

Today will be a very difficult day for Priya and Nades. As they wait to see which group of politicians will decide their fate, they are also remembering the 10th anniversary of the terrible massacre of an untold number of Tamil civilians in the last stages of the Sri Lankan civil war.

Priya and Nades came to Australia for peace and safety, and they found it in Biloela. They rolled up their sleeves and worked hard. They gave us Kopika and Tharunicaa, two beautiful little girls who are Australian-born.

When this beautiful family were taken from their home in the early hours of the morning, I sat down and started this petition in the hope of reaching the community of Biloela, which has a population of around 5,000 people.

Almost 15 months later, people right across Australia have come to know this family as their own.

Please - today, as Australia votes, can you help me make sure this family’s story is heard far and wide?

Just click through to this facebook post, leave a comment of love and support for our beautiful family and share the post with your family and friends.

For everything you are doing to save this beautiful Australian family - thank you.

Angela x

PS As you head to your local school or church hall to have your say today - please, please just hold this little family in your heart.

22 May 2019

It’s official. Mr Morrison has won all of the seats he needs to form government.

Priya, Nades and their Australian-born girls are now entirely at the mercy of Mr Morrison and his Immigration Minister, David Coleman.

Today, can you send a powerful message of support for this beautiful family to our re-elected Prime Minister?

On election night, Mr Morrison said: “I’ve always believed in miracles.” But he’s not the only one.

When doctors told Priya that her unborn baby Kopika could be born with serious complications, she went to the Catholic Church across the road from her Biloela home. “I prayed to God, to Jesus, help my baby please,” Priya says.

Thankfully, Kopika was born healthy in Biloela Hospital four years ago.

Now, as she wakes every day to the fear that the security escorts come to force her little family from Australia to danger, Priya is praying for another miracle.

Mr Morrison said: “If you have a go, you get a go.” He asked us: “How good is Australia?”

Today, I desperately need everyone who cares for the fate of this beautiful family to answer that question for ourselves.

Please, can you take one moment to click through to our action page and send a quick e-mail to Mr Morrison now?

Yours in hope,

Angela xxx

27 May 2019

I’m desperately worried for Kopika and Tharunicaa. Nine months after a medical report raised serious concerns about the harm our government is doing to our beautiful Biloela bubs in detention, I’ve had to do something I never imagined I’d have to. I’ve lodged a complaint with Victorian Child Protection.

Please, can you e-mail Immigration Minister David Coleman now?

I knew Priya and Nades in Biloela. I know what loving, responsible parents they are. In Biloela, Kopika and Tharunicaa were just two happy, healthy Australian-born kids.

Kopika had a beautiful little smile and loved playing and singing with her playgroup friends. Tharunicaa was a happy, inquisitive baby who adored mashed avocado.

Now, limited sunlight and restricted fresh food have left Tharunicaa with serious dental problems that stop her from eating. She needs surgery. She’s not even two.

Four-year-old Kopika was denied access to playgroup for her first 14 months in detention. She shows attachment disruption and behavioural disturbance. Sometimes, she wakes in the night, screaming.

I know how distressing it is to read all this. But when you e-mail Mr Coleman, I need you to stay calm and respectful, as we have always done. Please take a moment to personalise your e-mail and explain in your own words why this matters to you.

Please, tell Mr Coleman that 15 months is enough. Tell him that you know that the safety of these Australian-born kids rests in his hands.

Tell him it’s time to put politics aside. Tell him it’s time to get these kids and their loving Mum and Dad back to Biloela, where they are loved and wanted.

With hope,

Angela

PS If you've already e-mailed the Minister, please take the next step and make a polite phone call to your local Member of Parliament. I know a phone call can seem a lot harder than clicking on a petition or sending an e-mail. But as you dial, please just think about how it will feel to know that your call helped to get these kids safely home in Bilo.

5 June 2019

In one week, Tharunicaa turns two. Unless Minister Coleman returns this beautiful, QLD-born bub and her family to the community, it will be her second birthday in detention.

But something incredible is happening. Liberal and LNP members of parliament are beginning to speak up for Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa. Please - can you contact your MP now?

In Biloela, Tharunicaa was a happy, healthy baby. She thrived on fresh, healthy food. But 16 months in a Melbourne detention centre have left her with vitamin deficiencies, serious dental problems and painful mouth infections that stop her from eating solid food.

In the last few days, I’ve been contacted by supporters telling me that their Liberal MPs have promised to raise this beautiful family’s case with immigration Minister David Coleman.

Under Australia’s immigration laws, Minister Coleman has the power to step in and allow Tharunicaa and her family to live in the community.

I need to give these MPs a chance to work quietly behind the scenes. But I also need you to know that people like you are making this happen.

Please, can you make a polite call to your MP now?

Many thousands of you have e-mailed your MP and that’s a great start. But it is clear that MPs who are receiving dozens of polite phone calls or voicemail messages from constituents are much more likely to act.

There is hope - but we may not have much time. Priya and Nades are terrified for the safety of their girls if forced from Australia. Government lawyers say they don’t remove people from Australia while the need for protection is assessed.

Tharunicaa’s need for protection has never been considered. But changes to Australia’s migration laws mean the Minister needs to give permission for this. Tharunicaa’s future rests entirely in his hands.

This family desperately needs Australia’s elected representatives to speak up. And for our MPs to speak up, they need to hear directly from the people they are employed to represent.

I know I’m asking you to do a little bit more than sign a petition or send an e-mail. But it literally takes seconds to contact your MP from our action page and we have talking points to guide you.

Please - will you click through to our action page and speak up for this family today?

With hope,

Angela x

12 June 2019

Today the smallest of our Biloela cockatoo’s turns two! This means she is officially a toddler.

For most parents, a two-year-old’s birthday means a fun and exciting time as their toddling tot starts making leaps and bounds, reaching physical, cognitive and social milestones.

Unfortunately, for Tharunicaa, these milestones are being delayed by 16 months in detention.

My ask for you today is that we help this family feel loved as they experience this special milestone in their child’s life.

If you are on social media, please share this petition with your birthday wish for Tharunicaa. Make sure you tag the people who can give Tharunicaa the best present of all - her freedom.

On twitter tag @DavidColemanMP and @ScottMorrisonMP using the hashtag #hometobilo. On facebook tag @davidcoleman4banks and @scottmorrison4cook.

If you don’t have social media I would love you to share our petition via e-mail or WhatsApp and leave a comment with your birthday wishes below.

Let’s help this beautiful family remember this day for the special time that it is.

Thanks for sharing the love,

Angela xxx

20 June 2019

On Sunday, Mr Dutton told a lie on the ABC’s Insiders program: “I’ve got all of the children out of detention here in Australia.”

Kopika is only four, but she knows she should be in Biloela, QLD with her Mum, Dad and little sister Tharunicaa - not stuck in the Melbourne detention centre where Mr Dutton has locked her family up for 16 months.

Today, please DON’T e-mail Mr Dutton. Right now, the thing this beautiful family needs more than anything is for our local MPs to understand that Australians have seen through Mr Dutton’s lie.

Please, will you pick up the phone and make a polite call to your local MP?

When Tharunicaa turned two last week, visitors were allowed to bring her a plain little chocolate cake. Birthday candles are banned in detention, so they stuck a couple of Twix bars in the cake instead.

But on Sunday, another group of visitors tried to hold a little celebration with a strawberry cheesecake decorated with the words “Happy Birthday Tharunicaa”. Tharunicaa’s Dad had even completed the official paperwork required to receive the cake.

Suddenly, birthday cakes were banned.

I know. It doesn’t make sense.

But Mr Dutton’s blatant lie on Insiders does make a cruel sort of sense. Mr Dutton thinks that you have forgotten about Kopika and Tharunicaa.

He thinks that the most you’ll do after signing this petition is send an e-mail or two - and then give up.

Please - can you take two minutes to call your local MP’s office and show that our love for this family is more powerful than Mr Dutton’s lie?

Some people think there’s no point calling their MP because they won’t listen or don’t care.

But nothing could be further from the truth. It’s your opinion that matters - not theirs.

If your local MP belongs to the current government, it is vitally important that you pick up the phone and speak up for Priya, Nades and the girls.

If your MP is part of the opposition, please tell them you want Shadow Home Affairs Minister Kristina Keneally to keep speaking out for this beautiful family.

I know many of you have sent e-mail after e-mail. I know that thousands of you have called the Prime Ministers office and Immigration Minister David Coleman.

I wish I could tell you how many signatures, e-mails, phone calls and marches it will take get Priya, Nades and the girls home to Biloela, but the truth is no-one knows. But I do know that every action you take gives hope and courage to this beautiful family.

You can find your MP’s number in seconds by entering your postcode on our action page. Please, can you make your call now?

For everything you are doing - thank you.

Angela xxx

27 June 2019

“I have written to both the Prime Minister and to Peter Dutton ... about a family, Priya and Nades."

That’s what Alan Jones said when I went down to the 2GB studios to talk about our battle to bring this beautiful family home to Biloela.

We may never get a better chance to save this family. Please – can you call your MP now?

Alan Jones is a controversial radio host and I was pretty nervous about the interview. But as soon as I heard those words, I knew that something incredible was happening. Alan made it very clear that he was appalled at our government’s treatment of Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa.

When he said he was going to make a phone call to the Prime Minister, I knew that this family may never get an opportunity like this again.

If you’ve read this far, I urgently need you to pick up the phone and let your local MP know you’ve heard that Australia’s most popular talkback presenter has joined us in calling for Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa to be released from detention in Melbourne and returned to their home in Biloela.

Please, ask your MP to take action and contact Immigration Minister David Coleman now.

I know that many thousands of you have e-mailed your MP, Minister Coleman and the Prime Minister. Thank you.

Right now, we need to act together again to make our local MPs understand the strength of community feeling in support of this family. And the most powerful way to do that is with a quick phone call to the staff at your local MP’s office.

You can find your MP’s phone number in seconds by clicking through to our action page, where you’ll find some talking points to help you get your message across.

For everything you are doing to bring this family home to Bilo - thank you.

In hope,

Angela xxx

1 July 2019

Am I the only one who thinks, that in a country like ours, there has to be a better way of handling this?

On Friday, those were talkback host Alan Jones' closing words on our government's treatment of Priya, Nades and the girls. Tomorrow, our MPs return to Canberra.

Please - will you send your MP a clear message of support for this beautiful family today?

When I agreed to speak to Alan live in the 2GB studios last Friday, I stepped a long way out of my comfort zone. I didn’t know what was going to happen.

But Alan got behind Priya, Nades and the girls in a big way. And as you can hear in this segment, he stood up for them again the next day.

Tomorrow, our politicians return to Canberra. Today, can you help me show our MPs just how many of us believe in a better way?

 A better way than snatching a hard working family from their home at dawn.

 A better way than locking Australian-born children in detention without proper nutrition or medical care.

 A better way than forcing brave, beautiful people who came to our shores seeking safety, back into the arms of their tormentors.

Last week, I stepped out of my comfort zone - and it paid off in a big way. Today, I’m asking you to step out of your comfort zone in a small but equally powerful way.

Please, can you click through our action page now and make a quick call to your MP?

These calls work. So far, I know of at least seven government MPs who have told constituents they will contact Immigration Minister Coleman about our family.

This is a huge change. But to bring this family safely home to Biloela, many more of us need to pick up the phone.

If you can’t call during business hours, please leave your MP a polite voicemail with your full name, number and town/suburb.

You can find your MP’s number in seconds by entering your postcode at our action page, where you’ll find simple talking points to guide your call.

To everyone taking action for this beautiful family - thank you.

Yours in hope,

Angela xxx

PS If you can have called your MP – thank you! Can you multiply the impact of your call by forwarding this e-mail update to two or three friends in your local area and personally inviting them to make their own call?

7 July 2019

On Thursday afternoon, two-year-old Tharunicaa was struck on the head when a heavy whiteboard toppled onto her in Melbourne’s immigration detention centre.

Later, she vomited. This can be a sign of mild head injury or something more serious.

Please - I need to get these QLD-born kids out of this unsafe environment and home to Biloela. Will you call your MP today?

When Tharunicaa vomited again several hours later, a nurse said she should be taken to hospital.

A guard told Priya they had to argue with a detention centre manager, who said a trip to the hospital wasn’t necessary.

It can be difficult to know if a blow to the head is serious or not.

But the guidelines are clear. If a child vomits more than once after being struck on the head, an ambulance must be called immediately.

When Tharunicaa was finally taken to emergency around 11.30pm, she was diagnosed with a "mild head injury" (also known as concussion).

I can’t imagine how terrifying those hours were for Priya and Nades. I was so relieved to hear Tharunicaa is recovering well after her ordeal.

But I have some serious questions for the 76 government MPs who let this happen on their watch. And I need your help to get answers.

Can you please call the office of your local MP now?

I need you to ask them to contact Immigration Minister David Coleman and request he intervene to bring this family home to Biloela.

If you are calling the office of one of the 76 government MPs, can you please also ask one of these questions?

Why did Minister Coleman’s department tell the media Tharunicaa "did not sustain any injuries” when a medical report shows she was diagnosed with “mild head injury” (also known as concussion)?

Why did Minister Dutton tell Australians “I’ve got all of the children out of detention here in Australia” when QLD-born Tharunicaa and her four-year-old sister Kopika remain in a Melbourne detention centre after 17 months?

Making a phone call to your MP’s office can feel like a big step – especially when you have an important question to ask.

If you feel a bit nervous, you can use the talking points on our action page.

I know that these phone calls are working. As more of us pick up the phone, slowly but surely, a growing number of government MPs are agreeing to contact Minister Coleman.

If you have already called your local MP – thank you. The next step is to forward this e-mail update to 2 or 3 friends and personally ask them to make their own calls. Can you do that?

For everything you are doing – thank you.

With hope,

Angela xxx

24 July 2019

By the time you read this, two-year-old Tharunicaa may be recovering from surgery.

Inadequate sunlight and limited fresh food in a Melbourne detention centre damaged her developing teeth. This morning, some are being removed under general anaesthetic.

Please, will you tell our Senators that Tharunicaa and her family must come home to Biloela, QLD, where she was born?

Yesterday, Senator Kristina Keneally – the Shadow Immigration Minister – joined forces with broadcaster Alan Jones.

She called on her government counterpart, David Coleman, to use his discretionary powers to bring this beautiful family home to Bilo.

Senator Keneally told Alan’s listeners she believes that Mr Coleman is a “community-minded individual”. She explained that Australia’s immigration laws give Mr Coleman the power to intervene on humanitarian grounds.

Senator Keneally can’t understand why Mr Coleman has so far ignored the community of Biloela, let alone the 200,000 Australians that want to see Priya, Nades and the girls come home to Queensland.

Neither can I.

But I do know that all of the different actions you have been taking have encouraged people like Alan Jones and Senator Keneally to find common ground and speak up for this beautiful family.

If you have already emailed Minister Coleman and your local MP - thank you.

Today, I need your help to try something new.

Can you please tap or click through to our action page and send a quick e-mail to independent and government Senators?

It takes around 10 seconds to send these Senators an e-mail using the suggested wording on our action page.

But please, before you click “send” - take an extra minute or two to personalise your e-mail.

This will dramatically increase the power of your message and show the true depth of your concern for little Tharunicaa and her family.

I am heartbroken to know that this beautiful, inquisitive little girl is enduring surgery just so she can eat solid food without pain.

And it was all so preventable. In detention, Tharunicaa and her sister have been trapped indoors with so little time outside in the sunlight that they suffered severe vitamin D deficiency.

Dentists have explained to me how vital vitamin D is for our teeth, especially when they are developing.

The thought that Tharunicaa will be sent from hospital straight back to the detention centre is utterly devastating.

Surely the least our politicians can do for her is let her recover from her ordeal at home in Biloela, where she and her family belong.

For everything you do – thank you.

With hope,

Angela x

28 July 2019

On Saturday 10th August, Melbourne mums, grandmothers and teachers will gather near the Broadmeadows detention centre where Priya, Nades and the girls have been held for almost 18 months.

There will be painting, singing, puppet-making and a reading by June Factor of Far Out, Brussel Sprout! fame. Please - can you join this positive, family-friendly event?

Our petition to bring Priya, Nades and their QLD-born girls home to Biloela has just reached 200,000 signatures. But it has been a terrifying month for this beautiful family.

Three weeks ago, two-year-old Tharunicaa vomited after being struck on the head by a heavy whiteboard in the detention centre common area.

It took seven hours before detention centre staff would allow her to be taken to hospital, where she was diagnosed with mild head injury (also known as concussion).

Last Thursday, after months of repeated, painful mouth infections, Tharunicaa was taken to hospital again, where four of her teeth were removed under anaesthetic.

Tharunicaa and Kopika are not the only Australian-born children being held in detention in Melbourne. Baby Isabella has spent her entire life in detention, with her mum Huyen. Two weeks ago, she was rushed to hospital with Influenza A.

Please, if you live in Mebourne - can you click here to say you will join this positive, family-friendly event in support of kids, families, teenagers and adults trapped in detention, who came to our shores in search of peace and safety?

Before Mr Dutton’s Border Force snatched them from their Biloela home, Kopika loved to play outside in the park and baby Tharunicaa adored mashed avocado.

You only have to look at Kopika’s beautiful smile in family photos to see that she and sister were just like any other happy, healthy Queensland kids.

But then Border Force took these beautiful little girls 1,800km away from their QLD home and locked them indoors, away from sunlight for 23 ½ hours a day - for months.

Kids with darker skin need more sunlight to produce vitamin D, a vital nutrient for developing teeth and bones. But when Tharunicaa and Kopika were finally examined by an independent paediatrician, they were diagnosed with severe vitamin D deficiency.

The stress of detention meant Priya could no longer breast-feed her baby. She was denied access to fresh, healthy foods that Tharunicaa loves, like avocado and grapes. Visitors are banned from bringing fresh vegetables or fruit with them.

I know it’s distressing to read all of this.

But there is hope. Shadow Immigration Minister Kristina Kenneally, Victorian Children’s Commissioner Liana Buchanan and influential broadcaster Alan Jones are all calling for this family to be released from the detention centre and returned to Biloela, where they are loved and wanted.

Right now, I desperately need the people of Melbourne to help me show that our love and support for this family goes much further than signatures on a petition, by coming together on Saturday 10th August (click here for more info).

But wherever you live, you can do something for this beautiful family right now, by sending a message to government and independent Senators, inviting them to ask Immigration Minister David Coleman to step and help this family on compassionate grounds - just as he has done for others.

For everything you are doing for Priya, Nades and the girls - thank you.

With hope,

Angela xxx

5 August 2019

Today marks 17 months since Mr Dutton’s Border Force snatched Priya, Nades and their QLD-born daughters from their Biloela home.

Can you click through to this facebook event and tell family friend Simone you’ll join her at this Saturday's family-friendly protest near the Melbourne detention centre where this much-loved family is being held?

Simone first met this beautiful family in Biloela, while teaching English to recently arrived migrants. She still remembers dad Nades’ cheery smile when she first met him pushing trolleys in the carpark of the local Woolworths.

Nades was a keen English language student. He soon landed a job at the local meatworks, rising early every day to provide for his young family.

Mum Priya joined local church groups and together, she and Nades made plans to enrol eldest daughter Kopika in kindy.

But everything changed for this family early on the morning of 5 March, 2018. It was 5am and Nades was getting ready for work. Priya was warming a bottle for baby Tharunicaa.

Border Force officers stormed their home, taking this family 1,800km away from Biloela and locking them up in Melbourne’s MITA detention centre.

Please - can you let Simone know you’ll join her at this Saturday’s family-friendly protest near Melbourne’s detention centre, by clicking through to this facebook event?

Before she was taken from Biloela, toddler Kopika loved singing Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star with her playgroup friends.

But since Border Force locked them up 18 months ago, Kopika and her sister Tharunicaa have been allowed to attend playgroup just once. A few days later, the detention centre guards told mum Priya that “someone in Canberra” had put a stop to playgroup.

Kopika is a bright little girl. With Simone helping on FaceTime, Priya and Nades are doing their best to help her keep learning. Kopika loves to sing the alphabet song and on the one day she was allowed to go to playgroup, she made a beeline for the toy stethoscope.

In the last 17 months, more than 200,000 people have signed this petition. Our politicians have received over 10,000 e-mails and many hundreds of phone calls, insisting they bring this family home to Biloela.

I know that many of you are appalled that our elected representatives seem to think they can ignore the wishes of our community. I know I am.

That’s why, at midday this Saturday 10 August, Simone is joining our friends at Teachers for Refugees, Librarians for Refugees, Mums for Refugees and Grandmothers Against Detention of Refugee Children for a family-friendly protest near the MITA detention centre at 120-150 Camp Road, Broadmeadows.

There will be sign-painting, puppet-making, music from kiddy rocker Claire Younis and a reading by June Factor of Far Out, Brussel Sprout! and Alright, Vegemite! fame.

If you’re in Melbourne, can you please click through to facebook event and let Simone know that you’ll be there?

With hope,

Angela xxx

PS Those of you who live in Queensland or other parts of Australia - can you please share this facebook event with your Melbourne friends?

22 August 2019

Last Friday, I was so relieved to hear the news that Vanisre and her family, who were facing deportation, have been given a last minute reprieve by Minister Coleman.

But yesterday, lawyers for Priya and her family passed on some terrible news. Home Affairs officials have blocked any assessment of the dangers faced by two-year-old Tharunicaa in Sri Lanka.

I don’t have time to explain the complicated legal ins and outs. But I need you to know that this puts Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa at immediate risk of deportation.

And today I need your help.

Can you please call Immigration Minister David Coleman’s office on (02) 6277 7770 and politely ask his staff to extend the compassionate approach he applied to Vanisre’s case to Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa?

Please click here for suggested talking points.

Since hearing Vanisre’s good news, I have received so many wonderful comments in support of Priya, Nades and the girls. This beautiful family have endured nearly 18 months in a detention centre - all because a visa expired by one day.

The law gives the Minister the power to protect people from unintended consequences and stop them falling through the cracks in the system.

Priya, Nades and their beautiful Australian-born daughters, Kopika and Tharunicaa, have fallen through the cracks. Like Vanisre, they need Minister Coleman’s help.

Last week, Minister Coleman showed how easily he can change a family’s life for the better.

I thank each and every one of you for keeping Priya and her family in your thoughts. Today, let’s ask Mr Coleman to finally bring Priya, Nades and their girls home to Biloela, where they are loved and wanted.

Forever hopeful,

Angela

Please click here for Minister Coleman’s phone number and suggested talking points.

23 August 2019

At any moment, the guards could come to force this beautiful young family to Sri Lanka, a war-torn country their Australian-born girls have never known. Every hour, Priya sends a text to let me know the family is still safe.

We need to take this to the top. Please, will you call Prime Minister Morrison and ask him to make sure this family is flown home to Biloela?

Many people will be calling and it’s so important to be as polite to Mr Morrison’s staff as possible. If you are unable to get through the Mr Morrison’s Parliamentary office on 02 6277 7700, please make a polite call to his electorate office on 02 9523 0339.

But to save this family, we need to do more than pick up the phone.

That’s why I’m asking all of you who live in Melbourne to join this emergency gathering in support of Priya and Nades at the State Library at 12pm this Sunday.

Mr Morrison tells us that if you “have a go, you get a go”.

Priya and Nades moved to an outback town desperate to grow its population. Priya joined church groups and made curries for the local doctors. Nades volunteered, pushed trolleys and worked hard at the local meatworks.

This is a family that truly has ‘had a go’. Just like Warrnambool’s Vanisre and her family, who Immigration Minister Coleman stepped in to save last week, Priya and Nades are exactly the kind of people our struggling country towns need.

But while Minister Coleman is launching an inquiry to look at “best practice strategies to encourage people to settle and stay in regional areas”, departmental officials are stopping this family from coming home to Biloela.

I know. It’s madness. But we need to hear what our Prime Minister has to say about all this.

Today, can you please pick up the phone for this family? You can find talking points to guide you and let me know it went here.

Always hopeful,

Angela

29 August 2019

8.55pm Thursday: MELBOURNE FRIENDS - Please go to International Terminal at Melbourne Airport now and alert everyone you know! An attempt is being made to deport Priya, Nades & their Australian-born girls and they need our peaceful action right now. Check our facebook page for updates.

With hope,

Angela

30 Aug 2019

When Priya, Nades and the girls were forced onto a Skytraders charter plane last night, lawyers secured a temporary injunction to keep them in Australia. They were taken off the plane in Darwin but the injunction runs out at 12pm today (Friday). MELBOURNE FRIENDS: please go to Flagstaff Gardens, cnr William & Latrobe Sts at 9.30am today to show support before the 10am court hearing.

SYDNEY FRIENDS: Please join local constituents holding a peaceful vigil at Immigration Minister David Coleman's office at 22 Revesby Place, Revesby at 10am today.

EVERYONE ELSE - PLEASE:

1. Make a polite phone call to Prime Minister Morrison’s office on 02 6277 7700 (or 02 9523 0339 if you can’t get through). Tell his staff you are asking Mr Morrison to look into his heart and do something to stop this appalling action by his Ministers. Click here for some points to guide your call.

2. Contact charter airline Skytraders’ Melbourne Operations office on 03 9335 5522 and politely ask their staff to look into their hearts and refuse to fly Priya, Nades and the girls from Australia to danger. If you can't get through, please click here to send a polite message via their contact form.

Please check facebook or twitter throughout the day for updates and further action you can take.

I have one last, very important thing to ask of you today.

If - like me - you are upset and outraged that our government is ignoring the people of Biloela and the people of Australia, please take a deep breath and make sure that your phone call or vigil presence is calm and respectful towards everyone you speak to or meet.

It is time to act - but I am determined not to let the disgraceful behaviour of our politicians provoke words or actions that could be used to turn the Australian public against Priya and Nades.

To everyone who is standing with Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa at this critical time - thank you. The next few hours are critical and while Priya and Nades and their QLD-born girls remain in Australia, there is still hope.

With love and hope,

Angela

31 August 2019

I’ve hardly slept. Priya, Nades and their QLD-born girls have just been forced thousands of kilometres away from Biloela to the Christmas Island detention centre. Please - I desperately need your help to show Prime Minister Morrison all of the love we have for this family.

I know how devastating this news will be for all of us who believe in love, kindness and a fair go. In the last few days, I have cried more tears than I ever thought possible. But right now, Priya and her family need all Australians of good heart to come together like never before.

The courts have ordered the politicans not to force this family from Australia before Wednesday. And that means there is still is hope.

On Sunday, please - join with Biloela and come to a peaceful vigil to show your love for Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa:

• BILOELA: 1pm, Biloela Lions Park

• BRISBANE: 1pm, King George Square (near Brisbane City Hall)

• MELBOURNE: 1pm, State Library Lawns, Swanston St

• SYDNEY: 1pm, Martin Place (between Phillip & Elizabeth Sts)

• ADELAIDE: 12.30pm, Victoria Square Tarntanyangga (near Gouger/Angas Sts)

• PERTH: 11am, Forrest Place

• HOBART: 1pm, Parliament House Gardens

• DARWIN: 12.30pm, NT Legislative Assembly Lawns

• CANBERRA: 1pm, Parliament House Lawns (north of Federation Mall)

I know that for Mr Morrison, Sunday is a day for prayer and praise - and sometimes for miracles.

It’s the same for many of us in Biloela. For eighteen months now, so many of us have been praying for the miracle our beautiful, kind, hard-working family desperately needs - the miracle of a politician with the courage and grace to bring this family home to Biloela.

Whatever your beliefs, this Sunday, I ask you to show the strength of your love by joining with Biloela in simple, peaceful silence. Let’s make space on this day to show our care and love for this family, for Biloela and for the soul of this beautiful country.

Please express your love for this family visually, with signs, flags, cardboard cockatoos - whichever way feels right to you - but without speakers, music or chants.

But today, I need your help to spread the word as quickly as possible. Please, click through to the above facebook events, click ‘going’ and invite friends, family and workmates to join you.

For all you are doing for this family and for Bilo - thank you.

In hope,

Angela

1 September 2019

This is amazing. Barnaby Joyce has gotten behind Biloela! He told reporters: “The people of Biloela seem to be pretty enthused about keeping this family there. I think we should also be listening to them.”

At 1pm today Queensland time, I’ll be joining my friends and neighbours in Biloela Lions Park for a peaceful vigil to show our support for Priya, Nades and their Biloela-born girls.

Like Nades, many Biloela men are strong, loving fathers. I am so grateful for all of the dads around Australia choosing to spend part of this special day to stick up for our mates.

Of course, all of these peaceful vigils are family-friendly and kids, mums, dads, grandmothers, grandfathers are all very welcome!

Can you please tap or click below to say you will join one of the 14 vigils being held right around Australia today? Can you also please invite friends, family and workmates on facebook messenger?

Capital cities:

• BRISBANE: 1pm, King George Square

• SYDNEY: 1pm, Martin Place (near Elizabeth St)

• MELBOURNE: 1pm, State Library of Victoria

• ADELAIDE: 12.30pm, Victoria Square Tarntanyangga (near Gouger St)

• PERTH: 11am, Forrest Place

• DARWIN: 12.30pm, Nightcliff Markets (Pavonia Way)

• HOBART: 1pm, Parliament House Gardens

• CANBERRA: 1pm, Parliament House Lawns (Federation Mall)

Regional QLD:

• BILOELA: 1pm, Lions Park (Cooper St)

• YEPPOON: 1pm, Main Beach near stage (Anzac Pde)

• TANNUM SANDS: 1pm, Millenium Esplanade near stage

• SUNSHINE COAST: 5.30pm, Maroochydore Beach (near Surf Club)

• TOOWOOMBA: 1pm, Toowoomba City Hall (541 Ruthven St)

Regional NSW:

• NEWCASTLE: 1pm, Newcastle Foreshore near Brewery (Wharf Rd)

Of course, all of these peaceful vigils are family-friendly and kids, mums, dads, grandmothers, grandfathers are all very welcome!

For everything you are doing for Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa - thank you.

Always hopeful,

Angela x

5 September 2019

I don’t have much time. I’m on Christmas Island and I need your help like never before. Can you help me find $300,000 to get Priya, Nades and the girls safely home to Biloela?

Last week, Peter Dutton had this beautiful family dragged onto a plane to Sri Lanka, a war-torn country that QLD-born Kopika and Tharunicaa have never known. But when a judge ordered him to stop, Mr Dutton forced them to an empty prison camp on Christmas Island.

I couldn’t leave this family alone and terrified in the middle of the Indian Ocean. So I scraped together $3,000 in savings and flew to Christmas Island.

The courts have stopped Mr Dutton forcing this family from Australia again - for two days.

Time is running out. But I have an idea that could turn this family’s desperate situation into a “win-win” not just for Biloela, but for country towns across Australia.

You don’t have to scrape together $3,000 like me. With almost 250,000 us having signed this petition, we can reach this goal quickly by chipping in whatever we can afford.

Right now, Mr Dutton is determined to go ahead with this insane plan to force this hardworking, well-integrated family from Australia to danger.

If he can’t be stopped, we’ll use the money to try to keep this family safe from the terrible dangers Tamil people face in Sri Lanka - unfair imprisonment, torture and “disappearance”. And we’ll keep fighting to get them home to Biloela.

But if Mr Morrison brings this family back home from Christmas Island to Biloela, we’ll give every last cent to charities working hard to support rural Australians doing it tough.

Mr Morrison is now saying Priya and Nades can apply to migrate from Sri Lanka Australia “like anyone else”. But the deportation orders would see them trapped and in terrible danger for up to three years - and slapped with a six figure debt to stop them ever coming home to Biloela

Things are so desperate. But yesterday, when the Border Force guards let me give Priya a hug, my heart filled with hope.

Today, can you help me pay that hope forward, not just for Biloela, but all of the country towns like Biloela that need families just like Priya and Nades?

Always hopeful,

Angela

PS If you can't donate, please keep picking up the phone to call your MP

6 September 2019

I don’t know how to thank you. In under 24 hours, good-hearted Australians have already chipped in $69,000 to help me keep this family safe.

I still have every hope we can bring this family straight back home from Christmas Island to the safety of Biloela. If that happens, I can donate every cent for rural Australians doing it tough.

On Wednesday, I was amazed when the guards detaining this family on Christmas Island let me walk straight past them and give Priya a hug. We held each other for ages, sobbing. The girls ran up and held onto my legs.

I can’t bear the thought of what could happen to our little Biloela “cockatoos” if Mr Dutton pushes ahead with his plan to force them back to war-torn Sri Lanka.

Please - can you chip in now to help me increase this beautiful family’s safety?

The Sri Lankan security forces are known for inflicting the most horrific forms of abuse. Tamil people forced back to this troubled island are routinely arrested the moment they step off the plane.

There’s no way I can expose this family to that risk. So yesterday, we began reaching out to individuals and organisations with expertise in human rights monitoring and peaceful accompaniment.

For reasons of safety, I can’t go into details. But if Mr Dutton is allowed to press ahead with his plan to force this family from Australia to danger, we’ll need the funds to swing into action immediately.

The truth is that the only way to guarantee this family’s safety is to get them straight home from Christmas Island to Biloela.

And if that happens, I will make sure that every last cent in this emergency fund is donated to charities working hard to support rural Australians.

Just imagine what an incredible “win-win” that would be for this family and for rural Australia.

Always hopeful,

Angela

PS If you’ve already chipped in, thank you - and please keep sharing this.

13 September 2019

You’ve probably heard the disgusting, divisive language Mr Dutton used to incite hatred against Kopika, Tharunicaa and their loving Mum and Dad on a Sydney radio show yesterday. I won’t repeat it.

Please – will you be a voice for truth and join our new “Home to Bilo Fact Check” facebook group?

If you’re anything like me, you may be feeling shocked and angry at Mr Dutton’s hateful comments.

But we can’t afford sink to this level. We need to keep leading with love and sharing the truth - and you can help.

The truth is that our government left Priya in limbo for many years before she was even allowed to apply for a protection visa.

Priya trusted that Australia would protect her and waited patiently to tell her story. By the time she was finally given permission to explain the horrors she had escaped, little Kopika was already a year old.

On the same Sydney radio program, Mr Dutton spread another lie. He said Nades “has travelled from Australia, whilst he's been here, with his matters still in the courts.”

This is easily disproved. Nades could not leave Australia because the conditions of his visa did not allow it. The fact-checkers at Australian Associated Press quickly declared Mr Dutton’s claim to be false.

But on social media, simple lies spread faster than complicated truths. And I can’t keep fighting the lies by myself.

That’s why I’m asking you to join a new facebook group called “Home To Bilo Fact Check”. In this new group, we can all play a role in alerting others to false claims and responding quickly with the truth.

I know many of you already follow our facebook page and speak up for this family on social media. But this new group will be a place for all who care for this beautiful family to work together, support each other and share tips.

Right now, I’m scared for Priya, Nades and the girls. I’m scared for Australia, and what could happen if we allow a powerful politician to turn neighbour against neighbour in this way.

But I have always believed that love and hope are more powerful than hate and despair. And with your help, I truly believe that love and hope will win the day for Priya, Nades and the girls.

Always hopeful,

Angela

17 September 2019

Friends, a temporary court order stopping the politicians from forcing Priya, Nades and the girls from Australia to danger runs out tomorrow.

Tomorrow, can you join a peaceful vigil to show hope, love and support for Priya, Nades and the girls?

If you are in Melbourne, please gather at the Federal Court on the cnr La Trobe and William St at 10am tomorrow (Wednesday).

(If you would like to attend the hearing itself, it is very important to observe courtroom etiquette.)

Tomorrow, I invite our Sydney friends to join the locals encouraging Immigration Minister Coleman to use his legislated power to bring Priya, Nades and the girls home to Biloela.

These wonderful, compassionate people have been holding a peaceful vigil at Mr Coleman’s electorate office every Monday, Wednesday and Friday for four weeks. They’ll be there again tomorrow.

If you can, please meet them in the park opposite Mr Coleman’s office at 22 Revesby Place, Revesby at 11am tomorrow (Wednesday).

I don’t know what will happen in court tomorrow. But I do know that in Sri Lanka, Priya saw soldiers burn her fiance to death. Nades still carries shrapnel from a government bomb.

And I know that under Australia’s immigration laws, no court has the power to assess the dangers Priya, Nades and their Queensland-born girls face if forced from Australia to war-torn Sri Lanka. The courts can only rule on whether officials have followed the procedures designed by politicians.

If you’re like me, you might be feeling shocked or angry about the way some politicians are trying to turn neighbour against neighbour. You may be upset about the lies and hatred being spread.

Whether you are joining a peaceful vigil, ringing your MP or sharing the truth on social media, I ask you to continue in a spirit of care and respect for everyone, including our politicians and those who have been misinformed.

For Priya, Nade and the girls - let’s keep leading with love.

Always hopeful,

Angela

PS if you're in Sydney, some amazing musicians are putting on a #HomeToBilo benefit gig tomorrow night (Wednesday). Click here to learn more

25 October 2019

“Yep.”

That was the reply when Border Force officials were asked if they'd spent $30 million to detain Priya, Nades and their QLD-born girls on Christmas Island for two months. But they had nothing to say about the waste of life and potential.

Please, can you call your MP and tell them this beautiful QLD family must come home to Biloela now?

When Priya and Nades heard how much money our government is wasting on the otherwise empty Christmas Island detention centre, they told me they felt sick.

In Biloela, this beautiful family was self-sufficient. Like any other proud dad, Nades worked hard to support his young family. He got up early, he worked long hours and he paid taxes. Priya, a dressmaker, was dedicated to her role as full-time mum to two gorgeous little girls.

With the kind of money our government is wasting on stopping one family from coming home to Biloela, they could buy around 330,000 megalitres of water for drought-stricken farmers, or 61,000 tonnes of hay to feed hungry cattle.

In fact, they could put around $5,000 in the pocket of every man, woman and child in Biloela.

Can you help by making a call to your MP now?

After Mr Dutton's Border Force snatched Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa from their Biloela home, they were held in a Melbourne detention centre for 18 months.

In detention, the girls were denied adequate sunlight and fresh food for months and ended up with severe vitamin deficiency. Over that year and a half, they were allowed to mix with other children at playgroup just twice.

At the start of October, the UN Human Rights Committee asked our government to release Priya, Nades and the girls into the community within 30 days - and the 30 days are up next Tuesday.

Can you please pick up the phone and call your MP for this beautiful family?

For everything you are doing to bring this family home to Biloela - thank you.

Always hopeful,

Angela

13 December 2019

A photo with Santa in the local park might not seem like much to a politician sitting in Canberra. But it could mean the world to two little girls from Biloela.

Two weeks ago, Biloela came together in Lions Park for our annual Christmas Festival. It was just the sort of community event that Priya and Nades loved to be part of, until guards snatched this family from their home 21 months ago.

There was a jumping castle, face painting and family entertainment. I can just imagine the excitement on four year old Kopika and two year old Tharunicaa’s faces!

If Prime Minister Morrison would only listen to the UN Human Rights Committee’s request to return this family to the community, they could be home in Biloela in time for Christmas.

Instead, Priya, Nades and their beautiful, QLD-born girls are trapped on Christmas Island, 5,000km from Biloela. They are now facing their second Christmas in detention.

So I’ve decided that every single day between now and Christmas Eve, I’m going to take one simple action to show this beautiful family how much they are loved.

Starting today, will you join me in taking action on each of the Twelve Days of Christmas Island?

Today, please pop a Christmas card with a message of hope and compassion for Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa in the post to: Priya and Nades, c/- Phosphate Hill Immigration Detention Facility, Christmas Island, 6798

It can take two months for ordinary mail to reach Christmas Island, so make sure you add a 50c Australia Post Priority Label to help your card arrive in time.

The actions for the next two days of Christmas Island are:

• Saturday 14th December: Wish Nades Happy Birthday on the Home to Bilo Facebook page.

• Sunday 15th December: Sign a petition for Kopika and Tharunicaa’s friend, baby Isabella.

On Monday, I’ll send another email update with the three more simple actions you can take - don’t forget to follow Home To Bilo on Facebook and Twitter for daily updates during the Twelve Days of Christmas Island!

Always hopeful,

Angela

PS Thank you so much to everyone who has offered to send toys or other items to Christmas Island. Limited mail services to this remote territory mean that a simple card is the best way to send love and hope right now. We have already sent a Christmas ‘care package’ from Bilo!

16 December 2019

Today, the wonderful legal team fighting to keep Priya, Nades and their QLD-born girls loving family here in Australia will appear in the Federal Court in Melbourne.

On this fourth day of Christmas Island, can you please pick up the phone and tell your MP that you are thinking of our beautiful family?

Three months ago, the courts ordered Mr Dutton to allow two-year-old, Queensland-born Tharunicaa to remain in Australia until a full hearing could be held.

Today’s court date is not that full hearing and is administrative in nature. But it is a step towards the day when this beautiful family could find themselves on a terrifying deadline yet again.

Please - can you take a minute to pick up the phone now?

I am by no means legally minded, but I was shocked when I learned that no appeal court has the power to give Tharunicaa the protection of the very country where she was born: Australia.

Before all this started, I thought the court’s job was to listen to what people like Priya and Nades have to say, consider all the facts and decide whether they need Australia’s protection.

But it turns out that’s not how it works. If the courts find that a legal error has been made, they can only send the case back to the government officials who made the decision in the first place.

It means that whatever happens in court, the fate of this beautiful family rests in the hands of government officials and politicians. The very same politicians have changed Australia’s immigration laws to make it almost impossible have these sorts of life or death decisions properly checked.

That’s why it’s up to all of us to pick up the phone and show our MPs we want them to speak up for this beautiful family.

I have seen that when we all act together, we can find support in expected places.

It is thanks to your calls, e-mails and letters that Barnaby Joyce spoke up for our family. It's thanks to you that our local MP, Ken O’Dowd, said: “I think they should stay”.

And let’s not forget when Senator Matt Canavan said he “welcomed and congratulated” Biloela for fighting for Priya, Nades and the girls or when Senator Jacqui Lambie told Mr Dutton he should show “compassion and heart” for our Biloela family.

Today - the fourth day of Christmas Island - can you please give your local MP’s office a call for Priya, Nades and the girls and show them that you are holding this family in your heart?

Always hopeful,

Angela

PS Every day until Christmas Eve, we're taking one simple action to support Priya, Nades and the girls. The actions for the 5th and 6th days of the 12 Days of Christmas Island are:

• Tuesday: Say ‘thank you’ to someone special

• Wednesday: Show your support for the Christmas Island community

Remember to follow Home to Bilo on Facebook and Twitter for daily updates!

19 December 2019

Two nights ago, on the phone from Christmas Island, Priya told me that she has faith that we will meet in Biloela again.

After everything she has been through, Priya has never lost hope. When I marvelled at her strength, she said: “I am strong because of all the love”.

Today, on the "7th Day of Christmas Island", please e-mail a Christmas message to Prime Minister Morrison and help me show the power of the love we have for Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa.

Last year, in his Christmas message to the nation, Mr Morrison told us that Christmas is “about being connected to each other, to our family and friends, to those sometimes we don’t even know - where we lend a hand.”

“It’s also about hope. Hope for the future, hope for what’s to come, hope that was expressed in the birth of a child at Christmas,” Mr Morrison said.

One small source of hope is that after 22 months of isolation, four year old Kopika is now allowed to leave detention to attend pre-school with the local Christmas Island kids. Last week, she performed a special end of year dance with her new friends!

It’s hard to believe that this little girl was just two years old when Border Force took her away from Biloela.

She turns five in May. What a gift it would be if the politicians used their power to let her come home to Biloela in time to start Prep next year.

Today, please send an e-mail from our action page. Help me respectfully remind Mr Morrison about his Christmas message and ask him to bring Priya and her family home to Biloea.

With love and hope,

Angela

PS Every day until Christmas Eve, we're taking one simple action to support Priya, Nades and the girls. The actions for the 8th, 9th and 10th Days of Christmas Island are:

• Friday: Follow Nades’ example by supporting Vinnies

• Saturday: Share a photo of your Christmas tree with a message of hope

• Sunday: Share this petition with five friends

Remember to follow Home to Bilo on Facebook and Twitter for daily updates!

23 December 2019

It’s a busy time for so many of us right now, so I’ll keep this update short.

Today, for our 11th Day of Christmas Island, can you please add a #hometobilo cockatoo to your facebook profile picture?

Christmas Day will mark 660 days since Priya, Nades and their QLD-born girls, Kopika and Tharunicaa, were taken from the Biloela home. They will spend the day 5,000km from Biloela, on Christmas Island. They are the only people detained there.

The Federal Court will hold a hearing on the 21st and 25th February to consider whether our government must give two-year-old Tharunicaa the opportunity to seek protection in the country she was born in: Australia.

But whatever happens in court, the fate of this beautiful family rests in the hands of government officials and politicians. In the New Year, I'll need your help to show that we won't rest until this family is safely home in Biloela.

For now, can you help create a flock of #hometobilo cockatoos across facebook and show how many of us will be thinking of Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa this Christmas?

With love and hope,

Angela

28 January 2020

Australian politicians have kept QLD-born Kopika and Tharunicaa in immigration detention 3 times longer than Maddie, the longest-detained child migrant trapped in any of America's three notorious "baby jails".

Right now, can you send a message to Australian Senators and join the 260,000 Australians calling to bring Kopika, Tharunicaa and their loving Mum and Dad home to Bilo?

Americans are rightly outraged by the news that seven-year-old Maddie has now been detained for seven months - “the longest of any child currently held in [US] family immigration detention.” I wonder what they would think of Australia, knowing that Kopika and Tharunicaa have been detained for nearly two years?

Two years of trauma, suffering, and isolation. Two years of tears, malnutrition, and being denied a childhood.

Friends, in less than a month, we are back in the Federal Court fighting to bring these two darling little girls home to Bilo. We need politicians in Canberra to remember their names, to be reminded that hundreds of thousands of Australians are still following this story - and that with a stroke of pen, the acting immigration minister could end this family’s suffering.

Can you send an urgent message to Australian Senators today?

With love and hope,

Angela

30 January 2020

Our Biloela family are trapped in detention on Christmas Island. Now, Scott Morrison is turning the island into a coronavirus quarantine centre.

Please - can you ring a Senator today and insist that Priya, Nades and the girls are repatriated to Biloela now, while there is still time?

Yesterday, Priya was in tears telling me how scared she is. She has diabetes and could be at increased risk if she caught the virus. But all she can think about is the safety of her two little Queensland-born girls.

Right now, our beautiful family is being held in an ageing demountable cabin in the “Construction Camp” detention facility, away from the main detention centre.

But yesterday, Prime Minister Morrison said that “defence forces have been tasked to identify overflow facilities where that may be necessary”. And a Christmas Island community leader says that if quarantine numbers swell, they may need to use the facility where our family is being held.

Today, I urgently need your help to encourage our elected representatives to repatriate this family to Biloela now, before Christmas Island becomes a quarantine centre.

Since Priya and her family were snatched from the Biloela home almost two years ago, the detention centre operators have repeatedly put this beautiful family’s health and safety at risk.

When they were detained in Melbourne, Priya’s daughters, Kopika and Tharunicaa, suffered severe vitamin deficiencies after being denied adequate sunlight and fresh food.

Then, when two-year-old Tharunicaa vomited after being hit on the head by a heavy whiteboard, it took five hours before a detention centre manager let her go to hospital.

Yesterday, I reassured Priya by telling her that I will do everything I can to keep her family safe. Can you help me in this task by picking up the phone today?

You can find the right number to call in seconds on our action page, where there are talking points to guide you.

Forever grateful,

Angela

15 February 2020

Friends, when Priya and Nades' lawyer, Carina, arrived on Christmas Island, they welcomed her with a cake Nades made in the little kitchen inside the “Construction Camp” detention centre.

Please - can you chip in to our fighting fund to help keep up the fight to bring Priya, Nades and the girls home to Biloela?

This is why I love this family. After enduring almost two years of cruel and pointless imprisonment, (including six months on Christmas Island) at the hands of our politicians, they still care so much about making a guest feel welcome.

Under Australian law, Minister Tudge and Minister Dutton have the power to bring them home to Biloela with the stroke of a pen. Our politicians use this power around 1,000 times a year.

But right now, they are forcing this beautiful family to fight their unfair system in the courts.

Next Friday, our family’s wonderful legal team will appear in the Federal Court on behalf of youngest daughter, Tharunicaa.

Incredibly, they will need to show why immigration officials should assess this little Australian-born toddler’s right to the protection of the country she was born in. I know - it's crazy!

Every last dollar of this beautiful family’s legal costs has been chipped in by ordinary people around Australia.

But even if the court finds in her favour, with Mr Dutton and his taxpayer-funded lawyers fighting two-year Tharunicaa every step of the way, there could still be a long legal road ahead.

Please, will you chip in to help keep up the fight to bring this beautiful family home to Biloela, where they are loved and wanted?

With hope,

Angela

17 February 2020

Today, Australians sent to Christmas Island for quarantine begin returning to their homes and communities.

Please - can you pick up the phone now and politely tell your elected representatives that our beautiful Biloela family must not be left behind?

On the weekend, I was touched to hear Perth musician Joe share his story of meeting Priya, Nades and their QLD-born girls on Christmas Island.

I’ve never met Joe. But it was hard to hear his voice break with emotion as he described meeting our beautiful family for the first time.

“They were really lovely, hospitable people,” Joe said.

Under Australian law, Acting Immigration Minister Alan Tudge or Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton could step in and bring this family home for any reason they choose.

Mr Dutton has personally used this power around 1,000 times per year.

But instead of listening to the 265,000 people who have signed this petition, he is forcing Australian-born, two-year-old Tharunicaa to fight his unfair system in the courts.

On Friday morning, as a full hearing for Tharunicaa’s case begins, supporters will gather for peaceful vigils outside the Federal Court in Melbourne and the Department of Home Affairs in Sydney. Please let you me know you can make it by tapping through to these facebook events:

Melbourne: www.facebook.com/events/185311466031473
Sydney: www.facebook.com/events/939112416864248

Most people are shocked when they learn that the courts have no power to bring Tharunicaa and her family home to Biloela.

The very best they can do is send the decision back to the officials implementing Mr Dutton’s unfair immigration system.

That’s why I need your help. Today, can you please take a minute to tap through to our action page and politely ask your Senators to contact Minister Tudge on behalf of this family?

With hope,

Angela

26 February 2020

Friends, I’m on Christmas Island. I’m here to show Priya, Nades and the girls that Australia wants them back home in Biloela, QLD.

Today, can you send a quick email to Minister Alan Tudge, who has the power to bring them home to Bilo?

I’ll never forget that day on 5 March 2018, when Peter Dutton’s Border Force snatched Priya, Nades and their Queensland-born daughters from their Biloela home and locked them away in Melbourne detention centre. Six months ago, Mr Dutton forced them to Christmas Island.

Little Tharunicaa was just nine months old when she was taken from her Biloela home. Now, she’s a beautiful, bubbly two-year old.

Immigration Minister Alan Tudge could bring Tharunicaa and her family home to Biloela with a stroke of a pen. In fact, this power has been used around 1,000 times a year.

Please - can you take a moment to e-mail Minister Tudge now?

Right now, Mr Dutton is fighting this little Queenslander in the courts. Yesterday in Melbourne, our beautiful family’s legal team told the Federal Court why officials need to fairly assess Tharunicaa’s right to the protection of the country she was born in - Australia.

The Court heard that officials had prepared briefs on Tharunicaa’s case asking the Ministers to allow her need for protection to be assessed. The officials noted that many members of the public and MPs had contacted the Ministers about our family. Thank you.

It could take three months for the judge to hand down a decision. But no court has the power to bring Priya, Nades and the girls home to Bilo. Only the Ministers can do that.

Can you please tap through to our action page now and tell Minister Tudge to bring our family home to Bilo?

It takes less than a minute to send an email from our action page. But please take a few extra moments to tell the Minister, in your own polite words, why this matters to you. It will make all the difference.

For everything you are doing to help our beautiful family - thank you.

With hope,

Angela

5 March 2020

“Can I come with you? I want to come home.”

There are no words to express my heartbreak at hearing four-year-old Kopika say these words on Tuesday. After one week and 16 precious visiting hours with Priya, Nades and the girls, it was time to leave Christmas Island.

Please, can you pick up the phone now and tell your Senators that after two years, it’s time to bring this family home to Biloela, where they belong?

Exactly two years ago today, Nades was up early, getting ready for his job at the meatworks. Priya was warming a bottle for the baby. The girls were asleep in their beds. 

Priya and Nades came to Australia legally seeking peace and safety, and they found it in Biloela. Before landing his job at the meatworks, Nades volunteered with Vinnies and pushed trolleys at Woolworths. Priya joined church groups and took her curries up to the local hospital to say “thank you” to the doctors for caring for her two gorgeous, QLD-born daughters.

Then on 5 March 2018, two years ago today, Border Force came for this family at dawn. They gave them 10 minutes to pack. Neighbours heard Priya scream with fear. And then they were gone.

Today, will you tell the politicians paid to represent you that after two years, enough is enough?

My husband Alan and I arrived on Christmas Island on Tuesday last week. Once past the detention centre guards and their wand scanner, we were welcomed with ginger tea and Nades’ freshly-baked banana cake, made in the detention facility’s tiny kitchenette.

Priya and Nades proudly showed us the many hundreds of Christmas cards they had received from across Australia - one even came with genuine Biloela gum leaves!

During our week on Christmas Island, Priya and Nades cooked up a storm for us at every opportunity. When Priya’s close friend Vashini arrived from Queensland with only 30 minutes left of an allotted two hour visit due to a delayed flight, Priya still insisted on whipping up an omelette sandwich for her dear friend.

Our politicians can bring this family home with the stroke of a pen - please, can you pick up the phone and have your say today?

With their warm welcome and hospitality, Priya and Nades helped us forget we were meeting in a detention centre 5,000km from Biloela. For precious minutes, we were just like any group of friends enjoying a meal together. It was all the more shocking when the guards came and told us to leave.

As we drove away from the detention centre, the uncertainty and anxiety of not knowing the fate of our precious friends sat beside the memories of that terrible time two years ago.

But I know one thing, and I’ve known it all along - we will never stop fighting to bring Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa home to Biloela, where they belong.

With hope,

Angela

15 April 2020

Last week, I was shocked and distressed to learn that detention centre staff flying in and out of Christmas Island have put our beautiful Biloela family at risk.

Christmas Island is a remote territory with limited healthcare facilities and no intensive care unit. To protect the 1,800 residents who call this remote island their home, “essential staff” returning to the island are required to self-isolate for 14 days.

But SBS News has reported that detention centre staff who flew into Christmas Island between 18th March and 3rd April did not self-isolate for the required two weeks.

Priya, who has diabetes, says that 10 to 15 detention centre staff have come into close contact with her family every day. During one doctor’s appointment, there were eight people in a small room.

Almost a year ago, I stood side by side with human rights champion Craig Foster as we delivered our petition to bring Priya, Nades and the girls home to Biloela to the Immigration Minister.

On Q&A on Monday night, Craig Foster shared his fears for all of the vulnerable people exposed to unsafe conditions in immigration detention facilities.

As I listened to Craig, I couldn’t stop thinking about two-year-old Isabella, who was born in Melbourne’s detention centre. For 18 months, she was Kopika and Tharunicaa’s only playmate.

It is terrifying to think about what could happen if that coronavirus spread rapidly through the Melbourne detention centre where Isabella and her mum Huyen are still trapped.

That’s why I am asking you to join Craig, Human Rights Commissioner Edward Santow and peak medical bodies in calling on Immigration Minister Alan Tudge to allow people held in immigration detention, who don't pose a significant security risk, to be released to safe community detention, where they can self-isolate.

Please, can you speak up for our beautiful family and the many other vulnerable people now at risk by calling Minister Alan Tudge on 02 6277 7790 now? Tap here for some tips on what to say during your call.

For everything you are doing for Priya, Nades and the girls and vulnerable people just like them - thank you.

With hope,

Angela

23 April 2020

Last Friday, a Federal Court judge asked government lawyers to work with our Biloela family’s legal team to find a way forward within seven days. That’s tomorrow - Priya’s birthday.

Our petition has almost reached 300,000 signatures. Today, can you e-mail our petition to 5 friends - or share it online?

The judge found that QLD-born Tharunicaa was denied ‘procedural fairness’ by immigration officials.

This is a positive step for our beautiful family, who are still trapped on Christmas Island, 5000km from their Biloela home.

But the courts can’t bring Priya, Nades and the girls home to Biloela - only immigration officials and politicians can do that.

Please, can you give my friend Priya a sign of hope on her birthday by helping this petition reach 300,000 signatures? You can share it by tapping or clicking here.

The judge found that Immigration Minister David Coleman had decided to consider allowing Tharunicaa and her family to seek safety here in Australia in May 2019.

The news that Minister Coleman considered allowing our family to seek safety in Australia shows the power of all of your amazing phone calls, letters and e-mails to MPs, Senators, Ministers - and even the Prime Minister.

Right now, Minister Coleman is on indefinite leave for personal reasons. But under Australian law, Acting Immigration Minister Alan Tudge or Minister Dutton have the power to bring our family home to Bilo with the stroke of a pen.

That’s why today, I’m asking for your help to share this petition with your friends and help me grow this beautiful community of support for our Biloela family.

Our family are still trapped in detention on Christmas Island - but with your help, I believe we can bring Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa safely home to Biloela, where they belong.

With hope,

Angela

28 April 2020

Just over a week ago, a Federal Court judge ruled that two-year-old Queenslander Tharunicaa was denied “procedural fairness” when immigration officials refused to consider a request to allow her to seek safety in Australia - where she was born.

Tharunicaa and her family are still trapped on Christmas Island.

Because the Federal Court found in favour of Tharunicaa, yesterday the government was ordered to pay $206,000 in legal costs.

The awarding of costs to one party is a normal part of the legal process after the court makes a decision. It doesn’t mean that our beautiful family have been compensated for being snatched from their Biloela home and detained by immigration officials for over two years.

But it does mean that our family can consider further legal options, because this isn’t over.

Neither last Friday's "win" nor yesterday's news means this family is any closer to coming home to Bilo. But now, they’ll have continued access to skilled legal representation if the government chooses to appeal the court’s decision.

I’m so grateful to our beautiful family’s incredible legal team, who have fought long and hard for this family and discounted their fees wherever possible.

I also need to thank every last one of you who has chipped-in to our emergency fund over the last eight months. This successful legal action taken on behalf of our beautiful family has been 100% funded by your donations.

The untold suffering this family have endured after they were snatched from their Biloela could have been avoided if the politicians had taken a fair, common-sense approach to begin with.

But right now, our Ministers have the perfect opportunity to pick up their pen and use their power to bring this family safely home to Biloela, where they can live quietly and without fuss.

For everything you’re doing to help bring Priya, Nades and the girls home to Biloela - thank you.

With hope,

Angela

7 May 2020

Next Tuesday, QLD-born Kopika turns five. But unless our politicians step in, she’ll spend her birthday detained on Christmas Island, 5,000km from her Biloela home.

Please, can you help us show our Biloela birthday girl how much love Australians have for her by joining me for a virtual birthday party?

Around the world, people are organising “drive by” birthday parties for kids living in isolation because of the coronavirus.

We can’t do that for Kopika and that breaks my heart. Instead, our politicians are forcing this gorgeous little QLD-born girl to spend her 5th birthday in detention - for the third year in a row.

So we’ll be doing our best to give Kopika a birthday to remember, with a spectacular cake and beautiful decorations.

Next Tuesday 12th May, will you join our beautiful family’s close friends for a very special, virtual birthday celebration for Kopika, live streamed from Biloela?

On Christmas Island, Kopika and her family are denied access to the internet and all of the tools we rely on to stay connected with friends and family during this time of isolation.

But our Biloela birthday girl can hear us sing ‘Happy Birthday’ by dialling in to our party with her Mum’s phone. I know Priya would love to say a few words to thank you all, too.

To make sure Kopika will always know she was not alone on this special day, we’ll record the live stream and share all the birthday wishes you send. On the day, you can even share a photo or video of your own celebration at home - please include a birthday message for Kopika!

Please, can you tap through to our Facebook event and tap ‘Going’ to let me know you’ll be there for Kopika on her special day?

The best birthday present our little Queenslander could have would be for the politicians to pick up their pens and let Kopika and her family come home to live quietly and peacefully in Biloela.

So we’ll share your birthday messages with the politicians with the power to bring them home, too.

For everything you are doing to help me bring Kopika and her family home to Bilo - thank you.

With hope,

Angela

12 May 2020

It’s ‘no more sleeps’ until Biloela girl Kopika’s 5th birthday - that’s today!

Kopika and her family are still trapped on Christmas Island. We want to show her that hundreds of new friends are with her on her special day.

Will you tap through to our event and select ‘Going’ to say you’ll join Kopika for her special, live-streamed birthday party?

The party starts at 7pm AEST, on the dot (6.30pm SA, 5pm WA, 4pm Christmas Island). You can join in by sharing a photo of your celebrations or birthday card in the comments of our live-streamed event.

Let’s all make this a birthday to remember, with streamers, balloons and party hats and lots of special birthday messages that we can share with Kopika!

Exactly one month from today, Kopika’s little sister Tharunicaa turns three.

Today, can you please write a shared birthday card for Kopika and her little sister, Tharunicaa, and tap here to share a photo of your card in our event? 

That way, we can include photos of your birthday cards on an iPad that a wonderful supporter donated as a special present for the girls, along with the live-stream of Kopika's birthday party.

Acting Immigration Minister Alan Tudge could easily bring our family home to Biloela in time for Tharunicaa's birthday, with the simple stroke of his pen.

So instead of posting your card to Christmas Island, please post it directly to Minister Tudge, who has the power to bring Priya, Nades and the girls home to Biloela:

The Hon Alan Tudge MP

Suite 4, Level 1, 420 Burwood Highway

Wantirna South VIC 3152

Remember to include your full name and address, along with a (polite) note asking Minister Tudge to pick up his pen and bring Priya, Nades, Kopika and Tharunicaa home to Biloela, where they belong. That would be the best present a Biloela girl could hope for.

Thank you for being there for Kopika on her special day - see you at the party!

Angela

15 May 2020

Friends, on Tuesday, QLD-born Kopika dialled in to her virtual 5th birthday party all the way from Christmas Island, with her Mum’s mobile phone.

Please, can you sign and share the National Justice Project’s petition to stop Mr Dutton taking mobile phones away from Priya and people just like her?

On Tuesday, my heart broke when I heard Kopika call out “I love you Grandma” to my friend Margot, who sang Happy Birthday to her from thousands of kilometres away.

Yesterday, I found out that Peter Dutton is trying to change the law so he can take mobile phones away from people like Priya and her family, who have come to Australia seeking peace and safety.

I was shocked when I heard Mr Dutton tell this blatant lie to the media: “Don't forget we don't have any children in detention.”

We must not let Mr Dutton take away Priya’s lifeline to the outside world - please, will you tap here to sign this important petition now?

Without Priya’s mobile phone, most Australians would never know that Mr Dutton has kept QLD-born Kopika and Tharunicaa locked in detention for over two years.

We would never have seen what happened when Mr Dutton’s Border Force dragged Priya and her family onto a plane forced them into detention on Christmas Island.

Please - will you sign and share the National Justice Project’s petition today and help me stop Mr Dutton cutting Priya and her family off from their Biloela friends?

With hope,

Angela

20 July 2020

After weeks of severe abdominal pain, on Saturday night Priya was evacuated to a Perth Hospital at the insistence of the doctors at Christmas Island Hospital. But officials stopped her loving husband and QLD-born girls from accompanying her.

We must re-unite this family and bring them home to Biloela, where they belong. Please, will you call Immigration Minister Alan Tudge today?

Priya has endured vomiting and severe pain for over two weeks and has been hospitalised on Christmas Island several times.

Right now, she is frightened and alone as she awaits the results of a CT scan ordered by her Christmas Island doctors. With all my heart, I am hoping and praying for good news.

Christmas Island simply does not have the facilities for the tests Priya’s doctors ordered. But Border Force officials only evacuated her to Perth after doctors at Christmas Island Hospital declined to discharge her until she was taken to the mainland for treatment.

Please, will you make a polite phone call to Acting Immigration Minister Tudge today on 02 6277 7790 or 03 9887 3890?

Let Mr Tudge’s staff know that you are asking him to use his Migration Act powers to re-unite Priya with her family and bring them home to Biloela. Mr Tudge’s office will be receiving many calls, so please be polite and patient - and try again later if you can’t get through.

If Priya were home in Biloela, she could access these tests with a simple trip to nearby Rockhampton. Instead, she has suffered weeks of pain and uncertainty, followed by a 2,600km medical transfer flight and separation from her husband and daughters.

Here in Biloela, I often think about how Priya brought her curries up to the doctors at the local hospital to say thank you for the care she received after she became a Mum.

I know she would want me to say thank you again now, to her doctors at Christmas Island Hospital for doing their very best to care for her with limited resources and the doctors in Perth who are caring for her now.

To all the healthcare professionals who are doing everything they can to care for Priya and her family - thank you.

With hope,

Angela

24 July 2020

Friends, I urgently need your help to protect our Biloela family from Peter Dutton.

Unless we find the funds to help our beautiful Biloela family continue seeking justice in the courts, Mr Dutton will force our two beautiful, QLD-born 'cockatoos' and their loving Mum and Dad from Australia to danger. Will you chip-in to this young family’s legal fund?

Right now, Priya is alone in a Perth Hospital for medical tests ordered by her Christmas Island Hospital doctors. But Mr Dutton stopped Priya’s loving husband Nades and their two daughters from accompanying her.

While Mr Dutton wastes millions of dollars detaining our Biloela family and fighting three-year-old Tharnicaa in the courts, we have crowd-funded every single dollar of this family’s legal costs.

In April, the Federal Court found that officials denied Tharnicaa ‘procedural fairness’ and Mr Dutton agreed to pay back our family's legal costs.

But instead of bringing Tharnicaa and her family home to Biloela, Mr Dutton is now appealing the judge’s decision. This means the agreed costs will not be paid, leaving our beautiful family with no funds to defend themselves.

Click here to chip-in to Priya, Nades, Tharnicaa and Kopika’s legal fund

Unless we find the funds to help our beautiful Biloela family continue seeking justice in the courts, Mr Dutton will force our two beautiful, QLD-born 'cockatoos' and their loving Mum and Dad from Australia to danger.

To me, $75,000 is a lot of money. But it’s nothing compared to the $27 million in taxpayers’ money Mr Dutton wasted on the Christmas Island detention centre in the first six weeks that our family was detained there alone.

Please, chip-in today to this family’s legal fund and help us get them #HomeToBilo.

With hope,

Angela

29 July 2020

Friends, we have lost contact with Priya after she called to say she is being removed from Perth's Fiona Stanley Hospital and taken to the airport by more than 10 guards

Please make an urgent but calm phone call to the offices of Acting Immigration Minister Alan Tudge (03 9887 3890 or 02 6277 7790) and Prime Minister Scott Morrison (02 9523 0339) now.

Priya was heard asking to speak to her legal representative and screaming in distress before the call was cut off. We believe her phone has been taken from her and we are deeply concerned for her welfare.

When you call, politely insist that Priya's phone is returned to her and that she be allowed to speak with her legal representatives.

We know this is distressing news for our Biloela family’s supporters. Please remember to stay calm and respectful when speaking to Mr Tudge's or Mr Morrison's staff.

With hope,

Angela

PS This photo of Priya with her girls was taken at Christmas Island Hospital before she was transferred to Perth alone for medical tests.

7 August 2020

When I heard about the questions QLD-born Kopika is asking her mum, Priya, my heart broke. She’s only five, but our politicians have wasted tens of millions of dollars detaining her on Christmas Island, 5,000km from her Biloela home.

Please - can you make today the day you pick up the phone and speak up for Kopika and her family?

When our politicians took Kopika and family from their Biloela home and put them in detention, Kopika was only two. Her sister, Tharnicaa, was just a baby.

For months, these politicians kept our little “Biloela cockatoos” locked away without adequate sunlight or fresh food, causing vitamin deficiencies and severe dental problems. When they tried to force them from Australia to danger, Priya and Kopika saw Serco guards drag their beautiful, loving Mum onto an unmarked plane.

It’s child abuse.

Please, will you tap here to make a polite call for Kopika and Tharnicaa now?

I’ve flown from Biloela to Christmas Island for these little girls twice. I’ve played with them. I’ve danced with them. I’ve sung them every Play School song I know.

I’ve seen the trauma. Bouts of crying. Night terrors. Periods of food refusal. It’s a testament to Priya and Nades’ love that they are raising such smart, sociable little girls, despite the cruelty of our politicians.

But now Kopika is asking questions that her Mum can’t answer. And neither can I.

Every morning, three Serco guards accompany Kopika and one parent to school. Every afternoon, three guards wait for her at the school gate.

If Kopika is invited to a classmates’ birthday party, the invitation must be delivered to the detention centre office. If she’s permitted to join her friends, three Serco guards hover on the edge of the party.

Our politicians can bring this family home to Biloela with the stroke of pen - please, will you make a polite call to your elected representatives now?

With hope,

Angela

28 August 2020

Tomorrow, it’s a year since Priya and her family were forced to Christmas Island. Before that, they spent eighteen months locked up in a Melbourne detention centre, where baby Isabella was Kopika and Tharunicaa’s only playmate. On Wednesday, Isabella and her Mum Huyen were unexpectedly released from detention.

Today, will you speak up for Priya, Nades and the girls by e-mailing your government Senators?

Like Kopika and Tharunicaa, Isabella is Australian-born. Like Priya, her mum Huyen came to our shores seeking safety. But officials locked them away for over two years, separating them from her husband, Paul.

Priya and Huyen supported each other as they struggled to raise their little girls in Melbourne’s harsh detention centre - a place where no child should be.

When Priya heard the news that Isabella and Huyen had been released, she said: “I’m so happy to hear that Isabella, Huyen and Paul can live together as a family. They have had a very difficult time in detention, every day is hard in detention. But today is a good day for them.”

We need to keep speaking up for Priya and her family - today, can you write an e-mail to your government Senators?

Tomorrow, it will be a year since guards dragged Priya onto an unmarked plane in front of here little girls in an attempt to force our Biloela family from Australia to danger.

But when a judge ordered the plane to land in Darwin, the politicians sent our family to a Christmas Island detention centre, 5,000km from their Biloela home.

Now, when Priya or Nades take five-year-old Kopika to school, the detention centre guards are with them. At the end of every school day, the guards wait to take her back to detention.

That’s why today, I’m asking you to email your Senators and tell them - politely and in your own words - why Priya, Nades and the girls must be allowed to come home to Biloela.

Isabella and Huyen’s freedom shows that politicians and officials have the power to take a common-sense approach. Priya says: “I am waiting in hope that the government will make a similar decision for my family, so we can rejoin our community in Biloela.”

With hope,

Angela