Jaivet’s message: don’t forget the 200 refugees still in ‘Pacific Solution’ limbo

Jaivet Ealom tells Anne Susskind about his harrowing escape from Manus, the book that saved him, Scomo's false piety and the community sponsorship that offers a way out of detention

IN HIS THIRD YEAR away from the horrors of being a refugee, Jaivet Ealom seems happy. Well, as happy as you can be when you have on your mind the fate of about 200 other refugees still trapped in the machinations of Australia’s “Pacific solution”.

Some are in their ninth year in limbo, Ealom says, with no end date in sight, having been transferred from the notorious Manus Island detention centre but still in offshore processing in Nauru and PNG. He calls them “poor souls who have not committed any crime,” and among them are friends he speaks to whenever possible. 

This Sunday, Ealom will join a Zoom meeting from Canada, where he is now resettled, in the launch of a campaign to raise awareness of the plight of refugees. Hosted by Melbourne writer Arnold Zable and Professor of Law Kim Rubenstein, the campaign has been organised by Plus 61J Media, Bnei Brith, Stand Up and the Refugee Council of Australia.

Ealom, 28 years old, is the only prisoner known to have escaped Manus and is the author of Escape from Manus, a harrowing book about his experiences, telling the world what successive Australian governments made detainees endure.

Gary Samowitz, a consultant to Plus 61J for the project, says: “Refugees should be welcomed to Australia; we know what it’s like to be in their shoes, we are primarily a community built by survivors and their descendants, and if we can help those who are seeking a safe refuge today… then we must do so.