The Common Physical Health Problems Of Refugees

For many years refugees have been demonized by the country through the spread of fear and misconception. Furthermore, the disgusting treatment of refugees in the detention camps by the Australian Government has been roundly criticised by the international community.

The resettlement of refugees in Australia is a controversial topic; many people believe that they come here to commit crime, change our culture and steal our jobs. ‘The Happiest Refugee’ has enhanced my belief that refugees should be allowed to live in Australia. I believe that refugees are here to escape war and persecution; they are not criminals, nor do they want to change our culture or steal our jobs. Refugees are generally grateful for their new lives in Australia and they embrace our culture. ‘The Happiest Refugee’ is a source of evidence that supports this.

A refugee is defined as a person who has been forced to leave their country in order to escape war or persecution. Since the communist victory in Vietnam in 1975, Australia has become a desirable location for hundreds of thousands of refugees as a result of the pleasant lifestyle and an abundance of employment opportunities. The experiences of Indochinese refugees in the 1970’s and present day refugees contain both similar and contrasting elements. Refugees no longer flee from countries such as Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos instead they arrive to Australia from war-ravaged nations in the Middle East such as Iraq and Syria. Nevertheless, these countries are all victims of war and people continue to seek refuge as a consequence of conflict and fear

Ahn had not left this oppressive environment, he would have grown up in extreme poverty and would be a very different person due to the trauma that poverty causes. Refugees are here to escape poverty and persecution; because they have experienced severe trauma, they are at a much higher risk of psychiatric illness than the general population. I believe that these statistics can be reduced if our negative attitude towards marginalized groups changes. Because of the media and government induced stereotypes, Australians often show disdain towards refugees. This inhibits their adjustment to Australian society and creates further division among us. 'The Happiest Refugee' is a valuable resource in the fight against racism because it shows that refugees share our values, embrace our culture and are eager to contribute to Australian society, and I strongly support it’s inclusion in the Rochedale State High School English program.

Another technique used in the documentary to challenge the viewers’ assumptions was the use of narration to present facts about the refugee situation. These facts and figures give the viewers a truthful and realistic picture of the situation. Some beliefs that exist in Australian society are that we are taking in too many refugees; they are criminals, they are taking over Australia, using Australian tax payers’ money and changing our culture. However, we are presented with facts and figures that change our assumptions. For example, more than 30 million people have fled their homes with nothing but the clothes they wear, boat smugglers charge up to and over $10, 000 US dollars, 13, 000 refugees are accepted annually only 2,000 of those refugees arrive by boat. Despite what many people think, like Raye who believed refugees in Australia are “handed everything on a gold platter,” life in detention centres is hard. In Villawood Detention Centre, over 9 months, three detainees committed suicide and 18 caused self-harm.

Mental health is a person’s emotional and physiological well-being; some immigrants come to the country hoping for an easier and happier life, however, this is not always the case. As stated previously in lecture, assimilating to a new language, new food, and different cultural norms can be mentally draining. Experiences like exposure to war, death of loved ones, violence, oppression, and torture will likely make one mentally unstable and further complicates the resettlement process. The process of assimilating into a new cultural is mentally taxing to the soul, you are having to throw away all that you know and create a facade in order to be accepted. In my opinion, refugees and immigrants display poor mental health on arrival due to a combination

Today 60 million refugees, and asylum seekers are internally displaced . This is almost double what it was 10 years ago. Mega conflicts in Syria and Iraq have displaced millions of people. These are conflicts that are pushing refugees and migrants into flight. The world is in the midst of an unprecedented humanitarian crisis. Yet Australia’s approach in recent years has been to punish people seeking asylum, while increasing the numbers of refugees it resettles. This contrasting approach threatens the long and proud history Australia has of successful integration of refugee communities. This report reflects what we have heard from refugees and people seeking asylum, and the people supporting them. We thank all of the people who contributed to this report. The past two years have been a dramatic and traumatic period for refugees, both at home and abroad. More people are seeking safety – from persecution, conflict, violence and violations of human rights – than at any time since World War II. In the past two years, we have seen lifeless children washing up on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. We have seen ordinary Europeans lining up to help refugees at train stations. We have seen Australians demanding successfully that their leaders let in an extra 12,000 people fleeing the crises in Syria and Iraq.

“My hope finished now. I don’t have any hope. I feel I will die in detention.”
Unaccompanied 17 year old, Phosphate Hill Detention Centre, Christmas Island, 4 March 2014. 
Few social justice issues in Australia have attracted as much attention and controversy in recent times as the issue of asylum seekers. An asylum-seeker ‘is an individual who has sought international protection and whose claim for refugee status has not yet been determined’. In contrast, a refugee is an individual whose protection has been deemed necessary by the UNHCR or a State who is a signatory to the Refugee Convention. 
The issues surrounding asylum seeker has divide opinions and evoke strong emotional responses across the community. We are aware that asylum seekers are often vulnerable people, desperately fleeing civil unrest, warfare and persecution from across the world. We know that Australia is a destination of choice for many people seeking to embark on a new life in safety. And we know that there are people who will exploit the vulnerability of asylum seekers by offering them unsafe passage by sea to our shores. 
There were 584 children detained in immigration detention centres on mainland Australia and 305 children on Christmas Island. A further 179 children were detained on Nauru as at 31 March 2014.

The first boat with refugees to Australia in 1976, there are five men come to Australia in Darwin by boat (Phillips &Spinks 2013). Australia as a human immigrant country and it has policy receive refugees and asylum seekers. Since more and more refugees entered Australia from all over the world such as Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America, that the Australia is a multicultural country (UNHCR 2011). There is a small group of people are opposed to refugees, they have prejudice and bias against the refugees (Henderson & Uhlmann 2015). The refugee may face to poor living conditions, they have to leave their home and move to another place which can receive them. Australia is a good choice for refugees due to it can change their life. The small

Unfortunately, the narrative concerning refugees and asylum seekers as presented in the media is an overall negative one. Most of the fear present in Australian society is aggravated by media coverage. When discussing the representation of refugees it is important to take into consideration the language that is used and often associated with refugees. In most discussions presented in the national news, refugees are represented as a threat to

Refugees are people who crossed borders, fleeing due to problems related to race religion and nationality. While fleeing, refugees unknowingly carry many diseases due to lack of mental help and attention. When coming to a new country, refugees have no self-esteem to get jobs due to the language barrier. Refugees who flee their country and sacrifice everything are confident and strong willed with all the obstacles that come through their journey to start a new life. The long-term effects that a refugee experiences due to forced migration is Post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, and depression. Forced migration has a negative mental and physical affect on refugees.

According to SIM, various social determinants of health can dictate the presentation and severity of the patient’s illness. The main challenge in delivering effective care of refugee mental health is the complexity and the multi-factorial nature of their suffering. A refugee is identified as someone who was forced to flee his or her country due to traumatic factors such as war, persecution, violence and racism (Moussalli M., 1992). The exposure to these factors instills an overwhelming feeling of fear, submissiveness and vulnerability. As a result, refugees can be at a higher risk of developing debilitating psychological conditions such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression and anxiety (McKenzie et al., 2010). On the other hand,

Another cultural group that has been marginalized is the Vietnamese refugees, after their immigration to Australia in 1975. The main event that affects the immigrant's health risk factor is the reason for asylum itself, the Vietnam war. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2011) found that due to the war in the past asylum seekers may have encountered horrendous torment or injury. Data are given by Department of Immigration and Citizenship, (2006) suggested that the torment and injury crosswise over Australia show that around 80% of displaced people landing from specific nations have encountered extreme torment and injury. They may have invested a long time in packed camps with poor nourishment, horribly insufficient or packed lodging, and almost no restorative or dental care; children might have regularly experienced a serious lamenting procedure over the loss of guardians, kids, kin, and frequently whole families. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2008) states immigrants spend a lifetime attempting to find remaining relatives who, on the off chance that they have survived, might be scattered far and wide and have no chance of knowing whether they

Citizens often thought those people would bring terrorists, unemployment and infrastructure stress. However, refugees will be able to make out importance in affecting the potential social, cultural and economic contributionsupon their area of resettlement. Australia has a long history of accepting refugees for resettlement and over 700 000 refugees. As a consequence, Australia’s offshore humanitarian programme is heralded as one of the best in the world. Accepting more refugees and boat people into the country is one of the greatest contributions that can make to improving the world around us and enhancing our own living standards. In addition, by having more people in country there are more people to cooperate with, more people to trade with and more people to grow the market. They help supply the economy through participating in the labour market and bring with them diversity, new work approaches and funds. As our wealth and economy grows there is more money for the finer things in life.