To the Honourable Speaker and Members of the House of Representatives

This petition of members of Holy Saviour Parish in Glen Waverley North in Victoria draws to the attention of the House our concern about the proposed changes to the Migration Act.

We therefore ask the House to recognize the humanity of those arriving seeking asylum by boat and to reject legislation that would send asylum seekers to other countries and instead to commit to processing in Australia their claims for refugee status.

When creating migration legislation, we ask that you remember that:

1. seeking asylum is legal, even if arriving by boat .

2. the numbers of asylum seekers arriving in Australia are small compared to other countries, and

3. the vast majority who arrive by boat are genuine refugees fleeing violence and terror.

4. we should seek to address our United Nations obligations in the spirit of the U.N. declaration .

from 129 citizens