CEO Blog – 04.11.21
Why we should focus on what unites us
There’s a line in a 1985 song by Sting that goes ‘I hope the Russians love their children too’. Sting was talking about the Cold War and the threat of nuclear destruction.
Oddly, I was reminded of the song this week with news of the amazing and welcome rescue of four-year-old Cleo Smith.
Cleo’s story has gripped Australia and much of the world. Her rescue, apparently healthy and unharmed, and her reuniting with her family has come as a piece of welcome good news at a time when it’s thin on the ground.
Like Sting’s song, it is a reminder that the love and care of our children is one of the things that unites us as human beings. Hopes for Cleo’s safe return brought the tiny community of Carnarvon, and the whole of Australia, closer together.
My organisation AMES Australia supports migrants and refugees to settle in Australia. Some of these people are fleeing conflict or persecution in different places across the world. They all have different backgrounds and stories.
Some are urban professionals, others displaced farmers and yet more are members of minority groups persecuted because of their religion or ethnicity. But they all have at least one thing in common; they all want bright futures and better opportunities for their children.
At a time when much of the planet is again on the verge of destruction through conflict or climate change, the story of Cleo and her family is a reminder that when we focus on the things that unite us, anything is possible.
A lot of the work we do at AMES is about bringing people together; fostering relationships between people and between communities; bringing together individuals, businesses, community groups, government and the public sector to try to achieve better outcomes for diverse communities.
And the refugees and migrants we work with tell us that having strong and broad connections in a new country helps them to feel included; it gives them a sense of belonging, and it helps them materially in terms of finding employment and opportunity.
What they also tell us is that they are overwhelmingly happy and grateful to be in Australia. One of the reasons for this is the safety and opportunity this country presents for their children.
Amid scenes that would have been not unlike little’s Cleo’s reuniting with her mum and dad, I recently met one of these refugee families who had been evacuated by air from Afghanistan in August.
Amina Arfany and her three children were flown out of Kabul by the RAAF as the Taliban took control of the city. Her husband Baqir had fled the previous iteration of the Taliban a decade earlier.
We met them as the family was reunited in the accommodation AMES has arranged for them after they completed hotel quarantine. Amina, Baqir and their kids cried and hugged as they all met for the first time in years.
It’s in precious moments like these you can see tangibly the positive impact our work can have in the lives of some of the world’s most vulnerable people. And they are a reminder of our common humanity.
Like Cleo’s family, the Arfany family are overjoyed to be whole again.
Cath Scarth, AMES Australia CEO
4 November 2021