Like many Australians, I was horrified to see the footage of cows being slaughtered in Indonesia.

I’m a vegetarian, and I love cows with their big pretty eyes. Also, like many Australians, I was moved to act; I signed the petition and then rang my MP. The response from around the country was impressive, and the reaction form politicians even more so.

But it didn’t take me long to start wondering about the disparity between the response to the plight of live exports, and the response to the plight of refugees in Australia. Obviously I have a slight occupational bias, but the parallels are evident.

Cows from Australia are being sent to a country where we have evidence they will be treated horrifically. They will essentially be tortured, and handled in a way that would never be acceptable in Australia. Likewise, with the Malaysian ‘people swap’ deal, asylum seekers from Australia will be sent to a country where others have been treated horrifically – caned, exploited, sexually abused, and detained in horrendous conditions.

So where’s the public outcry? Where are the 100,000+ signatures on this petition? Where’s the bipartisan support to end this terrible policy?

After much pondering, my best guess is that over the past decade many Australians have become desensitised to the suffering of refugees and asylum seekers. The footage of cows was incredibly shocking but more importantly, we hadn’t really been preconditioned to interpret it in a certain way, we just reacted to it.

Conversely, the frequent reports of self harm and abuse amongst asylum seekers are often overshadowed by rhetoric designed to frame asylum seekers in a certain negative light – “illegal immigrants”, “queue jumpers”, “country shoppers”, the list goes on…

None of these terms are remotely true, but they have infiltrated the Australian psyche and created a barrier to public empathy with a group of people desperately in need of our protection.

"Likewise, with the Malaysian ‘people swap’ deal, asylum seekers from Australia will be sent to a country where we have evidence they will be treated horrifically."

A few people have suggested to me that we need a 4 Corners expose on conditions for refugees and asylum seekers in Malaysia, or even conditions in Australia. I’m sure this would help. After all, we know that when most Australians know the facts, and are given a chance to empathise with the real stories of refugees, they react with compassion, and are proud and willing to help out.

But organisations like Amnesty International have been jumping up and down for years trying to remind Australians that a humane and compassionate approach to refugees is not only our moral and legal responsibility but also ultimately it enriches us as a nation.

We have explained repeatedly that it is not illegal to seek asylum –and that a relatively small number of people arrive by boat. We have worked with refugees to help tell their stories publically. We have produced reports, images and footage of what happens to asylum seekers and refugees in Australian detention centres, as well as other countries such as Nauru and Malaysia.

To overcome the many voices out there perpetuating myths about refugees and asylum, it’s clear that we need more than just organisations like Amnesty International speaking out. And I think we need more than just a one-off TV exposé. To really cut through, we need to hear more from the people at the heart of this issue.

"Currently, the refugees and asylum seekers are made almost as voiceless as the poor cows."

Currently, the refugees and asylum seekers are made almost as voiceless as the poor cows. It should be easier - not harder - to understand and empathise with the plight of fellow humans.

I want the media to look beyond the scare mongering of politicians, and analyse the facts of this issue. I want politicians to visit detention centres and talk to the asylum seekers before making one more decision about their lives. And I want ordinary Australians to make an effort to see beyond the headlines – to seek out a refugee in their community and talk with them – or even just visit this website, listen to the real stories, and then share these personal accounts with everyone you know: your family, your friends, your church group, your colleagues and your sports club.

This is the only way we are going to remember as a nation that sending people who need and deserve our protection to Malaysia, Nauru or PNG (places where we know they’ll face even more abuse) is not a solution; it is a very big problem.

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