A reporting database for anti-Asian racism in Australia during the COVID-19 outbreak has received more than 170 responses since it launched a fortnight ago, with the Human Rights Commission also seeing a spike in racial discrimination complaints. Here, Lyn Ooi, a Malaysian Pharmacist in Queensland, speaks about the Covid-19 racism and vilification she has experienced.
The Multicultural CEO Network (30 Organisations in all) has written to the Premier (of Victoria) and the members of the Crisis Council of Cabinet with the goal of raising awareness of the needs of the multicultural communities of Victoria (and Australia) in this time of coronavirus – Covid-19. The Multicultural CEO Network offers its considerable experience and skill-base to the Premier and Crisis Council in rendering assistance to resolve the issues experienced by the CALD communities of Victoria in this time of Declaration of Emergency by the Premier and the issues exposed by the declaration and pandemic.
Dr Santino and Deng Kor will be speakers on Changing Men’s Behaviours and Respectful Relationships in Families, in Zoom sessions commencing on 6 May 2020 from 2pm. The goal is to strengthen family relationships based on cultural approaches.
Ethnic Council of Shepparton and District in collaboration with Catholic Care and Primary Care Connect will present free session in improving family relationships/family health for settlement communities of Greater Shepparton. The session will be conducted online using Zoom on 22 April 2020. This session is for women.
The Commonwealth Scholarships Program for Young Australians – Grant Opportunity identifies Shepparton as a priority locality for eligibility for young people, in particular those from a CALD or ATSIC background. An overview of the program is given.
The Australian Multicultural Foundation (AMF) has developed an app on Android and Apple devices called CyberParent which encourages safe and healthy internet use in Australian homes. It is available in 17 languages.
The Australian Red Cross is receiving funding from the Australian Government for the next six months to deliver emergency relief and support – for people on temporary visas who cannot access Medicare and Centrelink support.
There are now translated resources available on the Department of Education and Training website regarding supporting learning from home – Learning from home advice in your language. The factsheet and letter to parents has been translated into 22 languages.
Mr Atukorala – Strategic Engagement Coordinator at the Ethnic Council of Shepparton – urges the Greater Shepparton community to remember the experiences of these vulnerable local groups when dealing with the pandemic. “Even though many refugees and asylum seekers have lost almost everything, they still share whatever they have,” he told.
Following the Australian Government announcement to allocate $25 million to fund home medicine services in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, Australia Post has announced the launch of its Pharmacy Home Delivery Service.