Today on 5 November, several case officers from the Immigration Department turned up to the detention centre to see new detainees. Since the guard of the Lima Compound was told that she should send all new detainees to the Visit, she directed me to go to the Visit. There, I waited for a few minutes and then was told to go back because the Immigration would see me on Monday, not today.
When I went back to Lima, the guard asked me whether I went to the Immigration visit. I told her that I had been there but was sent back. She could not understand why since I was one of the new detainees. I told her that I am a VIP so that I am usually different. I said to her that VIP in my case was not a Very Important Person but a Very Irritating Person and we laughed.
I got an email from my old friend in Sydney. She was a visitor to Villawood during my last stay eleven years ago. Since then, whenever I had difficulties, she was always there for me. Most reliable person. She informed me that she could manage to make a booking to visit me in Villawood. It was an amazing achievement which I did not expect to happen. It was because she informed me last night that the email address for booking visits appearing on the VIDF Induction Briefing was non-existent and the telephone number for 'Queries' simply placed her in a queue and then rang out no matter how many times she tried. Knowing how the Immigration works, she made further effort. Eventually, her phone went through to a person today!!
She shared an important information with me. Do not follow any instruction regarding the booking of a visit appearing on the VIDF Induction Briefing. She was told by the person on the phone that she should go to the website of the Immigration Department, download a form for visitors, and email it to detention.visits@border.gov.au
Ahh. I remember that there was another piece of information revealed to be false today. Actually, everything here appears to be designed to prevent detainees from contacting the outside. The main centre telephone number appearing on the VIDF Induction Briefing seems to never get through. So even though the VIDF Induction Briefing included a section of 'Incoming and Outgoing Telephone Calls' and specifically stated that: 'All detainee incoming telephone calls will be put through between the hours of ...', no one can give a call to any detainee unless they have a mobile phone of their own. And, it is almost impossible to bring a mobile phone into the centre since the centre does not allow a phone with a camera to get into. Look, (bloody) Immigration. We are living in the 21 century Australia. Where do you think we can find a mobile phone without a camera!
When I went back to Lima, the guard asked me whether I went to the Immigration visit. I told her that I had been there but was sent back. She could not understand why since I was one of the new detainees. I told her that I am a VIP so that I am usually different. I said to her that VIP in my case was not a Very Important Person but a Very Irritating Person and we laughed.
I got an email from my old friend in Sydney. She was a visitor to Villawood during my last stay eleven years ago. Since then, whenever I had difficulties, she was always there for me. Most reliable person. She informed me that she could manage to make a booking to visit me in Villawood. It was an amazing achievement which I did not expect to happen. It was because she informed me last night that the email address for booking visits appearing on the VIDF Induction Briefing was non-existent and the telephone number for 'Queries' simply placed her in a queue and then rang out no matter how many times she tried. Knowing how the Immigration works, she made further effort. Eventually, her phone went through to a person today!!
She shared an important information with me. Do not follow any instruction regarding the booking of a visit appearing on the VIDF Induction Briefing. She was told by the person on the phone that she should go to the website of the Immigration Department, download a form for visitors, and email it to detention.visits@border.gov.au
Ahh. I remember that there was another piece of information revealed to be false today. Actually, everything here appears to be designed to prevent detainees from contacting the outside. The main centre telephone number appearing on the VIDF Induction Briefing seems to never get through. So even though the VIDF Induction Briefing included a section of 'Incoming and Outgoing Telephone Calls' and specifically stated that: 'All detainee incoming telephone calls will be put through between the hours of ...', no one can give a call to any detainee unless they have a mobile phone of their own. And, it is almost impossible to bring a mobile phone into the centre since the centre does not allow a phone with a camera to get into. Look, (bloody) Immigration. We are living in the 21 century Australia. Where do you think we can find a mobile phone without a camera!