Australia is a parliamentary democracy made of six states and eight territories. The government has three main bodies.

• House of Representatives: The House of Representatives is the lower house of the Parliament. It has 150 members, each representing an electorate. Like the United Kingdom, many of the customs of Parliament are traditional, such as the Prime Minister being the leader of the majority party of the House of Representatives and the second largest party referred to as the Opposition Party[i]. Members are elected by preferential voting and each electorate has an equal amount of voters. Elections are held every three years. The House proposes and passes laws, determines the government, represents the people and controls the expenditure of the government. Members of the majority party of the House become Ministers in the executive branch. The leader of the majority party becomes the Prime Minister[ii]. The Coalition is the majority party of the House with 90 seats, followed by the Liberal Party of Australia with 58 seats[iii].

• The Senate: The Senate is the upper house of the Parliament. It has 76 members, with membership divided evenly among Australia’s states. All six states have twelve senators, while the Northern Territory and Australian Capital Territory have two senators each. The Senate’s legislative power is equal to that of the House of Representatives. It can make amendments to financial legislation and refuse to pass bills, but it cannot introduce or amend laws on taxation or allow the government additional expending. Members are elected by a system of proportional representation [iv]. The Coalition is currently the majority party with 30 seats, closely followed by the Labor party with 26 seats [v].

• The High Court of Australia: The High Court is the judicial body of Australia, enforcing laws and acting as a check on the power of the other bodies of government [vi].

[i] http://www.australia.gov.au/about-government/how-government-works/federal-government

[ii]http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/House_of_Representatives/About_the_House_of_Representatives

[iii]http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/BriefingBook44p/Composition44th

[iv]http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Senate/About_the_Senate

[v] http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Senate

[vi] http://www.australia.gov.au/about-government/how-government-works/federal-government

• Malcolm Turnbull: Turnbull first became Australia’s Prime Minister on September 15, 2015 and began his second term on July 19, 2016 [i].

• Queen Elizabeth II: The Queen acts as more of a figurehead. She is the head of state but is represented by the Governor-General [ii]

• Sir Peter Cosgrove: Cosgrove is the current Governor-General, representing the Queen. He performs the ceremonies of the head of state for the Queen as well as appointing and dismissing Executive Councilors, Ministers, appointing judges, issuing writs for general elections, initiating government expenditure, asserting that legislation has been passed by both Houses and converting them to law, and blocking or proposing amendments to laws passed by the Parliament [iii]

[i] https://www.pm.gov.au/your-pm

[ii] http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/House_of_Representatives/Powers_practice_and_procedure/00_-_Infosheets/Infosheet_20_-_The_Australian_system_of_government

[iii] http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/House_of_Representatives/Powers_practice_and_procedure/00_-_Infosheets/Infosheet_20_-_The_Australian_system_of_government

[i]

• Population in 2015: 23,781,169 (89% urban, 11% rural)

• Population Density: 3 people per square kilometer

• Land Area: 7,682,300 square kilometers

• Estimated Per Capita Income, 2015: $56,311

• Racial Breakdown[ii]:

  • White: 74.3%

  • Chinese: 3.1%

  • Indian: 1.4%

  • Aboriginal: .5%

  • Other: 20.7%

• Unemployment Rate (October 2016): 6[iii]

[i] http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.RUR.TOTL.ZS?locations=AU

[ii] https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/as.html

[iii] http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/6202.0

• 1937: The Australian Jewish Welfare Society, in response to the large amounts of Jews fleeing Nazi Germany, began the first refugee settlement support service, funded by the Australian Government[i].
• 1945: “First federal immigration portfolio established to administer Australia’s post-war migration program”[ii]
• 1947: Australian Government and International Refugee Organization began working together to settle refugees from Europe. Australia settled over 170,00 people between 1947 and 1954[iii].
• 1977: Humanitarian Program developed to address the flow of Indochinese asylum seekers fleeing the Vietnam War [iv].
• 1977: First Migrant Resource Center established in Melbourne
• 1979: A loan scheme was created to help refugees own homes
• 1979: Community Refugee Settlement Scheme was begun to provide refugees with on-arrival accommodation and assistance in finding work [v]
• 1981: Special Humanitarian Program
• 1989: Special visa category created within refugee program for women and children
• 1991: Special Assistance Category visa was created to settle people from specific areas in crisis who had connections in Australia
• 1997: Community Resettlement Settlement Scheme replaced by Integrated Humanitarian Settlement Strategy [vi]

[i] http://www.refugeecouncil.org.au/getfacts/seekingsafety/refugee-humanitarian-program/history-australias-refugee-program/

[ii] http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/BEF8BD30A177EC39CA257C4400238EED?opendocument

[iii] http://www.refugeecouncil.org.au/getfacts/seekingsafety/refugee-humanitarian-program/history-australias-refugee-program/

[iv] http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/rp/rp1516/Quick_Guides/HumanitarianProg

[v] http://www.refugeecouncil.org.au/getfacts/seekingsafety/refugee-humanitarian-program/history-australias-refugee-program/

[vi] http://www.refugeecouncil.org.au/getfacts/seekingsafety/refugee-humanitarian-program/history-australias-refugee-program/

The Refugee and Humanitarian Program is funded in part by the Settlement Services allocation within the Department of Social Services. The Program is funded by the government’s yearly budget[i].

[i] http://www.refugeecouncil.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/2015-16-Budget.pdf

In the 2014 data, figures between 1 and 4 have been replaced with an asterisk (*). These represent situations where the figures are being kept confidential to protect the anonymity of individuals. Such figures are not included in any totals.

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN                                      # SETTLED 2002-2014

City (# of Refugees Settled between 2011 and May 2015[i]; City Population as of 2015; Refugee Percentage of Total Population)

1. Fairfield NSW (4,873; 204,442[ii]; 2.38%)

2. Hume Vic (2,754; 194,006[iii]; 1.42%)

3. Liverpool NSW (2,186; 204,594[iv]; 1.07%)

4. Logan Qld (1,786; 308,681[v]; .58%)

5. Salisbury (1,461; 138,535[vi]; 1.05%)

[i] http://blog.id.com.au/2015/population/australian-demographic-trends/how-many-refugees-does-australia-take/?utm_campaign=Blog+article+notification&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=21845002&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9qmRVwHT6AQuaHiY4k_YIUs9xjhcRWW5gDMQllRDUZPi1GV4z9iqHp4Eux83-nl_yCb_LKZk3LQhJ9nADauB_0DXubehAqjpxNwLmZSiLM5hvj4Z0&_hsmi=21845002

[ii] http://profile.id.com.au/fairfield/population

[iii] http://profile.id.com.au/hume

[iv] http://profile.id.com.au/liverpool

[v] http://profile.id.com.au/logan

[vi][vi] http://profile.id.com.au/salisbury

Australia settles refugees through several sub-sections of the Humanitarian Programme. The Humanitarian Programme is part of the Department of Immigration and Border Protection[i]:

Onshore Protection[ii]

The onshore protection part of the Humanitarian Programme gives asylum to those already in Australia. There are three visas available for people applying for onshore protection:

• Protection visa, for those legally in Australia. This visa usually takes about 12 months to process.

• Temporary Protection visa, for those in Australia illegally. This visa takes about 6 months to finalize.

• Safe Haven Enterprise visa, for those illegally in Australia with the intention to work or study. This visa takes about 6 months to finalize.

Offshore Resettlement

Offshore resettlement provides two types of visas for people facing persecution or violence in their homeland.

• Refugee visas are offered to those in need of resettlement but without any family ties to Australia. Applicants are referred by the UNHCR. Recipients in this category can receive Refugee, In-country Special Humanitarian, Emergency Rescue, or Women at Risk visas.

• Special Humanitarian Programme services people facing persecution who have immediate family or sponsors already in Australia. An applicant can be sponsored by an Australian citizen or permanent resident, a New Zealand citizen, or an organization based in Australia.

[i] https://www.border.gov.au/Trav/Refu

[ii] https://www.border.gov.au/Trav/Refu/Onsh

Refugee Council of Australia

Established: The Refugee Council of Australia was formed in 1981. It is a non-profit and non-government organization.

Funding: The RCOA is funded by project grants from the government and other philanthropic organizations, as well as by contributions from its own members.

Office locations:

-Surry Hills NSW 2010

-Collingwood VIC 3066

Responsibilities and Functions: The RCOA works mainly to influence policy on refugees and asylum seekers. They carry out research in order to hold the position that policies should be humane and lawful. 

Leadership & Contacts:

            President: Phil Glendenning

            Vice President: Professor William Maley AM

            Secretary: Dr. Ali Nur

            Treasurer: Adrian Graham

Australian Refugee Association[i]

Funding: ARA is funded by the Australian Government Department of Social Services’ Settlement Grants Programme. 

Main Office: Underdale SA 5032

Responsibilities and Functions: Australian Refugee Association’s mission is to “help refugees become settled and participating citizens of Australia.”[ii]

Leadership & Contacts

Chief Executive Officer: Kirsten Bickendorf

Deputy CEO & Migration Manager: Semira Julardzija

Affiliates & Partners

            Home-Start Finance

            Easy DNA

Sanctuary Australia Foundation[iii]

Established: Sanctuary Australia Foundation was established in 1988 by Sue and Peter Hallam. The organization was originally called the Sanctuary Refugee Support Group. 

Funding: Sanctuary Australia Foundation accepts donations from individuals. It has DGR (deductible gift recipients) status and all donations over two dollars are tax deductible.[iv]

Office locations: Coffs Harbour, NSW

Responsibilities and Functions: Sanctuary Australia Foundation helps raise funds to sponsor refugees and bring them to Australia. They also assist refugees with accessing basic necessities upon arrival.

Leadership & Contacts

            CEO, Co-Founder: Peter Hallam

            Secretary: Lani Carmody

            Treasurer: Glenn Pearce

Affiliates & Partners

            Microsoft

            Heaven & Earth

            Kelly Family Foundation

            The Body Shop Foundation

[i] http://www.australianrefugee.org/

[ii] http://www.australianrefugee.org/about-us-2/our-mission-vision/

[iii] http://www.sanctuaryaustraliafoundation.org.au/

[iv] http://www.sanctuaryaustraliafoundation.org.au/about/sanctuary-patrons/