Exhibition Openin of "Sense of Asylum"

http://senseofasylum.blogspot.com/

Went to this exhibition's opening a few days ago. The opening was informational more than artistic, so I am thinking that it isn't a strongly artistic exhibition, nevertheless, the issue is important.

The social worker who worked with asylum seekers pending for refugee status gave us some really frontline stories of their lifelihood (is that how you spell the word?). The lawer who fights for refugee rights gave us some idea of the legal aspect of the issue.

I was especially drawn to an idea that the lawer shared with us (in my words): "In HK, perhaps due to the bad handling of the Vietnamese refugees back in the 80s and 90s, refugees are always seen as a problem. But in Canada, refugees are seen as a resource. Why? Remember that these people are leaving their home country often because they will not submit to unjust military and political system, these people are the good guys with integrity, sometimes fleeing because of their active political and social involvement, and sometimes they are educated people who are really giving the unjust government a hard time. That is why a country can see refugee as a resource and not as a problem."

Though I am a Canadian myself, I will not romanticize Canada being a super refugee friendly city. But the above attitude is at least not totally untrue.

And I would like to remind myself that problems with Vietnamese refugee camps in HK was probably fostered by the horrible conditions of these camps. Of course one can say, "Who told them to come!" Well, it is true, the culprit is the Vietnamese situation, but then the Vietnamese situation could have been grealty flamed by the US and Chinese government......it is worthwhile to trace the roots of the Vietnamese civil war, but meanwhile, please do not turn a blind eye to these people.