The loss of life of asylum seeker refugees drowning in the Mediterranean Sea in their desperation to escape the horrors of their own countries in the Middle East is appalling as tens of thousands of them, driven to desperation by war, persecution and economic stagnation, in countries as diverse as Syria, Senegal, Eritrea, Egypt, Afghanistan and Iraq.

At least there is some concerned compassion for them in Europe, from Pope Francis to various Heads of Government, and this is in sharp contrast to the inhumane stance taken by our own Government which is basking in the 'success' of its horrific policy of Sovereign Borders and "Stop the Boats", one of those rhetorical three word mantras that politicians these days so often use to promote their evil purposes.

These unfortunate people, yes 'PEOPLE', Mr Abbott, Morrison and Dutton, not to mention Shorten, Gillard and Rudd, all of whom have been responsible for the frightful treatment meted out to the ones who have escaped and are now incarcerated in Nauru, Manus Island and various detention facilities dotted around our wide brown land, and include hundreds of children. Our government is actually using our Navy to take them back to where they escaped from and are even negotiating with Cambodia, which is a Third World country itself, to resettle them.

Future histories of Australia will rank these times of cynicism and shame as among the worst ever seen and will rank with the brutal massacres of the early settlers of our aboriginal people and the xenophobia of Lambing Flats as the nadir of the "fair go" on which we once prided ourselves as Australians.

Brian Millett,

Yass