On the morning of August 1, Tamil refugee Neil Para will begin walking from the centre of Ballarat.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
His plan, should weather favour him, is to trek across state lines - from Ballarat to Marrickville in Sydney, to hand deliver a message on the plight of refugees in Australia to the Prime Minster.
The trip would take about 957 kilometres in a car, however, on foot Mr Para will be taking back roads and trails to avoid walking along major highways, rounding out to about 1000km travelled.
"The motivation is my family, they have been waiting here for a long, long time - 11 years now," Mr Para said.
"I am taking a petition to Anthony Albanese in Marrickville. I have fingers crossed, I hope I can meet him, he is a busy man. I will try."
Mr Para, his wife Sugaa and their three children have been living in Australia for more than 10 years, but had their visa and working rights revoked shortly after leaving detention.
The family came to Australia on a boat in 2012, fleeing ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka.
They were granted bridging visas in 2013 on the condition they moved regionally, and so settled in Ballarat.
In 2014, Mr Para and his family were subject to the Fast Track visa application system, which was implemented by then-immigration minister Scott Morrison as a way to quickly process a backlog of asylum seekers.
Under the system, Mr Para and his family were denied visas and the right to apply for a citizenship, meaning he and his wife were unable to work - largely relying on the generosity of others.
"It was a panic moment, we didn't know what to do," he said. "They left us to live like this in limbo. It is really torture. There are no answers, no response from the immigration minister."
The Fast Track visa application system has since been criticised by refugee advocate groups, such as the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre, which called the system's narrower definition of refugee status "cruel and rigged".
In February 2019, the federal government allowed about 19,000 refugees on temporary protection visas or safe haven enterprise visas to apply for permanent residency in Australia.
At the time, immigration minister Andrew Giles said "it made no sense" to keep those on the visas "economically or socially in limbo".
However a contingent of refugees, such as Mr Para's family who were subject to the fast track system, have been unable to apply for residency under the new changes.
Estimates on the amount of refugees left behind by the new policy vary up to tens of thousands.
Having accrued more than 11,000 signatures on an online petition her created, Mr Para hopes to hand-deliver the document to the prime minister and shine a spot light on many who he says are "trapped in limbo".
"I'm calling on the government to end the uncertainty for all the waiting refugees; please grant us permanent visas and the right to work, Neil said. I am walking so that refugee children such as my children can have certainty," Mr Para said.
"We are tired of living in limbo for more than a decade. We have spent years in detention, the harshest time of our lives, but it doesn't end. We cannot return to a country where we don't feel safe and we don't feel at home.
"We yearn to contribute to the country we call home."
Mr Para will begin his walk at 7.30am on August 1 out the front of Catherine King's electorate office on 5 Lydiard Street North.
"Please, on the first of August, 7.30am, I want to see you here," Mr Para said.
"This is a big walk launching, so please come here. You don't really need to walk, just come and show the crowd to the media. Show the crowd to the politicians."
Reading this on mobile web? Download our app. It's faster, easier to read and we'll send you breaking news alerts. Download in the Apple Store or Google Play.
