Home to Biloela
eBook - ePub

Home to Biloela

The story of the Tamil family that captured our hearts

  1. English
  2. ePUB (mobile friendly)
  3. Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub

Home to Biloela

The story of the Tamil family that captured our hearts

About this book

The dramatic inside story of the Tamil refugee family which became a cause célèbre all around Australia, and the epic fight by a small rural community to set them free.

It was dawn in the small rural town of Biloela. Loud thumping on the front door signalled the start of a four-year odyssey that would catapult Priya and her family into national debate.
For the first time, Priya shares the story of her sheltered childhood in war-torn Sri Lanka, and her perilous escape across the Indian Ocean on an overcrowded and leaking fishing boat. Alone in a strange country, she had to make a new life without family or friends. She marries Nades and settles with him in Biloela, where they have two daughters.
The shocking dawn raid was the first of multiple attempts by Australian government to deport the family. But the people of Biloela wouldn't have it. A small group swung into action, and built an extraordinarily powerful social media campaign that broke through into the mainstream, gathering support from hundreds of thousands of ordinary Australians around the country. Journalist Rebekah Holt has been following the family's journey over the four long, painful years, and she recounts the dramatic behind the scenes efforts to prevent the family from being deported.
Finally, Priya, Nades and the girls were all granted the permanent visas they need by the new government, and they were able to return home to Biloela in the happiest ending they could have wanted.
'An amazing story that shows how powerful we can all be when we authentically join together.' -  Claudia Karvan, actor
'This book tore my heart out and had me crying tears of anger and devastation but also hope and love.' -  Susie Youssef, writer and actor

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Yes, you can access Home to Biloela by Priya Nadesalingam,Rebekah Holt in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Politics & International Relations & Human Rights. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.

Table of contents

  1. Cover Page
  2. Praise
  3. Title Page
  4. Copyright Page
  5. Dedication
  6. Contents
  7. A note on Tamil naming protocols
  8. My Story
  9. 1 Biloela
  10. 2 Dawn Raid
  11. 3 No Answer
  12. 4 Sri Lanka
  13. 5 Little Star
  14. 6 Not on My Watch
  15. 7 MITA
  16. 8 These are My Friends and This is What Happened
  17. 9 English Teacher
  18. 10 There and Back Again
  19. 11 Vigil
  20. 12 Into Detention
  21. 13 The Children
  22. 14 Under Guard
  23. 15 War
  24. 16 India
  25. 17 The Boat
  26. 18 Australia
  27. 19 Meeting Nades
  28. 20 First Winter
  29. 21 Angela’s Speech
  30. 22 At the Minister’s Discretion
  31. 23 Disturbing Behaviour
  32. 24 Tharnicaa
  33. 25 This is Not a Place for Children to Be
  34. 26 The Plane
  35. 27 I Began to Scream
  36. 28 Tullamarine
  37. 29 ‘You Can’t Take Us Overseas’
  38. 30 We Will Fight for You
  39. 31 Back to Christmas Island
  40. 32 They Did It
  41. 33 Not Quite Out of Sight
  42. 34 The Front Door to Australia
  43. 35 Hello, I’m Your Friend
  44. 36 Three Guards
  45. 37 I Want to Go Home
  46. 38 That’s Always Going to Be a Problem
  47. 39 Medevac
  48. 40 We are Better Than This
  49. 41 A Rising Fever
  50. 42 They’ve Gone, All Gone
  51. 43 Reunion
  52. 44 Now Everyone Knows About This Family
  53. 45 I Want to Go Back to Our Bilo House
  54. 46 Election
  55. 47 Back in Biloela
  56. 48 We Did It
  57. 49 Afterwards
  58. Postscript: Priya
  59. Acknowledgements
  60. About the authors