The Blue Mountains Refugee Support Group (BMRSG) met with political representatives in Canberra in July to lobby on behalf of refugees from Afghanistan.
Following the Taliban take-over of Afghanistan last year, three members of Blue Mountains Refugee Support Group have sponsored eight Afghan households for humanitarian visas, but only three visas have been issued so far.
Ninety two families have been sponsored through the Rural Australians for Refugees (RAR) program in total - 360 people. The majority of sponsored Afghans are Hazara, an ethnic minority long persecuted by the Taliban.
Louise Redmond, RAR national president and one of the Blue Mountains sponsors, said: "Blue Mountains sponsors believe Australia has a moral obligation to support vulnerable people in Afghanistan who assisted our defence and humanitarian efforts over the last 20 years. Rural Australians for Refugees is pleased our advocacy for extra visas has resulted in 16,500 extra places. But will this come too late for the people we're helping to survive?
"One Afghan woman sponsored for a visa spent 11 years helping disadvantaged men, women and children tortured by the Taliban. The woman provided a folder of Taliban execution threats which proved credible and imminent after translation by an authorised professional in Australia."
But Ms Redmond said the woman's application for a humanitarian visa has had no response from the Department of Home Affairs following a submission last year.
"The Afghan people we're supporting are struggling to survive increasing violence targeting Hazara communities across Afghanistan," she said.
BMRSG chairperson Kathie Herbert and a sponsor, said: "Australian defence, business and humanitarian resources enabled safe education, training and employment opportunities for Afghan girls and women, including Afghan minorities such as Hazaras. Girls went to school and women could study and work in human rights, or in areas like defence, education, policing, justice and domestic violence "
Joy Connor, another BMRSG member and sponsor, said "we understand that priority for visas is being given to people with skills to fill our skill shortage".
"[But] the Department of Home Affairs needs flexibility so we can also address our duty to long term mates. It is possible to do both."
Unprecedented applications
A Federal Government spokesperson said that since the fall of the government in Afghanistan, the immigration department has received an unprecedented number of applications for refugee and humanitarian visas, "which means it is taking longer than normal to respond".
"Applications are generally acknowledged in writing and processed as quickly as possible according to their date of receipt."
As at July 2022, 44,320 applications (comprising an estimated 199,516 applicants) have been lodged since August 2021.
Of these 50.4 per cent (20,448 applications/approximately 97,016 applicants) have been registered in departmental systems.
The spokesperson said processing times "can vary according to the particular circumstances of the applicant, their location (be it inside or outside their home country), and their ability to travel, provide documents or access to Australian government officials".
"The Department continues to prioritise permanent visas for Afghan evacuees on subclass 449 visas in Australia," said the spokesperson.
They said the processing of humanitarian visas for Afghan nationals "has been prioritised".
In 2021-22, more than 5,300 humanitarian visas were granted to Afghan nationals and as at July 29, 2022 more than 940 humanitarian visas have been granted to Afghan nationals since the start of July.
