Perth's retiring Catholic Archbishop, Barry Hickey, has revealed he
regrets not having been more outspoken on social issues because of fears
grants to the Church could have been cut if it was too critical of
government policies.
"In accepting government grants the Church's role as an advocate of the poor can be blunted," he said.
"While
I am proud of the broad range of social work in which the Church is
involved, I think I should have been more vocal about social issues such
as the plight of the homeless, Aboriginals, the disadvantaged and
refugees.
"I regret not having been vocal enough because there was the knowledge to do so from Church welfare agencies."
Archbishop
Hickey, who has a master's degree in social work, has also called for a
review of government policy on asylum seekers, who should be processed
in more open, short-term centres where they can mix with the community,
as they do in Leonora.
He said asylum seekers should only be
confined for health, identity and security checks.
They would still
report periodically to authorities but any further processing could be
carried out while they lived in the general community.
"Arrivals by plane are dealt with in the community," he said. "That should also be the case for those who arrive by boat.
"The Leonora centre is the best I've seen in terms of respecting people's dignity."
While he was not opposed to processing asylum seekers overseas, it should involve the UN High Commissioner for Refugees.
While asylum seekers would be taken by Australia, they could also be taken by other countries, too.
Archbishop
Hickey agreed with Premier Colin Barnett that any unaccompanied minors
arriving by boat should not be sent to Malaysia for processing.
He
also said refugees should have the chance to share their stories, which
could change the public's perception of asylum seekers and result in
them being treated more fairly.
He agreed there was some
legitimacy to concerns that while Australian soldiers were fighting in
Afghanistan, young, fit Afghan men were seeking refuge in Australia.
But
there was an obligation to hear their stories as well.
Archbishop
Hickey believed many Australians were frightened of an invasion from
the north and felt vulnerable.
They saw the arrival of asylum seekers as
a type of invasion.
But people should not be fearful of asylum
seekers and should play a part if there was an international glut of
refugees, as Australia had been many years ago with boat people from
Vietnam.
As he prepares to stand down, the Archbishop - whose
resignation has been accepted by the Pope after he reach the mandatory
retirement age of 75 - said he was optimistic about the future of the
Church, despite a fall in regular Sunday Mass attendance to just 15 per
cent.