Demand medivac for ill refugee Hatam Yekta
The issue
I came to Australia by boat aged 16 through the same journey that Hatam Yekta did. Since then, dealing with the unknown and uncertainties has been a relentless challenge. I recall the chilling possibility of being transferred to Papua New Guinea, but little did I know the magnitude of fear that decision holds. Today, it's horrifying to witness the condition of Hatam, a 36-year-old Kurdish-Iranian man who is severely ill and stranded in Port Moresby due to indifferent bureaucratic refusal to provide necessary medical evacuation.
Hatam Yekta was sent to Manus Island in 2013 after seeking asylum from Iran. Despite facing years of uncertainty and hardship under the offshore detention program, his request for medivac to Australia has been denied. This denial exists despite the pressing nature of his health condition which requires immediate and specialized medical attention unavailable in Papua New Guinea.
The Australian government's stance is that it's Papua New Guinea’s responsibility to care for the remaining 60 deportees. However, what about the shared human responsibility to ensure every individual gets the medical care they desperately need? Australia's policy of detention has placed people like Hatam in dire circumstances, and they cannot be abandoned by those who initiated this process.
Medical evacuation in circumstances like these is a matter of life and death. We urge the Australian government to reconsider and act with compassion. Healthcare is a fundamental right, and allowing a sick individual to suffer due to jurisdictional loopholes is unconscionable.
I call on fellow Australians and global citizens to stand with Hatam and show our government that we do not support such neglect. We believe every life is precious, and we have an obligation to provide refuge and care to those in dire need, as much as we believe in human rights and dignity.
Please sign this petition to demand that the Australian government allows for the immediate medical evacuation of Hatam Yekta. His life is too valuable and his suffering too immense to be ignored. Together, let's push for a humanitarian response and ensure Hatam receives the medical care he critically needs.
388
The issue
I came to Australia by boat aged 16 through the same journey that Hatam Yekta did. Since then, dealing with the unknown and uncertainties has been a relentless challenge. I recall the chilling possibility of being transferred to Papua New Guinea, but little did I know the magnitude of fear that decision holds. Today, it's horrifying to witness the condition of Hatam, a 36-year-old Kurdish-Iranian man who is severely ill and stranded in Port Moresby due to indifferent bureaucratic refusal to provide necessary medical evacuation.
Hatam Yekta was sent to Manus Island in 2013 after seeking asylum from Iran. Despite facing years of uncertainty and hardship under the offshore detention program, his request for medivac to Australia has been denied. This denial exists despite the pressing nature of his health condition which requires immediate and specialized medical attention unavailable in Papua New Guinea.
The Australian government's stance is that it's Papua New Guinea’s responsibility to care for the remaining 60 deportees. However, what about the shared human responsibility to ensure every individual gets the medical care they desperately need? Australia's policy of detention has placed people like Hatam in dire circumstances, and they cannot be abandoned by those who initiated this process.
Medical evacuation in circumstances like these is a matter of life and death. We urge the Australian government to reconsider and act with compassion. Healthcare is a fundamental right, and allowing a sick individual to suffer due to jurisdictional loopholes is unconscionable.
I call on fellow Australians and global citizens to stand with Hatam and show our government that we do not support such neglect. We believe every life is precious, and we have an obligation to provide refuge and care to those in dire need, as much as we believe in human rights and dignity.
Please sign this petition to demand that the Australian government allows for the immediate medical evacuation of Hatam Yekta. His life is too valuable and his suffering too immense to be ignored. Together, let's push for a humanitarian response and ensure Hatam receives the medical care he critically needs.
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Petition created on 24 June 2026