On Friday 22 September, Marrickville Legal Centre (MLC) hosted a morning tea to celebrate the launch of our Immigration Advice Clinic.
The morning tea was hosted at Stirrup Gallery, Addison Road Community Centre, where special guests Federal Member for Reid, Sally Sitou MP, Addison Road Community Organisation CEO Rosanna Barbero, and MLC Chair Graham Jenkins were joined alongside Fragomen and MLC staff, MLC board members, pro bono and community partners, and other supporters and community members.
Proceedings began with speeches from MLC Assistant Principal Solicitor, Lucy Carroll and Fragomen Partner, Sasko Markovski. Each focused on the valuable impact our collaboration has already begun to have and will continue to have on the most vulnerable in our community.
Sally Sitou MP then spoke of a family she was connected to through a visit she made to a local primary school. The family had recently settled in the country, however, upon receiving inadequate legal advice, struggled to attain the correct visas to remain in the country. Serendipitously, Sally had not long before that learned about the Immigration Advice Clinic and reached out to MLC to assist the family. MLC, through the Immigration Advice Clinic, provided the family with the right legal advice which allowed them to course-correct and lawfully remain in Australia.
Rosanna Barbero, Addi Road\’s CEO then spoke of her firsthand experience of witnessing hundreds of temporary visa holders, particularly international students, during the pandemic gathering at Addi Road with nowhere to go and no support while they could no longer physically attend school. She spoke of the MLC solicitors who listened and provided legal advice where they could during this challenging time. This was when the need for MLC to expand into the immigration service area really came to light.
Temporary visa holders often find themselves in vulnerable situations. They make lack knowledge about Australian laws and where to seek help. Some are reluctant to seek legal support our of fear of having their visa cancelled, while others wrongly believe they are ineligible for crucial support as non-citizens.
The pro bono partnership will work to support our clients with visa issues through a fortnightly Immigration Advice Clinic, Thursdays 3-5pm.
Are you a temporary visa holder and need free legal help? Make an appointment with a lawyer, call 02 9559 2899 or submit a web enquiry.  For media enquiries contact Tu Le, tle@mlc.org.au
