“It’s called ‘shaking the house’. In Iran there is a custom that before the New Year people must clean the house upside down. Shake the carpet, clean everything, and paint the wall. Everything is sparkling and polished. Everyone wears their new clothes. Even the poorest people buy something new. People try to help others that are less fortunate than them so they can feel the happiness too”.

In preparation for Persian New Year, Ladan dedicates several days solely to cleansing and reflecting on the year that was, while placing hope in the year ahead. With an emphasis on forgiveness, friendship, love and respect, Nowruz (Persian New Year) is shrouded in symbolism and rituals signifying family values, health, prosperity, nutrition and gratitude. Literally translating as ‘New Day’ in Persian, Nowruz begins when the season changes from Winter to Spring. The moment the earth has completed its one year orbit around the sun, marks the first day of Persian New Year.

Celebrating the beginning of Nowruz is an important event shared with family and friends. A dish is commonly placed outside the front door, containing objects such as rice, money, water, bread and salt. This dish is to be brought in by the first person who enters the house. “In this way, the first person that comes inside brings with them prosperity, health, happiness and love, as well as their personality” explains Ladan. A clock positioned in the middle of the dining table functions as a signifier for the end of Winter and the beginning of Spring. “Everybody is watching the clock for the New Year to start. The clock is also there as a symbol, so next year everyone knows they have to be on time”. A signal sounds, (resembling cannon fire) to mark the New Year, family and friends embrace and kiss each other in a circle. Ladan offers guests rosewater to wash their hands; “when you come to our house for Persian New Year we treat you”.

Ladan’s kitchen table pays tribute to Nowruz for the entire period of the New Year celebrations. A table setting, known as the Haft-Seen is a collection of seven items beginning with the letter S. These seven items symbolise wishes for the year ahead; one that is healthy, happy and prosperous, and remain on the table for the 13 days of Nowruz. “Senjed (Russian olive) and Seer (garlic) have nutritious value and are healthy, Serkeh (vinegar) for health and cleansing, and patience, so you have a nice healthy life and patience. The apple; Sib, is both nutritious and healthy and also represents beauty. Samanoo, a sweet pudding, made from wheat sprouts is pure, but requires patience, so you must have patience in your life, so your New Year is prosperous. Sabzeh, wheat sprouts or lentils are grown to specific height and are a symbol for growth and life. And finally, Sumac, the spice of life, so your life will be full of sourness and sweetness; the spicy life. Sumac makes the food tasty so it makes your life tasty”.

In addition to the seven core objects required for the Haft-Seen, Ladan includes extra items on the table; hard boiled eggs, dyed with red onion skins, to represent fertility. Dry rice, symbolising food. Coins for prosperity and wealth. A book of poetry by the famous Persian poet, Hafiz, is also placed on the table, alongside a mirror, candles, a prayer book, hyacinths and a goldfish. “Everyone sits around the table, waiting for the second that the New Year starts. Candles, so there will always be light and so one is enlightened. The goldfish and the hyacinths signify both life and Spring. People can look in the mirror and see their reflection and reflect on the year that passed and pray for the best for the year ahead”.

Originally born in Tehran, Ladan is greatly influenced by the cuisine of her mother’s birthplace; a village called Arab Khayl in the Mazandaran province in the North of Iran, near the Caspian Sea. “This is something my mother used to cook and offer guests. Mint has a warm temperature and fish has a cold temperature. Persian food is a mixture of texture and the natural effects of the herbs and foods together. It is tasty but is balanced”. Ladan’s Sydney garden of fig and pomegranate trees, fresh herbs and spices, is a testament to both the Mediterranean climate of her ancestry and her appreciation for the final details of creation.

“When you are going for a holiday at least you know for how long. But we came just with our clothes”.

Ladan left Iran in 1996 for neighbouring Pakistan where she applied through the United Nations and the Australian Embassy for refuge. After more than three years of waiting, Ladan was granted the right to live in Australia and arrived on May the 29th 1999. After first settling in Adelaide, Ladan moved to Sydney where she entered TAFE and completed a tertiary preparation course where she received an outstanding award. In 2008 Ladan completed a bachelor degree in Medical Radiation Science, Radiation Therapy at Sydney University. A radiation therapist by profession, Ladan also volunteers as a community child care worker.

With only four days left of Nowruz, Ladan’s kitchen table is still covered with bowls of mixed nuts, chocolates, biscuits and pastries. To mark the end of the Nowruz, the thirteenth day is called Sizdeh Bedar, or Natures Day. Family and friends gather in public places, usually parks, and have a picnic, complete with music and dancing; “there are things that you cannot change with what is happening in the world. But people still want to celebrate and have fun”. Whatever is left on her table, Ladan will take with her to the gathering. Like the orbit of the earth around the sun, the 13 day celebration of Nowruz concludes in full circle. The Sabzeh (wheat sprout or green lentils) from the Haft-Seen is placed in a river or in running water, allowing the sprouts to return to nature and complete the cycle of life.

Recipe: Stuffed Fish with Saffron Rice (Mahii Shekam Pour and Polo Zaferani)

Ingredients:

• 3 Cups of long grain rice (rinsed well with water and a pinch of salt)
• 250g Of mixed herbs (Ladan used lemon balm, spearmint, orange mint or bergamot mint and ginger mint, and coriander)
• 1 Onion, finely chopped.
• 6 Garlic Cloves, finely chopped
• 1/2 Teaspoon turmeric
• 1/2 Teaspoon pepper
• 1 Teaspoons salt
• 3-4 Tablespoons pomegranate molasses
• 100g Finely chopped walnuts
• Olive oil
• 1 Whole fish (either whiting, barramundi or trout). De scaled, and ears removed with an incision through the belly for stuffing. Rub with salt

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 160c
2. Coat a large fry pan with a thin layer of oil and lightly fry the onion and garlic
3. Add herbs, turmeric, pepper, salt, for 3 to 5 minute until it softens.
4. Introduce the pomegranate molasses and walnuts. Heat on the stove until all moisture disappears and the mixture becomes a thick paste.
5. Allow to cool for 5-10 minutes.
6. Fill the fish with the stuffing and fry lightly on each side
7. Wrap in grease-proof paper, then foil, and bake for 20-25 minutes in the oven.
8. Allow to stand for 10 minutes in the foil before serving.
9. Serve with Saffron rice

Story and photos by Community Kouzina, in collaboration with the New Beginnings Festival for Refugee Week 2017, a series of creative events showcasing the artistic talents and cultural heritage of people from refugee background. Hosted by 107 in Redfern between 21 June and 2 July, the New Beginnings Festival is an initiative of Settlement Services International and is part of the broader New Beginnings: Refugee Arts & Culture Festival 2017.

Khadija McCarthy-Naidoo, who is in year 12 at Methodist Ladies’ College, is a winner in our Junior Blogging competition. Here she shares her heartfelt plea for the government to shut down the Manus and Nauru detention centres.

“She cries all the time. She has cut herself with a razor on her chin, face, and chest. Every night she wakes up and screams that someone is coming to take her back to Nauru.”

These are the words of a refugee mother, whose seven-year-old daughter fears returning to the detention centre on Nauru.

When will their suffering end?

An asylum seeker is someone fleeing from persecution in search of refuge. Under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, everyone has the right to seek asylum.

This declaration was signed by the Australian government. Yet, it continues to place asylum seekers in offshore detention on Nauru and Papua New Guinea’s Manus Island. Here they have been detained for indefinite periods of time, which breaks numerous laws and conventions.

“Under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, everyone has the right to seek asylum.”

In 2016, the PNG Supreme Court found the Manus detention centre to be illegal, and forced the Australian government to shut it down, but the government refuses to resettle these men in Australia. Meanwhile, other less-resourced countries exceed their global humanitarian and legal obligations.

Our government is more concerned with winning elections and offshore detention centres are key players in their game.These detention centres work as deterrence measures. They assure the asylum seekers’ time there is so appalling others won’t want to come to Australia – delivering on promises to ‘stop the boats’.

Close down the centres

The Human Rights Commission, Amnesty International and the United Nations have found that asylum seekers on Nauru and Manus have been threatened with rape and murder, and plead with Australia to close down the centres.

Iranian man, Omid Masoumali died after setting himself on fire, because he was told that he would remain on the Nauru for 10 more years. This sad act demonstrates how extreme the conditions he faced were, and how coping with a further decade was impossible.

“In 2015 on Nauru, there was roughly one incident of self-harm every two days.”

Incident logs from the Department of Immigration and Border Protection show that in 2015 on Nauru, there was roughly one incident of self-harm every two days.The people who work at detention centres are responsible for the wellbeing of the detainees, yet guards are reportedly abusing their powers, such as offering extra shower time in return for sexual favours.

There are also laws allowing centre employees to use force against any individual with seemingly no legal oversight. During a riot in 2014, witnesses claimed that Iranian asylum seeker Reza Berati was chased and beaten to death by a group of guards and locals. Only two locals have been charged with his murder.

Fully aware of what transpires, in 2015 the government passed the Border Force Act, which made disclosing information about detention centres illegal. Staff faced being imprisoned for speaking out against human rights abuses.

‘A festering wound’

The government has been running a scare campaign about asylum seekers, painting them as illegal or even terrorists. However, approximately 90 percent of asylum seekers arriving by boat are legitimate, and none have ever committed a terrorist offence in Australia

Former-Labor MP Melissa Parke described the system as “a festering wound that is killing people and eroding our national character and respect”.

We are being scrutinised by over 100 countries at the UN. Even North Korea claimed: “We still have serious concerns at the continued reports of … violence against refugees and asylum seekers and violation of the human rights of Indigenous peoples in Australia.”

There are so many practical and politically achievable things that can be done now to deliver a more humane and sustainable system. As people seeking asylum are pursuing a fundamental human right, and we all have the right to live in peace, care for our children, and live free from danger.

Will you speak up too?

This amazing activist gathered a group of black and white protesters, placed them in a bus, and took the fight for equality to rural Australia. On the way they got egged and rammed by other vehicles, but they also managed to edge Australia closer to equality.

As a young white Australian, I didn’t know who Charlie Perkins was until I was 26. I don’t know if this is typical of other young Aussies (but my guess – highly likely!). Now I wonder why Charlie Perkins is not as well-known as civil rights activist Rosa Parks, or celebrated Australian Professor Ian Frazer.  Here’s what I’ve learnt about Charlie, and why I think everyone should know about him.

Early years

Charles (Charlie) Perkins was born in Alice Springs to Hetty Perkins, an Elder of the Eastern Arrernte people, and Martin Connelly. His mother was born to a white father and an Arrernte mother, while his father was born to an Irish father and a Kalkadoon mother.

Charlie was educated in Alice Springs, then Adelaide and then Sydney. He graduated from the University of Sydney in 1966, becoming the first Aboriginal man in Australia to graduate from university.

The Freedom Rides

In the early 60s, overt discrimination was a fact of life for Aboriginal people. It wasn’t unusual for rural shops and cafes to refuse to serve Aboriginal people, and for picture theatres to be segregated. There were massive discrepancies between Indigenous and white people when it came to living, education and health conditions (50 years later, things aren’t much better).

The world had just witnessed the 1961 US Civil Rights Freedom Riders, who had ridden buses in a challenge to racial segregation on public buses. Charlie and a few other students saw this and, inspired, kicked off their own Freedom Ride in 1965.

The premise was simple – gather a busload of concerned white and black people, put them in said bus, and drive around rural and outback Australia to raise public awareness of racial intolerance.

Conflicts and wins

The activists targeted acts of blatant discrimination in rural New South Wales towns. An RSL club in Walgett at the time refused to let Aboriginal people enter, even those who were ex-servicemen. So the activists took their bus to protest at Walgett. Afterwards, an unidentified driver rammed the Freedom Bus, forcing it off the road. Unfortunately for that driver, a cadet reporter had come along with the Freedom Riders and the incident made headlines across the world.

Later, Charlie and his party focused their attention on the swimming pool at Moree, where the local council had always barred Aboriginal people. They held a community meeting where the Moree residents agreed to lift the ban.

The students headed on to Boggabilla and Tenterfield, only to hear that Indigenous kids were being refused entry to Moree’s pool again. They unanimously decided to go back to Moree, this time to a much more hostile welcome.

When we got down to the pool I said, ‘I want a ticket for myself and these ten Aboriginal kids behind me. Here’s the money.’ ‘Sorry, darkies not allowed in’Charlie Perkins, excerpt from ‘A B****rd Like Me’

Hundreds of Moree locals, including community leaders, threw eggs and tomatoes at the Freedom Riders. The Moree protest was broadcast across Australia, and under pressure the council again reversed the ban on Aboriginal swimmers.

Today the Freedom Rides are considered a historic protest movement in Australia.

Standing up for what’s right

Of course this is only one small facet of Charlie’s colourful life. He was also a professional soccer player at one stage; he married and raised three children.

The rides were just the start of Charlie’s illustrious lifetime of Aboriginal activism. In the lead up to the 1967 referendum to allow Aboriginal people to be included in censuses, Charlie played a key role in advocating for a yes vote. The constitutional amendment passed – hurrah Australia!

In 1969 Charlie became a public servant, firstly with the Office of Aboriginal Affairs before moving on to a swathe of other influential roles for Aboriginal policy. Another first: in 1981 he became the first Aboriginal person to be a permanent head of a Federal Government department. Throughout his career he was a strong critic of the government’s policies on Indigenous affairs and was well known for his fiery comments – like when he called the Liberal-Country Coalition Government in Western Australia “racist and redneck”.

Charlie was awarded an Officer of the Order of Australia in 1987.

An inspiration

I’m so immensely humbled by what Charlie achieved in his lifetime; he’s inspired me to keep standing up for the right thing, especially in our own backyard.