More than 4 million people have fled Ukraine since Russian forces began their offensive in late February, in what is one of the world's worst-ever refugee crises.
In its response to the crisis, the Australian government in March announced it would priorities , a stance that remains in place.
Since February 23, more than 6,000 mostly temporary visas have been granted to Ukrainians in the country and hundreds more to Ukrainians elsewhere.
As of the first week of April, more than 1,700 of these visa holders had arrived in Australia, according to the Department of Home Affairs.
Ukrainian refugees arriving in Australia will be offered a three-year temporary humanitarian visa with access to Medicare and the ability to work and study.
Evacuees from Mykolayiv find temporary shelter at the station upon their arrival to Odesa, southern Ukraine on March 29, 2021 Source: ABACA
"The department will provide further advice to support the transition of eligible and interested Ukrainians onto a Temporary (Humanitarian Concern) visa in due course," a Home Affairs spokesperson said.
"Further, the government will work closely with the Ukrainian community to ensure permanent visa options are made available to this cohort at an appropriate time."
'War is war and civilians are suffering'
These pathways are the most recent offered by an Australian government in reaction to global events over recent decades, including the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
It comes amid ongoing criticism of the country's policy of offshore detention for those arriving by boat, which has seen asylum seekers spend years in immigration facilities in Nauru and Manus Island and .
SBS News:
SBS Pashto Executive Producer Abdullah Alikhil was working as a journalist in Afghanistan before he fled the country due to war, arriving in Australia as a refugee in 2012.
He said there are similarities and differences in Australia's responses to the conflicts in Afghanistan and Ukraine.
“As an Afghan myself, I’ve gone through the same situation throughout the years and I know how awful and very inhumane this act [of war] is,” he said.
“In comparison (between Afghanistan and Ukraine wars), I say it's the same, politically it might be different, but war is war and civilians are suffering.”
Australia’s humanitarian intake from Afghanistan did not strike a uniform approach during the two decades of war in the country, Mr Alikhil said, pointing to a disparity in the intake for the program introduced by Canberra to offer a settlement pathway to Afghan Locally Engaged Employees (LEEs) who served alongside the Australian forces.
He said there were cases where LEEs waited years for a response from the Australian government regarding their migration status, a process which was later given priority as the threat level grew in the weeks before the Taliban invaded Afghanistan in mid-2021 and in the months following.
In the March 29 Federal Budget, the government announced that Australia's humanitarian intake will remain at 13,750, while separately providing 16,500 places for Afghan nationals across four years from 2022-23.
Australian troops board an evacuation flight in the Karmisan Valley, Uruzgan province, 2011. Source: ADF
A Home Affairs spokesperson said the government response to the situation in Afghanistan provides an "option for permanent resettlement in Australia".
"By comparison, the Temporary Humanitarian Concern (subclass 786) visa provides Ukrainian nationals with a three-year temporary visa, focusing on ensuring that they have appropriate settlement support while in Australia during this period of instability," the department said.
"Between 21 March 2020 and 28 February 2022, more than 5,166 Class XB refugee and humanitarian visa holders arrived in Australia for the first time."
The spokesperson added that the department continues to "give priority" to Afghans who have lodged Family visa applications, noting that a specialised team was set up to progress the caseload in the first quarter of 2021-22.
As of 25 March, 1,097 Family visas including 1,034 first stage Partner and Prospective Marriage visas have been granted, which is towards the minimum 5,000 grants to be provided over the next four years.
Mr Alikhil said the Afghan community in Australia has welcomed the news of the Ukrainian intake.
“The response should have been like this, should have been that open. A lot of Ukrainians, to get a safe path to leave the conflict, should be welcomed.
“As an Afghan, when you put a definition on a refugee, that is a universal definition. A universal definition should not have any boundaries and should not discriminate and should be equally applied all over the world, from any country, any ethnicity and any colour.”
'Everyone who is fleeing wars should be afforded support and safety'
Refugees have been arriving from Somalia for more than 30 years, peaking in the years following the start of the African country’s civil war in 1991.
SBS Somali Executive Producer Hassan Jama believes refugees and asylum seekers should be provided safety no matter the conflict they are fleeing.
“There is a universal agreement that Ukrainians are going through terrible devastation in their country, there is a war going on and we can all see it on television screens.
“People who are fleeing from that war or any other war need to be supported and welcomed to this country and should be offered safety and security and I think the Australian government's announcement that it will welcome refugees from Ukraine is generally welcomed and everyone agrees.”
Mr Jama points to the many instances across the world where people are fleeing conflicts, repressive governments and persecution.
Conflict-hit Somalia ranks among the world's most vulnerable nations to climate change, and is in the midst of a crippling drought. Source: AP
"Everyone who is fleeing wars should be afforded support and safety by every country including Australia.
“There is a feeling that every Australian refugee policy should be based on the need of the refugee and not on the location [they come from].”
The Home Affairs spokesperson said: "Australia’s Humanitarian Program is designed to provide permanent resettlement for refugees and people who are subject to persecution, substantial discrimination or significant harm."
"Each application is considered on its individual merit using current and comprehensive information on circumstances in the relevant country," the spokesperson added.
Impacts of the war in Iraq
SBS Arabic24 producer Saleem Al-Fahad arrived in Australia as a refugee from Iraq in 2012.
He said the Ukrainian crisis conjures up strong feelings among members of the Australian Iraqi community, many of whom fled conflict in their homeland.
“A war is a war, of course one of the results of war is the crises, many people will be forced to leave their homes, some of them are displaced in their countries, others will look for another result, this applies to both Iraq and Ukraine.
“The Iraqi community here in Australia remembered the same suffering and they actually support the Ukrainian people. In terms of this crisis, in terms of the humanitarian hardships after the war, [Iraqis] knew exactly what war will result in.”
In September 2015, the federal government announced it would resettle an extra 12,000 people displaced by conflict in Syria and Iraq, which was on top of those who were also granted visas within Australia’s humanitarian program.
Among the minorities that fled Iraq due to the conflict were the Kurdish-speaking Yazidis.
SBS News:
In 2014, militants from the Islamic State group swept into parts of northern Iraq where Yazidi people lived for centuries.
Many were held captive and killed, while others fled.
SBS Kurdish Acting Executive Producer May Khalil said Yazidi refugees have been resettled in Australia since December 2015, including in regional New South Wales and Queensland.
“Wagga Wagga, New South Wales was the first to receive Yazidi refugees. They have been resettled also in Coffs Harbour and Toowoomba in Queensland,” she said.
“As a result of COVID and the international border closures, there haven't been many recent arrivals, but we could say there are approximately 1,500 to 2,000 Yazidis who have so far been resettled in Australia.”
The Yazidi community and Kurdish community at large support the Ukrainian intake, Ms Khalil said, though more support needs to be offered to help them find their feet.
“The main support, I would say and on the top of the list would be, mental health support, community support, and government support such as accommodation, learning language and so on.”
