Petition to free children from detention
Three-year-old Tharunicaa and five-year-old Kopika Murugappan have been in detention since March 2018.
The AMA has been campaigning for the release of these Sri Lankan children and their parents from immigration detention on Christmas Island amid grave concerns about the negative impact on their development.
A recent photo of Tharunicaa (left) and Kopika on Christmas Island.The Australian-born sisters and their Tamil asylum seeker parents, Nades and Priya, were a valued and integrated part of the regional Queensland town of Biloela but were removed by authorities and have been in immigration detention for more than 1000 days while their cases for asylum remain in the court system.
"We are very concerned about the harms being caused to these two young children by being in detention for so long and at such a crucial time in their development," AMA President Dr Omar Khorshid said.
"The first 2000 days of life is critical for children, and early childhood experiences have lasting effects. Continued detention is most likely causing these two little girls avoidable developmental harm."
The AMA, together with countless other medical and community organisations, have called for their release.
To show your support, please add your name to the AMA petition of doctors calling for the compassionate release of Australian born children from detention.