Sunday, November 30, 2008

Confidence training for Asylum Seekers

In line with Free Debate's commitment to assisting the under-privileged, Free Debate ran a training course for asylum seekers. The purpose of the course was to assist asylum seekers to develop confidence and clear public speaking skills.

The course ran on Wednesay nights for four weeks at the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre. Free Debate trained 12 newly-arrived asylum seekers from countries such as Sri Lanka, Cameroon and Pakistan. Participants debated several topics including a thorough and interesting debate on the merits of prisoners being able to vote. The group also recieved practical training on negotiation skills and engaged in useful training exercises.

Free Debate looks forward to new opportunities to work with asylum seekers. Also, many thanks to the participants, Michelle Newton and the ASRC for their help in this collaboration.