ABOUT US

At the Institute of the Sisters of Mercy National chapter in 2004 commitment to supporting asylum seekers and refugees was given high priority.

As part of the relief and development work of the Sisters of Mercy, Mercy Refugee Service is entrusted to serve without discrimination the uprooted and displaced people in our world.

We understand our fundamental purpose to be the commitment to asylum seekers, to the internally displaced and refugees. More than giving material assistance we try to accompany the refugees, to listen to them and to enable them to have a voice.

Working with Refugees

Mercy Refugee Service's approach to working with refugees reflects the principles of Catherine McAuley, the foundress of the Sisters of Mercy. Following Catherine's tradition of Mercy, Mercy Refugee Service seeks:

to give people a key to their own independence by building their capacity through education and skills training;
to pay particular attention to providing education and training for women, recognising their key role in society;
to work in partnership with local people, responding to the needs articulated by local people;
to be informed by the broader local context and community in order to understand a situation and respond in the most appropriate way; and
to attend to the most immediate needs first, before expanding where possible.

Since its inception in 1983, Mercy Refugee Service has worked in a number of countries, including in Asia, South America, Africa and the Pacific, placing more than 30 sisters and others in refugee placements, often in partnership with the Jesuit Refugee Service. Currently we are involved in the support and local integration of West Papuan refugees in the border area of papua New Guinea and West papua. We are also working in education programs in Southern Sudan. Today, Mercy Refugee Service continues to support refugee projects in Australia with sisters working in detention centres, community settlement of refugees and advocacy.

Read about Mercy Refugee Service projects...