RCOA Board members

Mr John Gibson (President)

John has held the position of President of RCOA and Convenor of Trustees of the Australian Refugee Foundation since January 2006. He has been engaged in the refugee sector in different capacities for more than 25 years. He was the founding chairperson of the Victorian Foundation for Survivors of Torture Inc (also known as Foundation House). He was also a Member (Part-Time) of the Refugee Review Tribunal for four years, during which time he dealt with asylum cases from a wide range of countries.

John has been engaged in projects analysing asylum systems in overseas countries as a Senior Associate with Eurasylum Ltd based in Brussels. He has been a Member of the Victorian Bar since 1981 with a specialist practice in refugee and migration law since 1999. He was junior counsel in two leading High Court cases – Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs v Yusuf (2001) 20 6 CLR 325 and NAGV and NAGW of 2002 v Minister for Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs  (2005) 213 ALR 668. He also recently appeared as junior counsel on behalf of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, intervening  as amicus curiae in  the High Court appeal from QAAH of 2004 v Minister for Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs.

John is the editor of a CD-ROM Legal Service and of a weekly email case-note service for migration practitioners. He has conducted training courses here and overseas on a variety of refugee-related issues and on several occasions made oral and written submissions to the Senate Legal and Constitutional Committee on Migration Bills.

Prof William Maley (Vice-President)

Professor Maley assumed the position of Foundation Director of the Asia-Pacific College of Diplomacy on 1 July 2003. He taught for many years in the School of Politics, University College, University of New South Wales, Australian Defence Force Academy, and has served as a Visiting Professor at the Russian Diplomatic Academy, a Visiting Fellow at the Centre for the Study of Public Policy at the University of Strathclyde, and a Visiting Research Fellow in the Refugee Studies Programme at Oxford University.

He is also a Barrister of the High Court of Australia and a member of the Australian Committee of the Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia Pacific (CSCAP). In 2002, he was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM). Professor Maley joined the Board of the Refugee Council in 1994 and served as Chair of the Board from 1998–2003. He has held the position of Vice President of the Council since 2006.

Dr Judyth Watson (Secretary)

Judyth Watson has been a co-opted member of the RCOA Board for one term (two years) and is currently Secretary and Chair of its Governance and Finance Subcommittee. Now retired, Judyth’s occupations included nursing and nursing education; 11 years as a member of the WA Parliament with two years as a Minister and more recently was employed for five years heading a statutory service for involuntary mental health patients.

In January 2000 she was a co-founder of the Coalition for Asylum Seekers, Refugees and Detainees (CARAD) in WA, formed to advocate for and provide settlement services for refugees on Temporary Protection Visas. Judyth co-founded CASE for Refugees, a legal service established to assist the transition of TPV holders to permanent residents and then citizens. She was a member of both original Boards and is now Secretary of CARAD Management Committee.

In July 2011, she was part of a three-member RCOA delegation to Malaysia that investigated the impact of the “Malaysia Solution” – the Government’s plan to exchange 800 asylum seekers for 4000 refugees – and to develop an informed response for RCOA.
For many decades Judyth has been a member and/or Chair of numerous boards and committees and understand the functions and obligations of Board members. She offers experience and commitment to the RCOA Board, as well as a passion for social and legal justice for refugees and the advancement of their rights.

Mr Lionel Conyer (Treasurer)

Lionel has been Honorary Treasurer of RCOA since November 2006 and is a Trustee of the Australian Refugee Foundation. An Accounting Consultant and Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia, Lionel has served as Honorary Treasurer of the Make a Wish Foundation since 2001. Lionel is a Chartered Accountant and holds a Bachelor of Commerce, Bachelor of Laws and Master of Business Leadership.

Ms Maureen Adamson

Maureen worked at the University of Tasmania in the Counselling Service, co-ordinating English as a Second Language courses for overseas and migrant students. In 1997, Maureen started as Business Manager with the Migrant Resource Centre (MRC) of Southern Tasmania before taking on the role of Executive Officer in 2002. Maureen resigned from the MRC in 2006 to undertake her own business managing and developing property in Hobart. At the MRC, Maureen oversaw the IHSS settlement program for refugees in addition to implementing the Department of Immigration settlement programs and Torture and Trauma services.

During Maureen’s time at the University, she was elected to the Council of the University of Tasmania and was President of the University’s General Staff Union.  At the MRC, Maureen served on the Executive of the National Council of Migrant Resource Centres which is now the Settlement Council of Australia. Elected to the RCOA Board in 2006, Maureen is a member of both the Governance and Finance and Settlement Subcommittees and a Trustee of the Australian Refugee Foundation.

Dr Elizabeth Biok

A solicitor at the Legal Aid Commission of NSW, Elizabeth Biok practices in the government law unit, covering immigration and social security matters. She represents asylum seekers at all levels of the refugee determination process as well as providing advice on matters which fall outside the IAAAS and Legal Aid guidelines. She is well-linked to the community legal centres in NSW and Victoria, and has been a volunteer at the Immigration Advice and Rights Centre and the Refugee advice and Casework Service. She sits on the board of both the Refugee Council of Australia and the Welfare Rights Centre.

Elizabeth has been active in monitoring human rights in Indonesia for some decades and speaks Indonesian. She is a member of the International Commission of Jurists and has participated in investigative missions to Indonesia, East Timor and Papua New Guinea. 
Elizabeth has been assisting legal and human rights organizations in Indonesia and East Timor since the early 1990s. She is a regular visitor to the Legal Aid Institute and other legal non-government organizations in Indonesia.

In 2009 she was awarded a Doctorate in Juridical Studies for research on refugees in the Asia Pacific region.

Ms Sonia Caton

Sonia has been involved with immigration decision-making (both as a decision maker and as a legal representative) and asylum seekers for more than 20 years. A Brisbane-based solicitor/migration agent, Sonia has a long-standing connection with the Refugee and Immigration Legal Services (RAILS) as previous Chair of the Management Committee and Director and Principal Solicitor of that Service.

Sonia continues to volunteer as an advisor for the Service and undertakes work on a consultancy basis for other community legal centres specialising in immigration advice. This experience, in conjunction with policy work, authorship of legal texts and membership of other not-for-profit boards has enabled Sonia to contribute to a number of RCOA reform submissions, media press releases, media responses, attend government advisory meetings, appear before Senate Inquiries on behalf of RCOA and contribute to the governance of the organisation.

Mr Phil Glendenning

Phil is the Director of the Edmund Rice Centre, a social justice organisation that conducts research into the causes of poverty and inequity in Australia. He was one of the co-founders of Australians for Native Title and Reconciliation (ANTaR), was for ten years its National President and is currently a Board member. He has served on the Boards of the Australian Council for Social Service, various committees of the Australian Council for Overseas Aid, and the Centre for an Ethical Society. He has served as a Board Member of the Refugee Council of Australia since 2009.

In 2008 Phil was recognised by the Australian Council for International Development with the Sir Ronald Wilson Award for Human Rights, and in 2007 was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the Australian Catholic University.

In recent years Phil led the Edmund Rice Centre's research team for the Deported To Danger series which monitored the safety of rejected asylum seekers in 22 countries, and resulted in an internationally-screened documentary, A Well Founded Fear. This monitoring work continues.

Recently he has spoken often in the media about his recent visits to the Pacific Island nation of Kiribati where he says residents are already feeling the effects from rising oceans and climate change. With a background in education, Third World development and political science, today Phil is primarily involved in human rights education, peace and reconciliation work and advocacy on climate change in Australia and internationally.

Ms Wah Wah Naw

Wah Wah Naw is a Karen woman who was resettled as a refugee from the Thai-Burma border to Australia in 1999. She finished high school in Australia and then completed a degree in nursing. She worked as a Registered Nurse at Bankstown Hospital in Sydney for three years before joining STARTTS as a bicultural counsellor four years ago. She is now a counsellor in the Direct Services program at the NSW Service for the Treatment and Rehabilitation of Survivors of Torture and Trauma (STARTTS).

Wah Wah speaks Karen and Burmese. She is a member of the Australian National Committee on Refugee Women (ANCORW) and was chosen to represent ANCORW at the 2011 UNHCR NGO Consultations in Geneva, where she worked closely with RCOA on advocating on issues for refugees in the Asia-Pacific region.

Dr Ali Nur

Ali is an Australian citizen originally from Somalia who has a Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery from the Somali National University and a Master of Public Health from Sydney University. He worked with refugees on the Somali-Ethiopian border between 1979 and 1982 and arrived in Australia on a scholarship organised by Community Aid Abroad.

Ali has worked in Indigenous communities in Central Australia and has managed multi-disciplinary teams in the health and community services in the Northern Territory and overseas. His overseas assignments include working with Oxfam in East Timor, India and Sri Lanka in emergency and humanitarian response missions. He lived in Vietnam for two years.

Ali has been Director of Melaleuca Refugee Centre for two years. Melaleuca is the sole provider in the Northern Territory of Humanitarian Settlement Services, the Program of Assistance for Survivors of Torture and Trauma, and torture and trauma counselling to asylum seekers in detention facilities. Melaleuca also runs community development projects for emerging communities.

Fr Maurizio Pettena

Father Maurizio Pettena is currently Director of the Australian Catholic Migrant and Refugee Office (ACMRO) and Consulter to the Pontifical Council for Migrants and Itinerant People. In this role he acts as an official Church voice as approved by the Australian Catholic Bishops’ Conference on issues relating to migrants and refugees. He also advises and serves the Conference at both a national and international level on migrant and refugee issues, including the development of Church policy. He serves as a channel of communication between Diocesan Offices and the Bishop’s Conference and provides a mechanism for effective consultation and coordination among Catholic bodies and other groups involved in migrant and refugee activities. As Director, he makes representations to Government and other bodies on matters relating to migrants and refugees.

The Catholic Church in Australia has a long history of migration not only assisting migrants but shaping migration flows. Since 1947 the Catholic Church has, through a formal structure and with a specific mandate and mission, assisted thousands of migrants and refugees to settle in Australia. Today this work is continued through ACMRO at a national level and State offices in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth and Darwin.

In January 2011 Fr Pettena was appointed Consulter to the Pontifical Council in recognition of over 20 years of pastoral experience dedicated to migrants and refugees. He has worked with migrants in many countries including his native Italy, Argentina, the Philippines and Australia and speaks four languages. He is a member of the order of Scalabrinians of Charles Borromeo which has a particular charism to work with migrants and refugees. He is a member of the Global Ecumenical Network on Migration and takes part in the World Council of Churches as Consulter on migrant and refugee issues.

Ms Jenny Semple

Jenny has been an organisational member of the RCOA Board for six years and chairs the RCOA Settlement Committee. She is currently CEO of the South East Region Migrant Resource Centre (SERMRC) and has held this position for 13 years. Jenny’s qualifications include a BA in Sociology, Graduate Diploma in Management and trained Lifeline Counsellor.
Jenny is a member of the Refugee Resettlement Advisory Council and a Board member of the Dandenong Community Aid and Advice Bureau. She sits on various state and regional committees in the community and with government departments.

As past president of the Settlement Council of Australia, in 2008 Jenny attended the UNHCR NGO consultation meetings in Geneva on global refugee resettlement and attended consultation meetings held in 2011. She has extensive understanding of refugee resettlement issues and challenges and has developed a strong network with refugee community leaders in the south-east region of Melbourne. She is able to promote pertinent issues associated with refugee resettlement through her work on various committees and boards. Jenny brings a range of skills and attributes to further the aims of RCOA including in governance, financial control management, risk management and strategic planning.

Dr Melika Sheikh-Eldin

Dr Melika Sheikh-Eldin was born in Eritrea and was educated as a marine biologist in Sudan, Egypt and Australia. Prior to her migration to Australia in 1992, Melika participated in providing support to her fellow countrymen and other refugees in camps in Eastern Sudan and she taught in the UNHCR Secondary School for Refugees in Kassala, Sudan for two years. She held positions with welfare agencies in Egypt supporting children to continue their education, and families to sustain themselves while awaiting transition to host countries.

Dr Sheikh-Eldin is responsible for strategic community relations involving ongoing dialogue and capacity-building partnerships with refugee communities and sector organisations for AMES in Victoria. More importantly, Melika oversees and mentors the successful and internationally recognized Community Guides Network, using members of a CALD community as integration guides for newly arrived refugees from the same cultural and linguistic background. This experience allows Melika to deliver new policy frameworks via formal consultation with community members and incorporate these learnings into the AMES Settlement Services model, while working with Managers through AMES to understand and incorporate the resulting implications for AMES wider education and employment programs.

She has served as a an executive member of the Federation of African Communities Council (FACC), the Horn of African Communities Network (HACN), a member of the RCOA Board for two terms and brings to the Board personal refugee experience, strategic community relations experience, excellent knowledge of settlement service systems in Australia,  experience in representing AMES and RCOA and presenting papers on refugee issues at national and international conferences at the UNHCR and in New Zealand, Japan, Jordan, Sweden and Sudan. Dr Melika was also part of the 2008 UNHCR Mission to Sudan and the 2011 UNHCR Refugee Women’s Dialogues.

Mr Bobby Whitfield

Bobby’s interesting experiences began when he narrowly escaped the civil war in Liberia. As a teenager, he took care of his five siblings in refugee camps in Guinea. Bobby’s experiences of abuse, brutality and poverty in refugee camps encouraged him to spend his life serving others. He pursued a career in teaching with the International Rescue Committee (IRC) School System for Liberian and Sierra Leonean Refugees where he taught for four years. He then moved to Conakry (the capital of Guinea) to teach English as a second language to business professionals and students at the University De Kofi Annan.

Bobby was resettled along with his five siblings in Australia in July 2003. In Australia Bobby has built an impressive career in community development. He has worked as the Centre Coordinator for the Annerley Literacy Centre and is presently the Senior Community Development Officer at the Multicultural Development Association, where his work involves community engagement, resourcing, planning, leadership training, capacity building, linking and empowerment with more than 15 new and emerging communities.

Bobby was the President of the Liberian Association of Queensland for four years until he was elected as the inaugural President of the Queensland African Communities Council (QACC).
Bobby is a regular presenter on refugee issues and experiences and also a guest lecturer at The University of Queensland for the Australia-Indonesia governmental collaboration on immigration training. He also serves on a number of advisory committees and reference groups, including the Queensland Government Multicultural Community Ministerial Advisory Committee (MCMAC) providing strategic advocacy and policy advice on multiculturalism and issues impacting on refugees including employment, education housing etc.

Bobby was elected to the Board of the Refugee Council of Australia in 2008 and again in 2010, and was recently the first person from Liberia to graduate with a Master’s degree from the University of Queensland.

Mr Muhama Yotham

Resettled to Australia six years ago from Tanzania – where he was a refugee for eight years – Muhama Yotham completed a Bachelor of Administrative Management at the University of South Australia while working as a settlement worker with the African Communities Council of SA. From 2009 to 2011, he worked as an employment consultant for two companies and has just started work as a community development officer with Uniting Care Wesley in Adelaide’s northern suburbs.

In 2009, Muhama was elected President of the Association of the Burundian Community in South Australia (ABCSA) and negotiated $200,000 in SGP funding over two years from DIAC for a project which linked his community with the Vietnamese community through a mentoring program. He led ABSCA through the development of its policies and procedures, the establishment of an office and the securing of $75,000 in funding to follow up the SGP project with ABCSA now considering a mentoring relationship with the SA Congolese community. In 2010, Muhama was elected to be a Board member and then Secretary of African Communities Council of SA, a peak African body in South Australia.