Palm Sunday – Walk for Justice, Respect and Kindness

You are warmly invited to join the 2026 Palm Sunday Walk for Justice, Respect and Kindness. 

Each year, this gathering brings people of faith and goodwill together to stand in solidarity with refugees and asylum seekers, affirming our shared commitment to dignity, compassion and welcome.

For generations, Palm Sunday has been a moment for Christians to publicly witness peace and social justice for all.  In that same spirit, we come together again in 2026 to call for communities where every person feels safe, respected and valued – especially those seeking protection.

Event Details

Sunday 29 March 2026

1.00 pm – Gather on Princes Bridge with banners and placards
1.30 pm – Walk to Lower Terrace, Birrarung Marr
2.00–3.30 pm – Speakers and music at Lower Terrace, Birrarung Marr

Speakers will include Alice Pung (author “Growing up Asian in Australia”), and Cr Mohamed Semra, (now Mayor of Maribyrnong), a young Sudanese Australian who arrived as a child refugee.  The program will also include refugee speakers and musicians, and a segment by school students. 

This year’s walk celebrates the strength and beauty of our multicultural society.  As Australians, we come from many lands, we share a desire for peace, safety and fairness.  Standing together is a powerful reminder that fear and division must never erode the rich fabric of our diverse communities.

Justice for refugees and people seeking asylum means:

• Ensuring fair and fast assessment of claims for refugee status, so people are not left on short-term visas for years, requiring ongoing visa applications.  
• Providing dignity, not dependence — people need work and study rights, and access to Medicare while they wait for refugee claims to be assessed (which under current arrangements can take years).  
• Reuniting families by ensuring Family Reunion processes are timely – often people are separated from their children, parents and other loved ones for many years.  
• Bringing to safety the 30 or so asylum seekers still stranded in Port Moresby, PNG after 13 years of detention and exile.  Some are very sick and need urgent medical attention; others are at risk of destitution in PNG.  All are at risk of harm in a hostile community. 
• Ending the cruel policy of offshore processing and exiling people to Nauru.  Resettling refugees stranded in Indonesia since 2014 with no safe resettlement options because of Australia’s policies.  These people need a safe future. 
• Raising the refugee quota.  The current quota of 20,000 is positive but falls far short of both past commitments and global needs. 

Please join this public expression of faith, hope and solidarity. 

Together, we can help ensure Australia remains a place of welcome for all who seek safety.

By Kate Baines

Source:  Refugee Advocacy Network