News

The Ukrainian community of St Albans has reacted with an intense desire to take control of their future after a public meeting was called by the Association of Ukrainians in Victoria (AUV) on 29 September 2019. Over 70 people were present, and a dozen community members volunteered after this public meeting, to take part in talks to resurrect the St Albans Branch.

“We’ve had a great result in St Albans” said Slawko Kohut, President of the Association of Ukrainians in Victoria (AUV). Mr Kohut was also appointed Administrator by the AUV Board and led the public meeting and subsequent talks to an extremely positive outcome.

At these talks, four people put their hands up to create an interim management committee to lead community affairs towards an Annual General Meeting. These people include Luba Morrissy, Nick Angelowitsch, Aleksandra Harasemcuk and Katrina Protyniak. This group is representative of a cross-section of the local community and are well placed to regenerate collaboration in the St Albans area.

The St Albans Branch is quite active with a seniors group, an arts group, a social club, a local radio station and a host of cultural events in their calendar.

The Branch was placed under administration in early September after repeated requests for financial reports and membership lists were disregarded by the previous leadership. These reports are an annual regulatory requirement of the Australian Charities and Not-for-profit Commission and non-submission can have serious repercussions on status of the Association of Ukrainians in Victoria.

We wish the St Albans community every success in the coming months to form a permanent committee of management and move forward.

A few months ago, we introduced you to Kirrily Manning, an Australian Occupational Therapist (OT) playing a key role working to develop the OT profession in Ukraine. You can read more about her story here in English and here in Ukrainian. 

Throughout the years that Go Global, Ukraine ran at Curtin University (2009-2013) led by Kirrily, over 70 students from occupational therapy, speech therapy, physiotherapy and nutrition travelled to Ukraine. The key focus of this program was to up-skill orphanage care staff for children with disabilities so that every day care practices could become more therapeutic in nature.

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Currently there are too many mixed messages from the President and those in his administration.

This  causes   unnecessary tension in civil society . International partners and stakeholders are also calling for answers.

The Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organisations,( the peak body for Ukrainians in Australia )   joins with the Ukrainian World Congress (UWC) in asking for clarity and transparency from the government of Ukraine regarding any agreement to hold elections in areas of Ukraine currently occupied by Russia.

The AFUO  reaffirms that Ukraine must never agree to Russian demands regarding Ukrainian elections, or Ukraine’s constitutionally mandated strategic course of NATO and EU integration.

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The Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS National) is currently recruiting Ukrainian interpreters to join our panel of contract service providers. We have an increasing demand for Ukrainian interpreters and we are looking to recruit new service providers immediately.

TIS National is an interpreting service provided by the Department of Home Affairs for people who do not speak English and for agencies and businesses that need to communicate with their non-English speaking clients.

TIS National has more than 40 years’ experience in the interpreting industry and we provide;

• Immediate phone interpreting
• Pre-booked phone interpreting
• On-site interpreting
• Illegal Maritime Arrival (IMA) interpreting

The TIS National immediate phone interpreting service is available 24 hours a day, every day of the year for the cost of a local call for any person or organisation in Australia who needs an interpreter.

The National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters (NAATI) sets and maintains the professional standards for translating and interpreting in Australia. Having NAATI certified interpreters ensures requirements for interpreting services are met at a professional level, supports demand for services and acts as a bridge for communication. Most importantly it ensures the community has accessibility to services.

Current minimum requirements for certification include satisfying English language requirements and completing a 10 week on-line course. Due to our current demand we are willing to consider applicants who have not yet met these requirements. Applicants would however be required to provide references outlining any experience they may have had in this field and they would also be required to undertake a phone interview with one of our Interpreter Liaison Officers (ILO’s).

Should you wish to discuss further the opportunities available for Ukrainian speakers to become interpreters with TIS National, please contact our Interpreter Liaison Team on 1300 132 621

More information on the requirements for becoming a TIS National Interpreter can be found here;

https://www.tisnational.gov.au/en/Interpreters/Interpreter-recruitment/Career-opportunities-for-interpreters

Please note applicants must be an Australian citizen, permanent resident or a New Zealand citizen residing in Australia.

Nobody’s Soldier follows the extraordinary life of Andrii Antonenko. Born in Ukraine in 1922, shortly before the Communist purge of the Kulaks, he and his family were forced from their farm land and transported to a labour camp in the Arctic Circle. Andrii escaped the camp at a tender age and what ensued was a tale of extraordinary resilience and survival.

25 September 2019 at 6.30pm

Readings Bookstore, 701 Glenferrie Road, Hawthorn

For bookings and more information https://www.nobodyssoldier.com/