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A review by tasmanian_bibliophile
Daughter of Bad Times by Rohan Wilson
4.0
‘If you want to remember who you are, you have to live in your mind.’
Like his previous two novels, ‘Daughter of Bad Times’ is set in Tasmania. But this is not the colonial Tasmania of ‘The Roving Party’ or ‘To Name Those Lost’, this is set in the future. A future in which people whose land has vanished under the rising sea levels become environmental refugees. A future in which the Eaglehawk MTC is both an immigration detention centre and a manufacturing plant. In this facility, refugees work. They work to pay off the debt they owe for their travel expenses, relocation, food and housing. And, if they are lucky enough to pay off their debt, perhaps one day they will be granted a visa.
The two main characters in this novel are Rin Braden, whose mother’s company built the Eaglehawk MTC, and Yamaan, her former lover, who is one of the environmental refugees interned there. Rin thought that Yamaan was dead, and she wants to try to free him.
I found this novel very uncomfortable to read. Firstly, because it isn’t hard to envisage a flood of environmental refugees at some stage soon and secondly, because it isn’t difficult to imagine such refugees being exploited and dehumanised. Not difficult at all.
For much of the novel, Rin Braden comes across as a spoilt rich child. She has manipulated Yamaan in the past, and her interest in freeing him seems to be motivated by her desire rather than his needs. But Rin is a little more complex than that. I found Yamaan much easier to understand.
What held my attention throughout this uncomfortable read was not so much the characters as the situation. Yes, I can envisage a private company running detention facilities focussed on profit. Yes, I can envisage a cynical government enabling such a model, knowing that those seeking refuge will never be able to pay off their debt to secure a visa. And yes, I can imagine such a government changing the rules so that a visa moves from being a remote possibility to the realms of absolute impossibility. And how better to reinforce the imbalance of power than to have people doing work which is usually computerised?
Rin wants to secure Yamaan’s release, but she cannot pay his debt. Only he can do that. So Rin decides to take matters into her own hands.
I finished this novel profoundly unsettled. The Eaglehawk MTC is a scary 21st century version of Port Arthur: environmental refugees have replaced transported convicts but have even less hope.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
Like his previous two novels, ‘Daughter of Bad Times’ is set in Tasmania. But this is not the colonial Tasmania of ‘The Roving Party’ or ‘To Name Those Lost’, this is set in the future. A future in which people whose land has vanished under the rising sea levels become environmental refugees. A future in which the Eaglehawk MTC is both an immigration detention centre and a manufacturing plant. In this facility, refugees work. They work to pay off the debt they owe for their travel expenses, relocation, food and housing. And, if they are lucky enough to pay off their debt, perhaps one day they will be granted a visa.
The two main characters in this novel are Rin Braden, whose mother’s company built the Eaglehawk MTC, and Yamaan, her former lover, who is one of the environmental refugees interned there. Rin thought that Yamaan was dead, and she wants to try to free him.
I found this novel very uncomfortable to read. Firstly, because it isn’t hard to envisage a flood of environmental refugees at some stage soon and secondly, because it isn’t difficult to imagine such refugees being exploited and dehumanised. Not difficult at all.
For much of the novel, Rin Braden comes across as a spoilt rich child. She has manipulated Yamaan in the past, and her interest in freeing him seems to be motivated by her desire rather than his needs. But Rin is a little more complex than that. I found Yamaan much easier to understand.
What held my attention throughout this uncomfortable read was not so much the characters as the situation. Yes, I can envisage a private company running detention facilities focussed on profit. Yes, I can envisage a cynical government enabling such a model, knowing that those seeking refuge will never be able to pay off their debt to secure a visa. And yes, I can imagine such a government changing the rules so that a visa moves from being a remote possibility to the realms of absolute impossibility. And how better to reinforce the imbalance of power than to have people doing work which is usually computerised?
Rin wants to secure Yamaan’s release, but she cannot pay his debt. Only he can do that. So Rin decides to take matters into her own hands.
I finished this novel profoundly unsettled. The Eaglehawk MTC is a scary 21st century version of Port Arthur: environmental refugees have replaced transported convicts but have even less hope.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith