Refugee home but without his stray cat

Kuwait-born Palestinian Aladdin Sisalem landed in Melbourne last night to begin a new life after spending 10 months alone at the remote Manus Island detention centre in Papua New Guinea.

Mr Sisalem, 25, was granted a five-year humanitarian visa and freed from detention on Friday after a long campaign by his supporters.

But attention has now turned to a stray cat called Honey.

Mr Sisalem adopted Honey when he arrived at the Manus Island camp in December 2002.

After landing in Melbourne last night, Mr Sisalem said: "She has been with me since I was detained. She was the only companion I had".

Honey was expected to fly to Port Moresby on Sunday, but the International Organisation for Migration, which runs the Manus Island camp, refused to allow the cat to travel.

Now, an international campaign has been launched to bring her to Australia, with donors overseas offering to foot her travel bill and quarantine costs.

Refugee activist Matt Hamon, who wrote to Mr Sisalem daily on the internet, said Honey kept his friend sane.

"She was just a stray cat and no one owned her so he adopted her", he said.

"As soon as he knew that he was free . . . the first thing that he said to me was I can't take Honey".

Mr Hamon said he had had dozens of offers of help to bring Honey to Australia.

"There's even a $500 reward for the person who catches the cat and puts it on a plane", he said.

Australian Democrats leader Andrew Bartlett has thrown his weight behind the campaign.

"Whilst it might sound like a small thing, I think for Aladdin it's a significant thing, and he certainly could do without some last-minute stress or distress given all that he's gone through", Senator Bartlett said on ABC radio.

Mr Sisalem was advised of his freedom last week by an e-mail from the Australian Immigration Department. He flew to Melbourne via Cairns after a 48-hour stopover in Port Moresby.

Last night, he said he was looking forward to a rest after travelling for two days.

He will stay with a family in Prahran, with more than 1000 people volunteering to host him in Melbourne.

Mr Sisalem, a mechanic, said he hoped to get a job in Melbourne but was willing to travel interstate to find work.

"Hopefully Melbourne will be a good place for me to stay", he said.

He thanked his large network of supporters, but said his solitary confinement was unnecessary.

"I don't think there was any reason for what happened to me", he said.

"I just needed Australian protection and help and thank God finally I have it".

Mr Sisalem was taken to Manus Island after attempting to sail to Australia and being picked up on the Torres Strait island of Saibai on December 21, 2002.

While the remote island housed hundreds of detainees at the time, Mr Sisalem had lived there alone since July last year.

The Manus Island centre is now empty but will remain open until at least October, at a cost of $250,000 a month.