Activities included a street parade in Macquarie Mall, Iranian music, Vietnamese dancing, Sudanese singing, Indonesian entertainment, an African performance and belly dancing.

Liverpool resident Yassmen Yahya received a Refugee Week award for her work as the volunteer co-ordinator of the Liverpool Mandaean Resource Centre.

After fleeing to Jordan from war-torn Iraq in 2001, Ms Yahya came to Australia with her two daughters as refugees two years ago.

``The first reason was to be safe, the second to taste democracy because we didn't have it in our country and finally to be treated like human beings,'' she said.

In her work at the resource centre she supports people with settlement and other services, providing advice, referrals, case work, and training and information sessions.

The other award recipients were Akeel Abbas for ``encouraging respect and understanding for refugees in his school community'' and Kim Hoa Huynh who is a mentor to Vietnamese students.