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Asylum
seekers(refugees) Part One
Welcome to Australia it is an island and
a continent and consists of two land masses, the mainland and
Tasmania. In area it is the sixth largest country and the smallest
continent. It is about the size of the mainland states of the US,
excluding Alaska, and approximately 24 times the size of the UK
An asylum seeker
is a
person who has fled their own country and applied for protection as
a refugee, and is unable or unwilling to return due to a well
founded fear of being persecuted. The majority of
onshore asylum seekers actually arrive in Australia by air with a valid visa. They then apply for
onshore protection through Australia’s humanitarian program. Boat people
is a term that usually refers to
refugees,
or asylum seekers who emigrate
in boats
that are sometimes
old and crudely made. Who are in fact deemed legal arrivals despite
what many say
The number of people forcibly displaced worldwide has
reached 43.7m people, the highest number in 15 years.
Afghanistan continues
to be the prime country with the most refugees under UNHCR
responsibility across the globe. There are three million Afghan
refugees, and they are one out of three of the total worldwide
number. Women and girls make up 47 per cent of total refugees.
15,500 individual asylum applications were lodged by unaccompanied
or separated children throughout 69 countries.
Countries facing conflict and
disruption feature heavily and a big trend seen is the number of
refugees fleeing to neighboring countries.
Developing
countries host four fifths of the world's refugees. Pakistan,
Iran and the Syrian Arab Republic are the top hosting countries
globally for refugees. Australia takes 21,805 people
which represent 98 per thousand of population.The public debate on asylum seekers has been focusing on
boat arrivals but government figures show
that the large majority of asylum applicants arrive by
plane
In 2010, soon after becoming Prime Minister, Julia Gillard adopted the Howard mantra of
‘Stopping the boats’ with her unlawful
(According to the High Court) policy of offshore processing for
unauthorized arrivals.
The Pacific Solution
was the name given to the
Australian
government policy (2001- 2007) of
transporting
asylum
seekers to detention centers on
small island nations in the
Pacific
Ocean , rather than allowing them to
land on the
Australian mainland.
It had bipartisan support from both the Liberal National government
and Labor opposition at the time
Mandatory detention in Australia
refers to the
Australian federal
government 's policy and system of
immigration
detention active from 1992 to date, pursuant to which
all persons entering the
country without a valid
visa are compulsorily
detained and sometimes
subject to
deportation. While the term
mandatory detention is used to describe the detention process, there
is a voluntary aspect to this detention in one sense. In almost all
cases, at any time they are free to return to their country of
origin, and will be assisted by the Australian Government, if they
so choose
Gillards 'Malaysia Solution' to the crises, sending new arrivals by boat to Malaysia
where they are deemed illegal, was rejected by the High
Court. The plan was ruled invalid, but the decision means the Labor
Government has nowhere to send the legal asylum seekers off
shore, and they 'claim' that they now have no
deterrent against people smuggling. However they
have proposed to use both Nauru and Malysia, but the
Opposition have rejected this. Many human rights advocates,
including the Australian Greens Party disagree, making an
alternative proposal.
Independant MP Oakshot had an
unsuccessful bill debated in an attempt to overturn the HC decision on
the 28 June
Refugee advocates stress that offshore
processing is an appalling waste of taxpayer funds and patently
against the national interest. Re-establishing processing on Nauru,
for instance, is estimated to cost millions. Think of the
improvements to schools, hospitals and roads that could be funded
otherwise. The Australian Greens Senator Sarah
Hanson-Young said that the Labor Government is picking up where
John Howard left off on asylum seekers, but the Greens will remain
opposed to offshore
processing
 Of course, whether it is a
Malaysian, Pacific or Timbuktu solution, all are temporary fixes to
a comparatively insignificant problem. As 'The Age' columnist Tim
Soutphommasane noted in a 2011 St James Ethics Centre
paper. Australia received 15,226 boat arrivals, compared with
Greece's 56,180, Italy's 91,821 and Spain's 74,317
Tony Abbott told Gillard that
" if you are serious about
stopping the boats you've got to re-open Nauru, saying that
she had to reintroduce temporary protection visas"
and claimed she had no other options. Former Liberal Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser
chastised Tony Abbott saying that his asylum seeker policy was the
"closest thing to evil you can get". Susan Metcalfe, writing in ‘The Sydney Morning Herald’,
pleaded for Australians to imagine themselves being forced to leave
everything behind to escape war, persecution or terror. Meanwhile another boat capsized near
Christmas Island, wih an estimated 150 asylum seekers
onboard, 130 were rescued and one person died. A new approach to asylum seekers and refugees, is
urgently needed now. Refugee advocates might possess a once in a
generation opportunity to make asylum seeker policy bipartisan, as
onshore processing becomes an unintended consequence of the Canberra stalemate
The Greens Party, also
Malcolm Fraser says the solution for Australia is to
increase refugee intake from about
14,000 now, to 25,000 in order to give desperate asylum seekers
in Indonesia more hope for immigration without having to resort
to a hazardous boat trip. Both Labor and the Coalition are
under pressure to reach a compromise on asylum seeker policy in the
wake of a fatal boat capsize in which more than 90 people died
After two weeks of
assessing the evidence, discussing policy and reporting on
fieldwork, asylum seeker expert academics in the
field have made its
findings. They recommend
that, Australia should
negotiate with regional governments for the establishment of asylum
claim processing centres in countries such as Indonesia, Pakistan and
Malaysia so that asylum seekers do not need to travel further afield
in order to access protection. But the expert
panel has not released its findings/recommendations as
yet. However, its exspected to be similar
Publisher of Australia's major Jewish
newspaper has sparked a fierce debate by arguing in an
article entitled 'Curb your Compassion' that the holocaust
experience was generating misplaced sympathy for asylum
seekers.
However the shows the level of public debate and journalism as it
has been proved many times that there is no queue. And even if there
were, the proposal by Malcolm Fraser, the Greens Party and others
for Australia to increase its refugee intake would minimize the
boat arrivals and sinkings
And that Australia should work with regional
governments to find regional solutions to refugee protection. Countries
that agree to provide refugee protection, including Australia,
should provide air transport from origin and transit countries to
destination countries for all persons assessed as being in need of
protection. Providing an opportunity for legal and safe passage to
Australia could help reduce unauthorized entries. They say that
Australia should negotiate with OECD and middle income countries to increase their
refugee intake and take diplomatic initiatives to support an embargo
on the sales of arms to conflict areas.
Finally they note that, it is already within
the power of the executive government to ensure that all Australia’s
international obligations towards asylum seekers are honored. However
legislation should be passed which expressly incorporates the
Refugee Convention and Refugee Protocol and all
human rights treaties to which Australia is a party into Australia’s
domestic law without change
Expert Panel release report
The Houston
Panel has recommended a return to the worst of the Howard
Government’s policies: they want to return to pushing refugees to detention centres in
other countries, to keep
them out of sight, out of mind. Setting up a chain of detention
centres with no time limits or legal protections across our region won’t save
lives.
We know what happened last time we had offshore processing in
Nauru like this, the worst mental health crisis that we have seen in
Australia's shameful detention. Instead, the Greens have detailed proposals
to protect refugees and save lives. They are legal, respect human
rights, and would make a difference to people today.
The
Panel has recommended a return to the worst of the Howard
Government’s policies: they want to return to offshore processing in
Nauru and Papua New Guinea, and work towards the failed and unlawful
people swap with Malaysia. This will mean pushing vulnerable people to
other countries to keep them out of sight, out of mind. It’s a
return to the Pacific Solution. We can’t go back to the worst of
Howard’s policies – we need a humanitarian, regional response that
is based on legal protections for refugees. Expanding detention
centres across our region with no time limits or legal protections
won’t save lives. We know returning to cruel Howard-era policies
won’t save lives. Even after Howard brought in the Pacific
'Solution' 353 women and children died on the SIEV X on its way to
Australia. Going back to the Howard policies ignores the vast bulk
of expert submissions, from
people like former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser and refugee law
academics, and from organisations like the Refugee Council of
Australia GetUp the Asylum Seeker Resource
Centre Amnesty International and others. You can read the
submissions We can
save lives today
The Panel has
proposed excising all of Australia from our Migration Act. The
Howard Government attempted this in 2005. The Greens, the ALP and
some courageous Coalition members blocked this terrible measure.
If the ALP backs down on this it
will be yet another a betrayal of principles. The Panel heard clearly from experts that
dumping people in Malaysia is simply unacceptable and unsafe,
accepting the ‘Greens’ concerns on Malaysia are justified. The Panel
has ignored legal experts’ warnings that any other punitive offshore
processing also breaches international law. A New Regional Plan of
Action, like that proposed by the ‘Greens’, is the only way to
protect people seeking our protection and give them safer pathways
to secure lives. That’s the only way to reduce the pressure for them
to board boats. Please help get
this message out, and write to the national
newspapers. And always make sure to include your
full name, address and a phone number, as you won’t be published without them. Write to
your local paper too. Your letter is almost guaranteed to get
published and local papers are read by more people than national
ones, and always by local MPs. See Human
Rights
 Refugees undeterred Despite
Government policy changes, some in Indonesia are still contemplating
making the perilous trip by boat to Australia. Helen meets some
considering the journey
Safer Alternatives to
Boats The Australian Greens, and Afghan refugee and
human rights spokesperson, Najeeba Wazefadost, are calling for safer
alternatives to boats. Find out more about what we can do to save
lives today
Tell Abbott and Gillard Don’t punish refugees in your name as
Australian politicians voted to remove the right to asylum in
Australia for asylum seekers who arrive by
boat
Download
the report 'Refugee and Asylum Seeker
Policy'
As
Australia develops long term approaches towards burden
sharing and protection obligations, priority should be given to the
urgent
resettlement of asylum seekers already within our region,
particularly populations located in transit countries such as
Indonesia and Malaysia. Prioritizing the resettlement of
those already within the region would reduce the regional burden
significantly, therefore reducing the number of asylum seekers who
take to boats and increased good will within the region. This new
priority would result in a very significant increase of the relevant
populations of concern in Malaysia and Indonesia without
effecting the overall refugee intake.
It is important that we continue to be a
welcoming nation because multiculturalism is a positive and
beautiful reality. We need to end the politics of fear and division,
end the public appeals to our fears and prejudices and call out what
is best in the Australian people, our compassion inclusivity,
generosity and ability to welcome the newcomer. Meeting and
listening to people’s journeys is the best way for attitude
transformations to take place because people can understand and
empathise with their reasons for doing so. When you sit with
someone, hear their story of loss, grief, resilience and
determination, something in you says that you would do anything in
your power to help this person find a better life
We shouldn't forget that on those leaky
boats are valuable citizens who will improve our lives. New
Australians that may include a job creating Burmese
entrepreneur, an Iranian researcher working on a cancer cure,
talented Afghan novelist or even a Tamil public
servant
Please
note: Despite
what Tony Abbott and many politicians, journalist and other
commentators report.
Boat arrivals and asylum seekers in
Australia are NOT illegal
Detention unlawful
Australian High
Court ruled detention of genuine refugees as
unlawful
At this critical time for Australia
when both sides of politics are turning their backs on the worlds
most vulnerable people, its up to people like you and me to ensure asylum
seekers arent forgotten
.
Seek and ye shall submit
Q&A, hosted by Tony Jones and the panel
are: Rev Peter Jensen, Chris Evans Minister for Tertiary Education, Senator
Concetta Fierravanti -Wells, writer and journalist Anna Krien and
finally comedy writer,
comedian, author, social commentator and broadcaster Catherine
Deveny
They discuss: Asylum and
Islam,
UN Refugees and Australia, Jesus and Abbott, Pacific Solution About face, and
UN Refugees and
Australia
.
.
Advocates
Emergency Response Team Australians supporting the UN Refugee
Agency
Human Rights Commision
Refugee Council of Australia National umbrella body for refugees and
organisations and individuals who support them
Welcome to
Australia They
are non profit group bridging the gap and helping the
understanding between cultures.Understanding
the journey someone has undertaken before calling Australia home is
an important part of cultivating a culture of welcome in our
communities
Australian Greens The real
growing alternative to the two mainstream
parties
.
News
Refugee Action Committee
Detention unlawful Australian High Court
rules detention of genuine refugees cleared, but not by ASIO as
unlawful
.
 E
xpert Panel on
Seekers
Australian PM and Minister for Immigration
announced that they had invited the former chief of Australia's
defense force, to lead an expert panel including Mr Paris Aristotle AM, and Prof Michael L'Estrange
AO, to present a report on the best way forward
to prevent asylum seekers risking their lives on dangerous boat
journeys
Distinction between intake Greens leader Christine Milne calls for
separate
asylum intake
programs
.
Offshore processing passed After two days of debate the Senate has passed
legislation which will allow the offshore processing of asylum
seekers who come by
boat
No advantage by boat
The Australian Government is
hoping a new video campaign will discourage asylum seekers from boarding
boats
Jakarta perspective The debate about asylum seekers in Australia,
usually involves endless reportage of boats arriving and sadly
people drowning. Radio Australia's Helen Brown is based in Jakarta,
where she says she's come to see the issue of asylum seekers from a
very different perspective. Angry Anderson on Q&A last
night who has visited
Afganistan and Indonesia recently and has changed his view
Asylum-seekers protest Dozens of asylum seekers at Christmas Island
have gone on hunger strike following the announcement that they
could be moved to Nauru or Manus Island for
processing
Uncertain Nauru legal status Growing
number of asylum seekers housed on Nauru find themselves with little
clarity about their legal status, prompting questions about the
process
Tents to house asylum seekers
Refugees sent to Nauru will be housed in tents
for up to six months, with the Federal Government revealing that
permanent structures will not be ready before
then
.
Nauru doesn’t want force Government of Nauru wants Australia to give
assurances that force will not be used on asylum seekers who are
reluctant to be detained on their Pacific island. A group of Afghan
detainees recently wrote an open letter to the Federal Government,
urging it not to send them to offshore processing facilities because
they say they are like jails and don’t want to live in tent without
proper facilities. The first group of asylum seekers is expected to
arrive from Christmas Island at the end of this week, although Nauru
has flagged possible delays
Asylum
seekers reject Nauru Immigration Minister Chris Bowen says 18 Sri
Lankan men have been returned to their home country after opting not
to be processed as asylum seekers on Nauru. He did not give a
costing for the flight which is costing the Australian taxpayer
$150,000. The total cost of the Governments offshore processing
policy of Asylum
Seekers is now starting to get out of hand
PNG landowners want $45m Group
of landowners on Manus Island is demanding $45 million to allow a
processing centre for asylum seekers to be built
there
Former detainee condemns Government
They were the last family to leave Nauru when John Howard
closed the island nation's refugee detention centre. They have
expressed dismay
that the government have resurrected offshore
processing
Over detention fence Asylum
seekers speak over a Darwin detention centre fence as activists
mount protests outside
United against offshore
processing Christian church leaders in
Australia have issued a joint statement in opposition to offshore
processing of asylum seekers
.
Palmer rules out LNP election
tilt He said that he doesn't agree with Coalition on
asylum-seekers. Announcing the decision to abandon his federal
political ambitions, the billionaire said both the government and
opposition's refugee policies would result in people dying
needlessly. He also said that if a family wishes to fly to Australia
and don't have a visa and can safely fly, the Australian government
should instruct airlines to allow them to board
.
Government boost refugee intake PM Julia Gillard and
Immigration Minister Chris Bowen confirm Australia will be
increasing its humanitarian intake by 20,000 places, $10 million
being made
available
.
Roxen on raids and Nauru Australian
Attorney General Nicola Roxon responds to
the anti terror raids in Melbourne overnight as well as the first
group of asylum seekers making their way to Nauru.
Despite what she says about ‘No Advntage’ the boats keep coming as
they are better of in Nauru, and the camps will be full soon, then
what ?
Sending ‘boat people’ to
Nauru? Australian politicians have sent asylum
seekers, including children, to stay on the remote island of Nauru.
We know they'll be staying in tents, but details are sketchy at
best. Last time Australia sent did this conditions
were so bad that a child swallowed a light bulb to try and
end his own life. No one wants the horrors of the last ‘Pacific
Solution’ repeated, but our politicians seem determined to reopen
Nauru before sorting out the most basic details. We need answers
urgently
.
Aussie Govt. dodging asylum
protections Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young joins
Insiders to discuss her opposition to the Government's new refugee
policy
ACOSS Board condemn Govt National Australian Council of Social Service
expressed its grave concerns about the decision by the Australian
Government to return to offshore processing for people arriving by
sea to seek asylum in Australia. They join a growing number of
Australian community not-for-profit organizations and individuals
across the country in expressing opposition to a significant number
of the 'Expert Panel' recommendations as they are now being
implemented. They unanimously opposed the passage of any legislation
which removes adequate legislative protections for people seeking
asylum in
Australia
Correction
Despite what Tony Abbott and many
politicians, journalist and other commentators report. Boat arrivals
and asylum seekers in Australia are NOT
illegal
.
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