MANUS ISLAND DETENTION CENTRE DEATH BLAMED ON AUSTRALIA MANUS ISLAND POLICE CHIEF BLAMES AUSTRALIA FOR ISLANDS CHAOS. Manus Islands police chief has blasted the Abbott governments running of the immigration detention camp on the island, suggesting the recent fatal violence could have been avoided. Police commander Alex NDrasal said the protests were sparked by the failure to act on grievances raised by the asylum seekers. He said the Australian government should improve the way the detention centre is run. His remarks came as Manus Island MP Ron Knight said he believed that gun butts and batons had been used against asylum seekers by the mobile squad, a paramilitary branch of the police who are the main law enforcers outside the camp. Prime Minister Tony Abbott stood by Australias tough offshore processing, insisting he would not give in to moral blackmail and expressed confidence in the facility. We will ensure that these camps are run fairly. They will be firm if necessary, Mr Abbott said. Monday nights violence - sparked after protesting asylum seekers apparently pushed down a fence and broke out of the centre - left one Iranian detainee dead and scores of others injured. Immigration Minister Scott Morrison has ordered an independent inquiry. Police chief Mr NDrasal told Papua New Guinea newspaper the National: The Australian government should change its approach and act quickly on the petition which was handed to the authority last week by the transferees. He added that the Australian government should hire detention centre staff with better experience. He confirmed to Fairfax Media that he had made the remarks, but said he had been forbidden by his superiors in Port Moresby of speaking further on the issue. Mr Knight said the blame for the violence lay primarily with the asylum seekers. But he said that their claims should be processed more quickly and the security infrastructure should be improved. I think it couldve been handled a bit more diplomatically in the way they approach the asylum seekers and let them know information, he said. And a fence that can be pushed over is not a fence. Mr Knight said the most serious injuries to asylum seekers had been caused by the mobile squad. He backed the squads use of force, saying they had to be brutal to be effective and adding that the unit stationed there was professional and disciplined. A previous unit beat a local man to death last year. They had to be brutal to be effective and I think thats what happened. Rumours of affairs between local PNG women and asylum seekers contributed to tension on the island, according to a senior expat worker who lived in the detention centre for six months. The worker said 20 PNG female staff working in the kitchen would disappear for up to two hours during night shifts. They were running around trying to find friendships, he said. You only need a hint or a rumour with the locals about interaction between asylum seekers and local PNG women and you get a disastrous outcome. Local staff were also frustrated at the huge pay discrepancies between their pay and that of Australian expats.
Posted on: Fri, 21 Feb 2014 10:05:18 +0000
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