OP/ED - AUSTRALIA AND THE ASYLUM SEEKER QUESTION Under Australian migration law, unauthorized arrivals must be detained until they are either given a visa or removed from the country. Australia maintains one of the most restrictive immigration detention systems in the world. As at 31August 2014, there were 3,440 people in immigration detention centres - these being 2,482 on the mainland and 958 on Christmas Island. Such centres are located at Maribynong, Villawood, Perth, Christmas Island, Darwin, Wickham Point, Curtin, Scherger and Yongah Hill. As at 30 June 2014 the average period of time a person spent in closed immigration detention was 350 days. The Migration Act 1958 and the Migration Regulations 1994 grant the Minister the power to make decisions on Australian immigration. However, in practice, the Minister does not always make these decisions personally but delegates that power to officers of his/her Department. Under the law, all non-citizens of Australia must hold a valid visa to enter into or remain in Australia. Section 65 of the Act sets out the general requirements to be met for any Australian visa to be granted. There is a large number of visa categories, numbering some 140. Requirements include the provision that the application does not exceed caps on that visa class as made by the Minister; all charges are paid; health criteria are met; character criteria are met; location requirements are met; and the legal grant of a visa is not prevented by any other Australian law. The Refugee/Humanitarian provisions have two categories - people subject to persecution in their home country and people, not being refugees, who are subject to gross violation of their human rights in their home country. Acceptance levels, by world standards, are relatively low - in 2007/08 some 47,000 people applied for resettlement in Australia but only 10,800 were granted visas - an acceptance ratio of fewer than one in four. Unsuccessful visa applications can be reviewed by administrative tribunals and the courts. Matters for judicial review of migration decisions include (a) failure to take matters into account [Gurung v Minister for Immigration 2006]; (b) procedural fairness [SAAP v Minister for Immigration 2005]; and (c) bias [SZEQ v MIMA 2006.] 10% of all High Court cases concern immigration matters. Unfortunately, wins by asylum seekers are an exception. Since July 2008, there have been some 650 applications for special leave to the High Court to review decisions relating to migration law. About 60% of those relate to failed visa applications. Of those 650, only 17 were accepted to be heard by the High Court. Of those 17 only a handful went in the asylum-seekers favour - fewer than five wins. The issue of mandatory detention is a vexed and troubled one. Bodies such as Amnesty International, the Australian Human Rights Commission and the Red Cross have all expressed serious concerns for the human rights of detainees and for their mental health. Such concerns are not without foundation. In 2012/13 there were 846 reported incidents of self-harm across Australias immigration detention network. Detainees suffer acute anxiety, depression and feelings of hopelessness as a result of detention for indeterminate periods of time. Australia has one of the lowest placement figures for refugees in the world and one of the most inflexible systems of detention, one that far exceeds those of other developed countries. France, for example, detains asylum seekers for just over ten days whilst Canada detains asylum seekers for only three days. AUTHOR: DR MICHAEL VAUGHAN HISTORIAN AND POLITICAL SCIENTIST DATE: SATURDAY, 13 SEPTEMBER 2014
Posted on: Fri, 12 Sep 2014 14:20:20 +0000
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