The last asylum seeker children being held on Christmas Island are now in detention on the Australian mainland, as preparations are made to house them in the community. The families will join the backlog of around 33,000 asylum seekers waiting to have their claims processed, but will have no option of securing a permanent visa if their refugee status is recognised. Those deemed refugees will have the option of applying for three-year temporary protection visas (TPV), which were scrapped by Labor in 2007 but reintroduced by Morrison this month. The visas will allow refugees to work but not bring other family members to Australia. Travel outside the country is permitted only in special circumstances. Negotiations with Clive Palmer also led to the introduction of “safe haven enterprise visas”, which will allow refugees to work or study in designated regional areas for up to five years. Pathways to permanent visas would follow but Morrison has suggested there will be a “very high bar” and few would clear it. Unsuccessful applicants will face deportation but can seek a paper review of their status with a new agency, the Immigration Assessment Authority. Those whose claim for protection is deemed “manifestly unfounded” will only have the option of an internal review by Morrison’s office. Refugee advocate Ian Rintoul said the transfer of children to the mainland was a “victory for common sense” but the families were now in “a much larger prison controlled by the minister”. Being placed on a temporary visa was a “life sentence”, Rintoul said, as refugees would have to reapply for a TPV every three years and need to seek the minister’s permission to travel outside Australia.
Posted on: Sun, 21 Dec 2014 23:29:16 +0000
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