Weekly media round-up No. 14

With Australia-Indonesia cooperation on people smuggling on hold, Indonesia’s national police chief said boats headed to Christmas Island were not Indonesia’s responsibility.

A group of unaccompanied minors were evacuated from detention on Nauru due to mental health concerns expressed by the Nauruan government. Children detained on Christmas Island and Nauru are not allowed to attend school.

Lawyers are confident a baby born to asylum seekers in Brisbane will be granted citizenship by the federal court. Burmese leader Aung San Suu Kyi said "justice has to be tempered by mercy" in relation to the case. Asylum seekers on bridging visas report living on one meal a day and sleeping in cramped conditions living in the community.

UNHCR has released on conditions in detention centres on Manus and Nauru, saying the policies breach international law and amount to inhumane treatment, lowering the quality of care offered to asylum seekers offshore. UNHCR further criticised the ‘sharp deterioration’ of refugee protection in Australia in the past year.