In the media
Detention
The UN Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture suspended their tour of Australian places of detention due to a lack of cooperation by the Queensland and New South Wales governments. The UN Human Rights Office and the Attorney General both issued statements. The American prison company contracted to run Australia’s detention facility will receive $750,000 per day for a reduced range of welfare services than the previous contract required.
Court
The government was ordered to mediate with 120 Indonesians who were considered adult for imprisonment purposes, on the basis of flawed wrist x-rays. Lawyers for an Egyptian refugee claimed that ASIO’s reliance on information obtained under torture effectively meant that they accept torture. The negative ASIO security assessment is the reason the man has been detained for the past ten years. A people-smuggling case relating to the SIEV X boat, which sank in 2001 killing 353 people, commenced in the Brisbane Supreme Court.
International
Germany announced a new program to evacuate 1,000 people per month from Afghanistan. Meanwhile the former Chancellor, Angela Merkel, received a UNHCR award for her response to the 2015 crisis for Syrian refugees. Cholera outbreaks have occurred across refugee camps in Lebanon and Cameroon. The Lebanese government announced it would go ahead with its plan to repatriate around 15,000 Syrian refugees per month. A Tamil woman in an Indian refugee camp became the first among her peers to be granted Indian citizenship. Amid a surge in the number of Venezuelan people attempting to enter America, the American government announced it would accept 125,000 refugees this year. Refugees in America, who have waited years to reunite with their families, feel abandoned as the US government prioritises people fleeing Afghanistan and Ukraine.
In policy
The UNSW laid out how Russians fleeing national conscription should be given the same treatment as others when it came to refugee status. The Refugee Council published an analysis of the budget.
In research
New research found three out of four Australians support permanent pathways for refugees who are in Australia. Registrations opened for the Melbourne Social Equity Institute’s conference on migration, refugees and statelessness to be held on 18 November 2022.