Weekly media wrap - 29 February 2016

The mother of asylum seeker baby Asha was accused of intentionally burning her baby in order to facilitate their transfer to Australia for medical treatment. Queensland Police confirmed that they had completed an investigation into the matter and dismissed the accusations. Meanwhile, Minister for Immigration and Border Protection, Peter Dutton, said that while the family had been released into community detention for now, they would eventually be returned to Nauru.

In a first for asylum seekers detained on Nauru or Manus Island, two refugees who spent three years living on Nauru, including two years in detention, have been relocated to Canada to be reunited with their family.

Following a meeting last week between Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and his New Zealand counterpart, John Key, Peter Dutton this week rejected an offer from New Zealand to resettle 150 refugees now on Nauru, on the basis that it would provide an incentive to asylum seekers to travel to Australia by boat. Mr Dutton also confirmed that Australian border protection authorities recently turned an asylum seeker boat back to Sri Lanka.

Amnesty International released its annual report. Highlighting the ‘harsh conditions’ faced by millions of asylum seekers across the Asia-Pacific region, the report stated that Australia’s asylum seeker policies violated international law by ‘forcibly returning people to countries where they would face a real risk of serious violations’.

The UNHCR issued a statement saying that on average two children have drowned every day trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea since September 2015. The news comes as countries across Europe adopt more restrictive policies, including border closures.

Weekly media wrap - 15 February 2016

This week saw escalating ‘Let Them Stay’ protests, following the High Court’s decision allowing Australia to detain asylum seekers offshore. Six state and territory leaders offered to resettle the 267 asylum seekers affected by the decision, however, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has yet to respond to the political and community pressure. 

Doctors at a Brisbane hospital declined to discharge a baby in an effort to prevent her return to Nauru. One-year-old ‘Asha’ was treated for accidental burns injuries at Lady Cilento Children’s Hospital, where a spokesperson said she would be released only once ‘a suitable home environment is identified’. The case has attracted the backing of hundreds of protesters, who have camped outside the hospital in support of the doctors’ actions. 

The ABC apologised for confusing two cases of alleged child abuse on Nauru. ABC News Director Gaven Morris acknowledged the error in reporting the testimony of a paediatrician that a five-year-old was raped on the island and was being sent back to face his attacker. The paediatrician’s statement in fact referred to an older child, whom the paediatrician, Karen Zwi, maintains was raped. The five-year-old at the centre of the claims was allegedly sexually assaulted.

The immigration department confirmed paying Nauru $29m in visa fees to keep asylum seekers in detention. The cost of a visa for a single asylum seeker in Nauru has risen to $1,000 per month since the centre was reopened in 2012, in addition to the fees Australia pays to contractors running the facility.

The refugee crisis continues to escalate in Europe, with the Austrian government confirming it will reduce the number of asylum applications received in 2016, while Turkey has for the first time shut entry to Syrian refugees, claiming the country has reached its limit. The news comes as NATO entered the crisis for the first time, promising to deploy ships in the Aegean Sea to deter people smugglers. The move was criticised by some international aid groups.     

Weekly media wrap - 1 February 2016

The Human Rights Watch (HRW) 2016 World Report was released this week. HRW reported that Australia’s failure to meet international standards for protecting asylum seekers is taking a ‘heavy human toll’ and damaging this country’s international reputation. The report also highlighted the secrecy around Australia’s immigration detention program.

Professor David Isaacs, a leading paediatrician, challenged Australia’s prime minister to prosecute him for speaking out under the Border Force Act about conditions in offshore detention centres. Professor Isaacs visited Nauru in December 2014.

The International Organization for Migration reported that more than 52,000 refugees and migrants crossed the eastern Mediterranean to reach Europe in January, more than 35 times the number of people who attempted the crossing in the same period in 2015.

The Chinese artist Ai Weiwei closed his exhibition in Copenhagen in protest to new Danish laws allowing authorities to seize assets and valuables from asylum seekers over a certain value and delays in family reunification. Meanwhile, Sweden has indicated an intention to expel up to 80,000 rejected asylum seekers who arrived in 2015.

Weekly media wrap - 10 November 2015

Refugee Fazel Chegeni was found dead two days after escaping the immigration detention centre on Christmas Island. Mr Chegeni, who was granted refugee status in 2013, reportedly attempted suicide several times in the weeks leading up to his escape. The cause of Mr Chegeni’s death, whose body was found at the bottom of cliffs on Christmas Island, has not been determined.  Greens MP Adam Bandt called for “a full and independent inquiry” into the incident.  Peter Dutton said he believed there were “no suspicious circumstances in relation to the death”.

Following reports of the death, unrest broke out at the Christmas Island detention centre.  Guards were withdrawn, citing safety reasons after detainees lit fires and knocked down walls. Immigration Minister Peter Dutton described tension between detainees and guards as a “stand off”..

The Australian government is reportedly considering Kyrgyzstan as a resettlement option for up to 1,500 refugees currently detained in offshore detention.  The plan to send refugees to the Central Asian republic, a country criticised for its human rights abuses, received widespread condemnation, with Greens leader Richard Di Natale describing the policy as “ridiculous”.

Following a visit to the world’s second largest refugee camp, Zaatari, Peter Dutton announced $44 million to supply refugees in the Middle East with survival items, including food and water.  Dutton’s visit to the camp reinforced his belief in the government’s boat turn-back policy, arguing that “a tough border policy in Australia means that we can offer a helping hand and a new life to those Syrians”. 

Mr Dutton stated that, in addition to the intake of 12,000 Syrian refugees announced in September, further humanitarian visas may be offered if Australia can “first demonstrate that [it] can bring the 12,000 across”.  Greens MP Adam Bandt welcomed the move but urged the government to consider resettling Syrians and Iraqis currently detained in offshore detention facilities.

Internationally, the first asylum seekers were relocated from Greece to Luxembourg in an EU program that aims to resettled at least 160,000 asylum seekers from Greece and Italy to participating EU countries. 

Read the Kaldor Centre's weekly news roundup.

Weekly media wrap - 21 September 2015

Malcolm Turnbull replaced Tony Abbot as Prime Minister after a leadership ballot. Immigration Minister Peter Dutton retained his position in the cabinet reshuffle despite earlier in the week having offered to resign. The Indonesian government welcomed the leadership change, suggesting an opportunity to improve diplomatic relations with the new government.

The Turnbull Government consulted with the Refugee Resettlement Advisory Council on the mechanics of settling 12,000 Syrian refugees expected to arrive in Australia between now and the end of the year.  The majority of the extra refugees are expected to be resettled in Sydney and Melbourne, where the bulk of Australia's Syrian community lives.

The federal court found that the Department of Immigration and Border Protection’s investigation in to a data breach which published the details of almost 10,000 asylum seekers, was designed to fail.  The court said the immigration department responded to the data in a way that was ‘unfair to a significant degree’ and had not provided procedural fairness to asylum seekers affected.

An Afghan refugee who had his visa cancelled due to child pornography convictions set himself alight at a West Australian immigration detention centre after previous bids to end his own life.

The refugee crisis in Europe continues as Hungary closed the border between Serbia and Hungary. The UNHCR has again called for European Union member states to reach agreement on a plan to relocate up to 120,000 refugees.

Read the Kaldor Centre’s Weekly News Roundup.

Weeky media wrap - 18 May

Immigration Minister Peter Dutton confirmed that the first group of refugees is in the process of being transferred from Nauru for resettlement in Cambodia. The transfers follow the announcement in September 2014 of a deal under which asylum seekers in detention on Nauru can volunteer to be resettled in Cambodia.

As part of the 2015 Federal Budget, the Abbott government allocated $400 million to the creation of a dedicated new border enforcement agency called Australian Border Force. Up to 6000 officers will be hired by the Australian Border Force within two years.

The Asylum Seeker Assistance Scheme will also receive $21 million over the coming financial year. The funding will be partially offset by not renewing the grant funding of $140,000 per year to the Refugee Council of Australia. The budget also allocated $39.9 million to ‘anti-people smuggling strategic communications campaigns’.

A three-member panel was established by the Australian government to provide advice on child protection inside Australian detention centres on both the mainland and in offshore facilities. The establishment of the panel follows the final report released by the Moss Review, which found evidence of rape and sexual assault of minors.

A group of ten asylum seekers initiated proceedings in the High Court of Australia, challenging the legality of offshore detention. The Human Rights Law Centre represents the group.

Around 6,000 Rohingya asylum seekers and Bangladeshi migrants are adrift in boats in the Andaman Sea. The Rohingya are a Muslim minority in Myanmar who face statelessness and discrimination. Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia refused to accept the boats, though some migrants have been rescued in  Aceh. The United Nations warned the situation may become a 'massive humanitarian crisis'. The United States urged regional countries to refrain from pushbacks. Australian prime minister Tony Abbott said he was 'in no way critical' of regional countries turning back boats.

Meanwhile in Europe, the European Commission unveiled a plan to bring 20,000 refugees to Europe in the next two years.