Weekly media wrap - 16 May 2016

Papua New Guinea’s immigration department announced that ‘no asylum seeker or refugee is in detention’, as they are able to leave the Manus Island centre during the day. They must then return to camp in the evening. Lawyers representing the Manus Island detainees asked the Supreme Court to hasten their compensation claims for illegal detention. They are requesting $462.75 for each day they were held illegally.

On Nauru, a 26 year-old Bangladeshi refugee died after suffering a series of heart attacks. There are reports from other asylum seekers that he had consumed a large number of pills before he admitted himself to hospital on Friday with chest pains, but these reports could not be confirmed. More than 100 refugees who have been in Nauru for three years signed a letter to the Australian government asking to be allowed to board boats to seek asylum in new countries.

Naima Ahmed, a 22 year-old Somali refugee, was evacuated from Nauru to the Royal Brisbane Hospital and placed on life support, following an emergency caesarean section performed in Nauru. She and her baby were airlifted on separate planes. Immigration minister Peter Dutton reiterated that the woman had received appropriate care in Nauru and that $11 million had been spent on upgrading the facilities there.

Peter Dutton will not appeal the federal court ruling that he breached his duty of care to asylum seeker, Abyan, who was flown to Papua New Guinea after she sought an abortion as a result of being raped in detention in Nauru.  Dutton is now legally required to fly Abyan to a country with the necessary medical expertise and equipment to safely perform an abortion.

Frontex, the EU’s border agency reported that there was a 90 per cent drop in the number of refugees and migrants arriving in Greece last month, attributing this to the EU agreement with Turkey to send back migrants arriving in Greece by boat. The Norwegian Refugee Council however, claimed that the refugees are beginning to choose a more dangerous route, Northern Africa to Italy, to seek European protection. They cited the announcement by Italian coastguards that 801 migrants were rescued from boats off the coast of Western Sicily, many of them from Syria, as evidence.

Weekly media wrap - 9 May 2016

On Nauru, a second incident of self-immolation occurred. The young Somali refugee woman remains in a critical condition and is being treated in a Nauru hospital. In the wake of the incident, Minister Dutton criticised both the media and advocacy groups for encouraging asylum seekers and refugees to ‘behave in a certain way’ and for raising hope and expectation that through resistance, they may be able to come to Australia. 

A PNG representative appeared before the United Nations Human Rights Council through the Universal Periodic Review process, stating that the government accepts the recent court decision and is working to make arrangements for the men held within the detention facility. Australian officials met with Papua New Guinea (PNG) counterparts to put in place arrangements to comply with the Supreme Court ruling.  

In Australia, an application was lodged in the high court for over 750 refugees and asylum seekers currently held in offshore detention. The case will seek an urgent injunction to prevent this group being sent to Nauru following the expected closure of the Manus Island detention centre.                  

Elsewhere in the courts, the Federal Court of Australia found that the Minister for Immigration, Peter Dutton, exposed an asylum seeker to serious medical and legal risk by flying the woman from Nauru to PNG to terminate her pregnancy, despite this procedure being illegal in PNG. The asylum seeker became pregnant after being raped while in detention. The Federal Court also found that Australia owed a duty of care to the asylum seeker, a finding that may have broad ramifications for offshore detention.

The Australian Government released a statement offering regret for the use of unsubstantiated allegations that led to the sacking of ten Save the Children staff working on Nauru. It was alleged that the workers were coaching people held in detention to self-harm. The Australian Government will provide compensation to Save the Children. However Scott Morrison, then immigration minister, has indicated he would not make an apology to the organisation for the incident. 

A boat carrying 12 asylum seekers was intercepted off the shores of Australia’s Cocos Islands. The group of asylum seekers were flown to Colombo, Sri Lanka and have been arrested and taken into police custody in Colombo. The Australian Government has not made any comment on this incident, identifying it as an operational matter.  

As part of 2016-17 federal budget announcements, Minister Dutton announced to parliament that 17 onshore detention facilities will be closed. 

Weekly media wrap - 11 January 2016

Nauru police launched an investigation into claims that a six year-old refugee was sexually assaulted. The father of the alleged victim, an Iranian refugee, said that the alleged perpetrator remains on Nauru and has not been taken into custody.

Documents obtained under freedom of information laws revealed that the 23 year-old asylum seeker known as Abyan, who was transferred from Nauru to Australia for an abortion, had not ruled out terminating her pregnancy before being sent back to Nauru, still pregnant. Abyan was flown back to Australia several weeks after her return to Nauru and remains in detention in Brisbane where she is receiving medical treatment.

In Papua New Guinea, the managers of the Manus Island detention centre were accused of flying an employee who allegedly robbed a local bar out of PNG to avoid the country's justice system.

In Europe, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that she wants to stem the flow of refugees into the European Union, while preserving freedom of movement. Mrs Merkel's statement comes as Sweden moved to drastically reduce its refugee intakes. Sweden has introduced a requirement that all arrivals from Denmark show photo ID. Meanwhile, Denmark has imposed ID checks on its southern border with Germany.

Turkish authorities found the bodies of 34 migrants on the Aegean coast after the migrants tried to cross to the Greek island of Lesbos.