Monthly Wrap Oct 2024

In the media

PNG and Nauru

The men who Australia sent to PNG once again face eviction due to unpaid rent. Denmark’s Immigration Minister visited Nauru to look at the pros and cons of Australia’s offshore detention system.

Palestinians in Australia

The number of Palestinians who lodged asylum applications in Australia continued to grow. The Home Affairs Minister confirmed that he authorised temporary protection visas to a handful of Palestinian families. Documents show that all applications from Palestinians were checked by ASIO.

International

Rohingya men reported that they are being abducted and forced to serve in the Arakan Army, who are fighting the Myanmar army for control of Rakhine state. Melbourne’s Peter McMullin Centre for Statelessness will hold an online seminar on the situation of stateless people in Rakhine state. As the Taliban passed a new law that prohibits women from talking outside of their home, CNN reported on the determination of Afghan girls to get educated. The Venezuelan presidential candidate, who many states recognise as the winner of their election, fled to Spain. Germany has reintroduced border checks for a period of six months. Documents secured under freedom of information detail the situation of people who were subject to the UK’s Rwanda transfer program.

In policy

The government proposed legislation that would further limit asylum seeker’s access to AAT merits review. Submissions on the proposed change can be viewed here. Guardian Australia published a feature on the inconsistency in government treatment of people based on where they have come from. The Refugee Council of Australia urged the government to reconsider the applicants who were rejected under the controversial ‘fast track’ decision-making process in 2014.

New releases

Being stateless, an oral history podcast, a podcast series by the Peter McMullin Centre on Statelessness.

Monthly Wrap Sept 2024

In the media

Israel-Palestine war

August’s news cycle was dominated by the Opposition leader’s claim that granting visas to Palestinians seeking safe haven from Gaza poses a national security risk. The former Immigration Deputy Secretary accused the Coalition of quoting him selectively in order to substantiate their position. Guardian Australia published an explainer on the situation and the security clearances that Palestinians need to pass in order to exit Gaza. Meanwhile the government granted healthcare and work rights to a small number of Israelis and Palestinians who have sought sanctuary in Australia. Reuters published an explainer on why the city of Jenin, and the large refugee camp there, is a focal point in the Israel-Palestine war.

Immigration Detention

Independent MP Kylea Tink moved a private member’s bill that would put a 90-day limit on immigration detention, including at offshore locations.

In the community

A Tamil man who was on bridging visas for over 11 years took his own life. The Tamil Refugee Council reported that he was the second asylum seeker to suicide in a month. The Saturday Paper featured a story on the community refugee sponsorship program, CRISP,  and Guardian Australia ran a story on a social enterprise that is employing refugees as florists.

International

The perilous situation for Rohingya’s persists and was discussed in an interview on ABC Radio National. The number of Sudanese refugees entering Libya has surged. The largest ever refugee team at the 2024 Paralympics celebrated their first ever medal, in taekwondo. After suspending deportations to Afghanistan when the Taliban regained power, Germany has resumed deportations of Afghans who have committed crimes. In one of the worst drowning incidents in the English Channel, at least twelve people drowned when an overcrowded boat carrying many women and children sank.  

In policy

As the revamped Administrative Appeals Tribunal AAT takes shape, The Saturday Paper published an assessment of the extent to which the government honoured it’s commitment to merits-based appointments.

In research

UNSW launched a research project into the professional development needs of women who were forcibly displaced prior to settling in Australia. The UNSW Kaldor Centre published a panel discussion on resettlement and complimentary protection.    

Monthly Wrap July 2024

In the media

In the community

A successful pilot program, Talent Beyond Boundaries, that has facilitated the settlement of around 500 skilled refugees in Australia aims to become a global program. Sister Jane Keogh was awarded an AM for her work advocating for better treatment of refugees in Australia. A refugee, who fled his country of origin because his sexuality made him a target for abuse, was beaten in what he believes was a homophobic attack in Sydney. Refugee Week was celebrated with a range of events and productions around Australia.  

Global displacement

ABC’s Big Ideas broadcast a panel discussion on global displacement and the extent to which governments try to restrict the entry of people who have been displaced by persecution, war and environmental disasters. The UNHCR forecasts that the number of people in their refugee resettlement program will reach 3 million people next year.

In Nauru and at sea

With forcible transfers to Nauru on the increase, Guardian Australia published a story on their options and the future of Australia’s operations there. Meanwhile the Department of Home Affairs confirmed the purchase of four unmanned aircraft to increase Australia’s maritime surveillance capacity.

International

The Israeli Defence Force bombed an UNRWA site killing 8 people. The European Court of Justice fined Hungary €200 million for failing to comply with the EU’s asylum laws. Rwanda accused the UNHCR of lying when it claimed that people sent to Rwanda by the UK risked being forcibly sent to places where they could face persecution.

In policy

The ABC reported that, by failing to include its controversial immigration legislation in the final sitting week before the winter break, the government appears to have abandoned the policy. The Commonwealth Ombudsman published an annual report (for the 2023 financial year) into the situation where the government detained people on the basis that they were unlawful non-citizens, but then later found that they did indeed have a lawful right to be in Australia. The Iranian government expressed interest in negotiating an extradition treaty with Australia that could pave the way for people being involuntarily returned to Iran.

In research

Ipsos research into people’s attitudes towards refugees found that Middle Eastern, African and Latin American countries were the most open to taking in more refugees. The Peter McMullin Centre on Statelessness issued a call for papers for their 2025 Doctoral Workshop.

New releases

Flavours of Hope, a free online cookbook published by Australia for UNHCR. 

Monthly Wrap June 2024

In the media

The High Court

The High Court ruled that it is lawful to indefinitely detain people when they do not cooperate with the deportation process. The court is currently hearing another case challenging the lawfulness of legislation requiring all former detainees to have curfews and ankle bracelets placed on them. The court heard that the blanket nature of the legislation, whereby Ministerial discretion was removed at the urging of the Coalition, is a key reason to rule that the legislation is unlawful.

Detention and ex-detainees

The flawed risk assessment tool used in immigration detention, and covered in an earlier monthly wrap, cannot be improved because the ABF data that it uses is unreliable. Since last month’s reporting of the Perth violent home invasion by ex-detainees, the media reported that one of the accused was released from detention when the Coalition were in government.

In Nauru

Thirty-three people who reached Christmas Island by boat were transferred to Nauru. It was unclear whether they had intended to claim asylum. They joined the approximately 54 people who were already on Nauru.

Palestinians in Gaza and Australia

Around ¼ of Palestinians who have come to Australia since the Israel-Hamas war started, have lodged protection applications. Meanwhile the government confirmed that 4,614 Palestinians abroad have been refused a visa on the basis that their intention to stay temporarily was not credible.

In the community

SBS The Feed published a story on the difficulties that people have proving their sexuality when being LGBT in their country of origin was illegal. A South Australian refugee organisation launched an app for migrants and refugees to find relevant services and info.  On her return to Kakuma refugee camp, after 18 years, Nyadol Nyuon reflected [video story] on the role that the camp library played in shaping her future.

International

In Sudan, Human Rights Watch demanded action to address ethnic cleansing that is occurring amidst the ongoing civil war. Ethiopia’s Digital ID program was described as transformational for refugees. The UNHCR commended Brazil for its integration-focused refugee policies and The Conversation profiled the large Palestinian community in Chile. Public servants in the UK launched a court case against the government on the basis that the Rwanda transfer legislation will require them to break the law. The Conversation published an analysis of how the Rwanda transfer program challenges international law. The US government commenced trials to use AI to conduct asylum interviews.

In policy

The Refugee Council of Australia published an analysis of the federal budget as it pertains to the refugee sector. The proposed new deportation laws could result in people who have been in Australia since childhood being deported. The Coalition announced it will pursue amendments to the bill, with a focus on the best interests of children and any impact on diaspora communities arising from the proposed power to dent certain nationalities from applying for protection. After the revelation that a man, now accused of murder, had had his humanitarian visa reinstated by the AAT despite his propensity to violence, the government announced it will amend Direction 99 to require greater emphasis on public safety. SBS News published an explainer on Direction 99. The government has closed the Locally Engaged Employee program that assisted the evacuation of Afghans whose lives were in danger because they had worked with Australian forces.

In research

The World Health Organisation published a report on the third consultation on refugee and migrant health. Philomena Murray and Ainoa Cabada co-authored a paper on the intersection between academics and policy and how academics can work more effectively with refugees and advocates. The UNSW Kaldor Centre co-authored an analysis into the gender and sexuality-based risks for people who are subject to government policies that contract out their refugee obligations to other nations. The Peter McMullin Centre on Statelessness opened applications for its 2025 PhD program. 

New releases

Safe Haven, a book by Shankari Chandran, published by Ultimo.

Monthly Wrap March 2024

In the media

In Nauru and Papua New Guinea

A review into how offshore contracts were awarded found that inadequate due diligence resulted in large contracts being awarded to people involved in crime and corruption. The approximately 40 people who arrived by boat in Beagle Bay, Western Australia, were transferred to Nauru. Residents of Beagle Bay spoke of their dehydration and the frequency with which they see foreign fishing boats at sea. The Border Force Commissioner issued a statement on the level of funding for Operation Sovereign Borders after Peter Dutton claimed that their budget had been cut.

Rwandan Genocidaires in Australia

The Guardian published a number of stories on the Rwandan genocidaires living in Australia, and an apparent lack of action by Australian governments to deport them.

Overseas

The ABC published a pictorial of the fire that destroyed more than 7,000 informal homes in Cox’s Bazar. A Sudanese refugee tested Spain’s assertion that people could apply for asylum at a Spanish embassy rather than trying to enter Spain without a visa. A former Russian commander of the Wagner paramilitary group was refused asylum in Norway. ABC’s Religion and Ethics report discussed the allegation that asylum seekers in the UK were falsely converting to Christianity in order to boost their refugee application.

In policy

The commonwealth ombudsman issued a scathing assessment of Australian Border Force’s deportation procedures, including an apparent lack of procedural response to the recent High Court ruling.  The Attorney General asked the High Court to rule on the lawfulness of detention in situations where the individual refuses to cooperate in the deportation process. Legal experts warned that the new preventative detention powers could be unlawful on the basis of contravening human rights obligations. The University sector is lobbying for a program that would enable refugees to apply to come to Australia for study.

In research

Researchers considered the situation of refugees who remain in situ after the UNHCR has withdrawn from a refugee camp, and the extent to which those communities can access the safeguards under the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage. A collective of NGOs and scholars published guidelines on the how to co-design research with refugees and displaced people. The UNSW Kaldor Centre mapped the use of hotels as places of detention in Australia.

New releases

Damage: a story of refugees and refuge, a film by Madeleine Blackwell, starring Ali Al Jenabi (who was convicted of people smuggling in 2004). 

Monthly Wrap February 2024

In the media

In Court

A man, who forced a refugee to work in slave like conditions, was sentenced to more than 3 years in prison. Three High Court cases were abandoned after the government dropped the requirement for the plaintiffs to wear ankle bracelets.

In Nauru and PNG

A businesswoman with links to Australia’s offshore refugee program in PNG faced court on drug smuggling charges. A number of the people who were transferred from Australia to Nauru in September 2023 have returned to their countries of origin.

In Gaza

Confirmation that UNRWA had terminated the contracts of staff who were allegedly involved in the Hamas attack on Israel caused a number of countries, including Australia, to pause funding to the UN agency.

In Indonesia

The Australian Federal Court ordered the government to pay compensation to Indonesian people who were charged with people smuggling and jailed as adults on the basis of a flawed age testing technique. Acehnese people have become increasingly hostile to the arrival of Rohingya people as the government has adopted a hard-line approach to dealing with their plight.

In policy

Legal experts have raised doubts about the need for the Preventative Detention legislation that was rushed through parliament in December. Human Rights Watch criticised Australia’s treatment of people seeking asylum and the conditions under which Australia detains them. Guardian Australia profiled the Community Refugee Integration and Settlement Pilot CRISP and some of the families who have settled in Australia through this pathway.

In research

The UNSW Kaldor Centre has commenced a 5-year research program into ‘Evacuations in International Law: Disasters, Conflict and Humanitarian Crises,' including the creation of Laureate Postdoctoral Fellowships.

New releases

Prosecuting Evil, a documentary on the last surviving prosecutor of the Nuremberg trials, available on ABC iview.

Australian Epic: The Tampa, a re-telling of the events that unfolded when the MV Tampa rescued refugees at sea, available on ABC iview.

Back Roads Naracoorte, a program on the small South Australian community that has embraced refugees, available on ABC iview.

Monthly Wrap October 2023

In the media

Detention

An Iranian man, detained for over ten years, took his case to the High Court after the former Home Affairs Minister suddenly changed his status to get around a Federal Court order that he should be moved into the community. The complexity of his case was detailed in a CNN report.

Offshore detention regime

The AAT ruled that asylum seekers who suffered loss or damage from the 2014 Home Affairs data breach are eligible for compensation. Men who remain stuck in Papua New Guinea due to Australia’s offshore detention policy were issued eviction notices because their accommodation bills had not been paid for over a year.

Protest

Refugees, who were processed under the ‘fast track’ scheme and remain in legal limbo, protested outside Minister O’Neil’s electorate office.

International

Azerbaijan’s seizure of Nagorno-Karabakh caused 60km queues at the border, as ethnic Armenians fled their homeland. The UNHCR stated that more than $1 billion in aid is needed to assist Sudanese people fleeing the ongoing conflict in their country. The World Bank increased its funding to Chad to assist with the arrival of Sudanese refugees. The IOM declared the Mexico-USA border as the world’s deadliest land route for refugees and migrants. Lebanon’s interim PM complained that the significant increase in Syrians entering the country risks unsettling the demographics of Lebanon. Asylum applications in the EU increased 20% in the past year. Italy reacted to the increase by extending the permitted duration of detention for people awaiting deportation. The UK Home Secretary called for an update to the refugee convention to prevent, as she claims, a tendency for courts to interpret the risk of discrimination as being sufficient grounds for refugee protection.

In policy

The Guardian revealed that in 2020 the Auditor-General’s department warned Home Affairs that it had failed to meet the key principles of immigration detention; namely i) the speedy resolution of people’s cases and ii) prioritising community detention over locked detention. The UNSW Kaldor Centre published a policy brief on strengthening asylum systems.  A man who walked from Ballarat to Sydney to bring attention to the plight of asylum seekers who are denied work rights, was granted permanent residency by way of Ministerial intervention. The Saturday Paper published a piece on the role that Australian politicians played in the UK’s current refugee policies.

In research

A study found that 46% of refugee and migrant women in Australia had experienced sexual harassment in the workplace in the last 5 years. A social impact agency called Purpose published a study into the role of the media in online hate speech in Australia, in which the negative framing of refugees was one of their case studies. A review of European resettlement found that 16 EU member states had not resettled a single refugee this year. The UNSW Kaldor Centre released the program for its 2023 Conference on 20 November 2023.

New releases

The Disposables, a drama by the ABC 

When Migrants Fail to Stay. New Histories on Departures and Migration. An anthology edited by Balint, Damousi and Fitzpatrick. Published by Bloomsbury.

Monthly Wrap August 2023

In the media

Nauru and PNG

As Australians rallied in support of refugees on the ten year anniversary of the return to offshore processing, the 9 Media group revealed that Nauru detention contracts were awarded to a businessman who was under AFP investigation for corruption. ABC’s 7:30 ran a detailed overview of the issue and the Guardian raised concerns that Home Affairs may have misled the Senate. Parliamentary documents revealed that, in December 2021, Australia signed a confidential deal with Papua New Guinea whereby they would keep refugees there in exchange for funds. The current government refuses to release the details of the payments.  

Detention

A federal judge found that, despite the harsh conditions of hotel detention, it was not illegal.  Documents obtained under Freedom of Information showed 115 people were unlawfully detained in the last five years. A fire broke out at Villawood detention centre, forcing people to jump out their windows.

Protection Visas

Home Affairs data shows a doubling in the number of people who have claimed asylum after having arrived by plane in the last year. A person who has been on a temporary protection visa for 11 years, mostly without work rights, commenced a walk from Ballarat to Canberra to raise awareness of the plight of people in his situation.

International

Palestinians in a Jenin refugee camp lost their homes and cars from an aerial assault operation by the Israeli Defence Force amid the continued escalation in violence. The World Food Program announced a cut in food allowances to Syrian refugees in Jordan. The Hong Kong police announced bounties for the capture of eight democracy activists who fled the country, one of whom is Australian. Investigations into a deadly boat sinking in the Mediterranean suggest it may have been caused by Greek Coastguard attempts to tow the boat. The UK Parliament passed the Illegal Migration Bill, described as the country’s most extreme immigration legislation ever. Journalists in England toured a  barge that will house asylum seekers off their coast.

In policy

The government announced an additional $2.6million in funding will be allocated to settlement service providers.   

In research

Research found that detention more than doubles a person’s risk of PTSD. UNSW research concluded that securing temporary protection visas (labelled ‘medium security’) did not improve people’s mental wellbeing. The Melbourne Social Equity Institute’s annual conference on Migration, Refugees and Statelessness opened for registration. The UNSW Kaldor Centre advertised for two Visiting Fellowship positions, for people based in Sydney who have experienced displacement.