Weekly media round-up No. 48

The 157 Tamils held for almost a month on board an Australian Navy vessel travelled to the Cocos Islands and from there to the Curtin detention centre in Western Australia, making them the first asylum seekers to reach the Australian mainland in six months. Human rights lawyers questioned the legality of the Australian government’s decision to allow officials from India, where the boat originated, to interview the asylum seekers.

 Documents filed in the High Court showed that the National Security Committee, chaired by Prime Minister Tony Abbott, decided that the boat’s passengers should not be taken to Australia two days after it was intercepted.

Police in Puducherry, India, arrested two men on charges of renting out the boat they own to Tamils trying to reach Australia.

Meanwhile, Immigration Minister Scott Morrison granted a permanent protection visa to a 15-year-old Ethiopian boy, after previously insisting the boy, who reached Australia by stowing away on a ship, would have his application rejected under a new ‘national interest’ test. 

Weekly media round-up No. 47

A document lodged with the High Court revealed that 153 asylum seekers whose boat was intercepted near Christmas Island remain on board an Australian Customs vessel. The document disclosed that the asylum seekers are being denied 'reasonable access' to legal advice and are unhappy about the conditions where they are being held.

At a directions hearing at the High Court in Melbourne, lawyers representing the Commonwealth stated that there were no plans to involuntarily return any asylum seekers to Sri Lanka, however the asylum seekers will remain on the ship until a decision has been made in regard to their processing location.

Papa New Guinean officials have not interviewed any suspects over the murder of Reza Barati, more than five months after his death. Tensions remained high at the Manus Island detention centre, resulting in two asylum seekers being confined by Wilson security staff.

Following reports that 15 asylum seekers absconded from community accommodation in South Australia, a group of school principals asked for more support for young asylum seekers attending school whilst in community detention. The police hunt for the 15 young people was brought to an end, as pressure continues to mount for the Immigration Minister Scott Morrison to account for their welfare.

Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie, who is a Special Envoy for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), accepted an invitation to visit the island of Nauru. A spokesperson for the Nauru Government said that the visit will be a 'wonderful opportunity to showcase the facilities for refugees on Nauru, which we believe are the world's best practice.'

More than 1300 people from Canberra have called for a more 'humane and tolerant' policy to be adopted in relation to asylum seekers in Australia, in a statement that will be heard by federal MPs at Parliament House.

An asylum seeker who pleaded guilty to receiving stolen property was sentenced to an 18-month good behaviour bond.

Weekly media round-up No. 46

On Sunday 6 July the Australian Government returned 41 asylum seekers to Sri Lankan authorities. The asylum seekers’ claims were assessed at sea using the controversial ‘enhanced screening’ protocol, wherein a determination of possible refugee status is made on the basis of an on-board interview. Sri Lankan authorities said the asylum seekers face criminal charges and will be interrogated by officials from the country’s intelligence department. Australian legal scholars criticised the Australian Government’s handling of the episode.

In a separate incident, a High Court hearing on Tuesday 8 July confirmed an Australian customs vessel currently holds 153 asylum seekers on the high seas. The Australian Government said the asylum seekers were intercepted outside Australia’s migration zone and as such have no rights under the Australian Migration Act. Lawyers for the asylum seekers argued that repatriation would constitute a violation of Australia’s non-refoulement obligations. The full bench of the High Court will hear the matter within 21 days.

The Australian Government confirmed that ten women – including nine mothers – attempted suicide at Christmas Island. Refugee advocates said the mothers attempted suicide in the hope that their orphaned children would be granted permission to live in Australia. In response, Prime Minister Tony Abbot said the Government would not be held ‘over a moral barrel’. A leaked report showed a six-fold increase of self-harm in detention since the introduction of mandatory offshore resettlement.

The European Asylum Support Office released its annual report. The report said 435,760 persons applied for asylum in the European Union in 2013 - of these, approximately one third were granted refugee status.

Weekly media round-up No. 45

Immigration Minister Scott Morrison announced a proposal to apply a “national interest test” for permanent protection applications from people who arrive without a visa.  Refugee advocates have responded saying that a High Court challenge could be launched to refute the proposal.

There has been continued speculation about whether asylum seekers who left southern India on 13 June, and who appealed to refugee advocates last Friday, would be turned back to Sri Lanka. Human rights groups issued accusations that Australia breached international law amid reports that the Australian navy was deployed to pick up Tamil asylum seekers and hand them to the Sri Lankan authorities.

It is alleged that the asylum seekers’ claims were assessed through four questions on board via video link. The Guardian issued information from a former immigration department officer that the department has previously considered using Australian custom vessels to interview and process asylum seekers, but was advised the process could be unlawful.

Whether the vessels were turned around has not been confirmed. Sri Lankan and Indian authorities and government officials said they had not received any official information about this case, however The Australian reported that a Sri Lankan navy official claimed asylum seekers were picked up. The Australian Greens and the Labor immigration spokesman have called on the Prime Minister to give public details on the fate of the asylum seekers. A spokesman for Immigration Minister Scott Morrison said that the department would not comment on operations. 

In a 3AW interview, Prime Minister Tony Abbott insisted Australia was acting legally within its international obligations. He said that turning boats around, returning asylum seekers to Sri Lanka and the rapid on-board screening process were all “in accordance with the international law”.

The Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) issued statistics that children account for the greatest percentage of self-harm incidents and suicidal behaviour by asylum seekers in detention. This was not confirmed by the International Health and Medical Services which is contracted to provide health care for asylum seekers in Australian detention. The AHRC also announced a third hearing for the commission’s inquiry into children in immigration detention, which would be held for “whistleblower employees” to give evidence.

PNG police are searching for a former Salvation Army employee, suspected of killing Reza Berati in the unrest in February on Manus Island, who has fled to PNG’s mainland. An asylum seeker who lost an eye during the riots has launched legal action against the federal government.

The ABC reported allegations that detainees in immigration detention facilities are put under pressure to 'volunteer' to go home before applying for asylum.

Weekly media round-up No. 44

The Abbott Government introduced a Bill which would toughen Australia’s approach to processing asylum seekers, including: changing the threshold for those seeking protection from a ‘real chance’ of significant harm should they be returned to ‘more likely than not’; requiring applicants to provide documentary evidence of their identity and nationality; and refusing visas unless the minister determines ‘ it is in the public interest'.

The Bill comes after the government offered Iraqi asylum seekers voluntary return packages valued at $6000, in a deal which Fairfax Media reported was taken up by fewer than 10 asylum seekers this month.

Footage emerged of a never shown message recorded in September last year from Immigration Minister Scott Morrison to asylum seekers detained on Papua New Guinea and Nauru. The Minister is heard to state, ‘ There are new rules in place under this government so I urge you to think carefully about your next decision and to make a decision to get on with the rest of your life and to not remain here and take the option to go back to the country from which you’ve originally come. ’ The footage follows an announcement by Operation Sovereign Borders commander Angus Campbell, who claimed that Australia is a generous country in relation to treatment of refugees.

A Senate inquiry into the deadly violence at the Manus Island detention centre in February produced evidence that Papua New Guinean police were given responsibility for taking control of the compound, contrary to previous statements from security company, G4S.

A boat allegedly containing 153 asylum seekers en route to Australia from India made contact with Australian media over the weekend, following a two week journey, with those on board stating that the boat was leaking and in need of assistance. Mr Morrison failed to make comment on the boat, and a second alleged boat interception off the coast of Indonesia, reporting that there were no significant incidents at sea.

Inside Story commented on the legal rights of babies who are born in detention and the health effects of detention on their mothers.

Weekly media round-up No. 43

Refugee week activities relating to the theme of ‘Restoring Hope’ raised awareness around issues affecting refugees. In 2013, there were with 51.2 million people displaced worldwide, six million more than in 2012. Over the same period, applications for asylum in Australia dropped by over 50%.

The High Court found that the Minister for Immigration does not have power to limit the number of resettlement visas issued within a specific financial year. In response, the government will seek to reintroduce Temporary Protection Visas, a move that relies on the support of Labor and the Greens in order to be passed in the Senate.

Immigration Minister Scott Morrison and the Prime Minister Tony Abbott declared that it has been six months since the last irregular maritime arrival. The announcement follows a High Court decision upholding the right of the government to designate another nation to operate as a regional processing country. 

The Labor party debated and ultimately rejected a motion to reverse its support for the offshore processing of asylum seekers.

Following a series of revelations relating to the conditions of child detainees, UNICEF called for an independent body to monitor and report on the treatment of children held in Australian immigration detention.

The average time spent by asylum seekers in detention hit a record high in April 2014. Meanwhile, the ABC reported that the government is offering up to $10,000 as an inducement for asylum seekers to leave offshore processing centres and return to their home nations. The government further refused to provide assurances to Iraqi asylum seekers that they will not be returned to Iraq, despite the ongoing instability in the region.

A second Tamil asylum seeker attempted to self-immolate and was saved by housemates in Melbourne’s east. The man, who arrived in Christmas Island in December 2012, is on a bridging visa awaiting a decision as to his refugee application. The attempt follows the death of asylum seeker Leo Seemanpillai by self-immolation on 31 May.

On Nauru, three pregnant asylum seekers were transferred to Australia requesting abortions due to the harsh conditions inside the detention centre.

Weekly media round-up No.42

The Senate inquiry into the unrest at the Manus Island detention centre continued to hear witness testimony detailing the difficulties faced by asylum seekers in the compound. The inquiry was told that workers were given employment at the centre without an interview or training. Evidence given to the committee pointed to the Immigration Department retaining strategic control of the centre, despite its statements that the centre remains under the jurisdiction of Papua New Guinea.

Whistleblower Steve Kilburn articulated evidence that contradicted the official account of the events given by his former employer, G4S. Mr Kilburn warned the committee that he believed further violence would ensue if refugees were to be resettled on Manus Island.

The inquiry fell short of reviewing Immigration Minister Scott Morrison’s initial inaccurate comments surrounding the circumstances of the unrest – contrary to Mr Morrison’s previous declaration – which prompted the accusation that the Minister misled parliament. Mr Morrison’s claim that the processing of asylum seekers had begun weeks before the Manus Island unrest was also challenged by the release of a secret recording indicating processing had been frozen.

Opposition Leader Bill Shorten labelled the former Labor government’s decision to dismantle the ‘Pacific Solution’ a mistake, stating that regional settlement of asylum seekers is the ‘best way to handle people who try to come to Australia.’

A report by KPMG found that the Department of Immigration is to blame for the data breach that exposed the personal details of almost 10,000 detainees.

The Age reported that two newborn babies and their families were shipped to Christmas Island detention centre, a location that is deemed inappropriate for young children by medical practitioners.

Large posters of sketches drawn by asylum seekers in detention or on bridging visas have appeared on buildings in Adelaide’s CBD.

Weekly media round-up No. 41

Tamil asylum seeker Leo Seemanpillai died after pouring petrol on himself and setting himself on fire in Geelong. Mr Seemanpillai lived in the community under a Temporary Protection Visa. Friends of Mr Seemanpillai linked his suicide to a fear of being deported to Sri Lanka. Immigration Minister Scott Morrison said no one was in a position to speculate about Mr Seemanpillai’s reason for self-immolation.

Guards ended a week-long protest at the Christmas Island Detention Centre where four detainees were admitted to hospital. Detainees said guards used excessive force to break up the protest. Minister Morrison attributed the injuries to ‘non-compliant behaviour’.

An employee at the Nauru Detention Centre was dismissed for allegedly sexually assaulting a child asylum seeker, in an event that raises concerns for children in offshore detention. A Nauruan magistrate handed down a two year and five month jail term to an asylum seeker involved in a riot at the Nauru Detention Centre in July 2013. The magistrate said the sentence was intended to deter other asylum seekers in Nauru considering similar action.

The Australian Immigration Department sent a letter to asylum seekers facing deportation stating that they had 14 days to outline how the accidental online publication of personal details –  including names, nationality and dates of birth – could impact their safety in their home country. The letter further indicated that if the recipient does not respond within the given timeframe they will be ‘expected to depart Australia and removal planning will be progressed’.

An annual poll conducted by the Lowy Institute showed 71 per cent of Australians support the Australian Government’s boat turn-back policy.  Treasurer Joe Hockey said in Parliament, ‘As a result of all the action of this Government, there are no children floating in the ocean between Australia and East Timor’.

Weekly media round-up No. 40

Immigration Minister Scott Morrison released a report investigating the events leading up to and death of Iranian asylum seeker, Reza Barati. The report found that the assault was committed by a PNG national working for the Salvation Army. The minister expressed regret that recommended improvements to security arrangements from November 2013 had not been implemented at the time of the death. PNG police conducting a parallel investigation described the report as a cover up.

After receiving an allocation in the recent federal budget, core funding of $140,000 for the Refugee Council of Australia was cut, a return to the funding model under the Howard Government. The immigration minister has said he was not aware that the Council received government funding until after the release of the budget.

In response to enquiries from Labor Senator Joe Ludwig, departmental documents revealed that together, the departments of Immigration and Border Protection and Australian Customs spent over $8 million and $9.2 million in salaries alone. The government has announced 4000 extra places under the Special Humanitarian Program over the next five years.

The minister has been involved in negotiations with the Cambodian government to arrange permanent resettlement for refugees currently detained in Nauru. The plan has been criticised by international groups concerned with Cambodia’s human rights record. 

Weekly media round-up No. 39

More than 20 refugees became the first people released on Nauru and Manus Island under the Coalition Government’s policy whereby no asylum seekers arriving by boat can be resettled in Australia. Thirteen people left the detention centre on Nauru, while a further 11 were resettled on Manus Island on temporary visas, including with the right to work. Seven asylum seekers had their claim for refugee status rejected and remain in detention.

The federal government announced plans to introduce legislation during Parliament’s winter session to speed up the processing of refugee claims from nearly 24,000 asylum seekers who have arrived by boat. The Australian reported the aim of the reforms would be to lower the success rate of applications for refugee status. Immigration Minister Scott Morrison said ‘the Coalition will not resile from our clear policy position and permanent visas will not be given to illegal maritime ­arrivals on our watch’.

A court in Perth released a photo of what conditions were like aboard a boat carrying asylum seekers, which sank in June 2012, causing 102 of the 210 passengers to drown. Two men are charged with assisting a group of five or more unlawful non-citizens into Australia in a way that gave rise to danger of death or serious injury. The court heard the boat was overcrowded and carrying too few life jackets when it left Indonesia.

A group of 50 asylum seekers were discovered and prevented from attempting to travel from Indonesia to New Zealand by boat. The distance to Christmas Island is 440 kilometres, but with Australia now refusing to resettle any asylum seekers arriving by boat, Fairfax Media reported the group were willing to pay up to $7000 each to a smuggler for the 8000 kilometre journey to New Zealand. 

Weekly media round-up No. 38

The 2014 Federal Budget released on 13 May contained a number of measures regarding asylum seekers.

The budget claimed an expected cost of $563.1 million in support services over the next five years for asylum seekers currently being processed in Australia. There is an additional $149.9 million over five years to process a backlog of claims and removals, and $27.3 million over two years for unaccompanied minors who will receive extra supervision.

The budget confirmed a new agency called Australian Border Force will operate from July 2015, merging Customs and Border Protection and border functions of the immigration department. The set up cost will be $53.6 million, and the force will receive a $480.5 million package to run.

The budget revealed that Indonesia will receive $86.6 million over three years as part of a regional corporation agreement to manage asylum seekers there. Christmas Island will receive infrastructure upgrades, extra health staff, and child asylum seekers will get better access to full time schooling. Malaysia will receive two retired Bay Class boats from 2015 to assist them in combatting people smuggling. General Angus Campbell warned that stopping asylum seeker boats entirely will take “years, not months, of collective regional effort”.

According to the The Australian, the success of Operation Sovereign Borders means $2.5 billion over five years will be saved. There will be savings of $283 million over four years through closing 10 detention centres and $38.4 million through ending the displaced persons program. There will be savings of $20.2 million over four years from the amalgamation of the Migration Review Tribunal, Refugee Review Tribunal and the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

The Guardian published information from a G4S submission to the upcoming Senate inquiry into the unrest on Manus Island, including a timeline and account of the events leading to the unrest. As part of preliminary investigations by PNG authorities, The Australian revealed that 450 of the 1200 asylum seekers on Manus Island have been found to be genuine refugees. So far, 450 have not qualified and will be removed.

Fairfax published a statement from a spokesperson for immigration minister Scott Morrison that there were no psychologists on Manus Island, despite Mr Morrison having claiming there were in January 2014. A former case worker on Manus Island called for medical attention for a mentally ill detainee but was ignored.

The Senate passed an amendment to the Migration Act that excludes people who have been given adverse security assessments by ASIO from receiving protection visas. Greens immigration spokeswoman Sarah Hanson-Young is launching a motion of disallowance in the Senate to remove a code of behaviour in bridging visas that says asylum seekers over 18 must behave appropriately while in the Australian community or their visa will be cancelled. 

Weekly media round-up No. 37

The governor of Port Moresby published an open letter expressing “grave concern” at the conditions on Manus Island. PNG immigration minister, Rimbink Pato, said that a refugee quota could be imposed, limiting the number of refugees resettled.

Fairfax published graphic images of detainees injured in the February riots on Manus Island. The Australian High Court heard arguments that the centre is constitutionally invalid and the Australian Government has no power to send asylum seekers to PNG. The case is ongoing.

Indonesian officials claimed the Australian navy added three asylum seekers to a boat turned back to Indonesia on 4 May. Federal police may be asked to investigate the incident, which may have breached Australian and international law. The Australian Government refused to comment on the incident.

Dozens of asylum seekers died when a boat sank off the coast of Libya. Meanwhile, Italy appealed for European Union support as 1200 asylum seekers land in Sicily. 

Weekly media roundup No. 36

Lawyers representing witnesses to the death of Reza Barati applied to the High Court of Australia for Manus Island detainees to be transported back to Australia, owing to fears for their safety. Lawyers for the detainees also lodged a habeus corpus writ, which claims gross human rights violations, including crimes against humanity, have been perpetrated by Immigration Minister Scott Morrison and the Australian and Papua New Guinean governments.

A guard’s account of the Manus Island violence on 17 February, submitted to the Senate inquiry into the events, included a statement that Reza Barati was struck over the head with a ‘lump of wood’. A recent Four Corners story raised significant concerns around the Manus Island operation.

Cambodia’s secretary of the state at the foreign ministry, Ouch Borith, indicated that the country had agreed ‘in principle’ to a deal proposed by the Australian Government to process and resettle asylum seekers in Cambodia.  President of the Cambodian Association of Australia, Youhorn Chea, condemned the government’s move, stressing that the nation was still coming to terms with its own human rights struggles.

The Guardian reported that Prime Minister Tony Abbott postponed a scheduled trip to Indonesia next week due to an asylum seeker operation north of Australia. A document leaked to The Guardian from the Nauruan government contained details of a plan to limit the resettlement of refugees in Nauru to a maximum of five years.

The Sri Lankan navy arrested 54 asylum seekers, including 13 children, when a fishing trawler headed for Australia was detected off the nation’s northeastern coast.

Recent figures released by the Immigration Department indicate the average time asylum seekers spend in Australian onshore detention is 275 days, a length that far exceeds international standards.  The Australian Human Rights Commission is concerned that the length of detention is used as a deterrent to asylum seekers.  

Performance artist Phuong Ngo began a 10-day art installation in Melbourne, during which he plans to fold 10,000 paper boats whilst consuming the same food provisions as his family on their journey to Australia in 1982. 

Weekly media round-up No. 35

Fairfax media reported that Papua New Guinean nationals employed as security guards entered the Manus Island detention centre the day before Reza Berati’s death in February, allegedly enraged by offensive chants from asylum seekers within the centre.

The UN said that Nauru is “breaching its international obligations” as it has failed to meet a February deadline set by the Committee Against Torture to establish an independent body to regularly inspect the detention centre. An unexploded wartime bomb was discovered at the centre, which detains children, pregnant women and families. Guardian Australia published a letter from Save the Children with allegations of “mistreatment and inappropriate behaviour” by guards employed by Wilson Security on Nauru.

At a UNHCR workshop on asylum seekers in Jakarta, Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa called on the region to “share – not shift – responsibility” on asylum seekers, saying the issue “defies national solutions”.

UNHCR regional coordinator James Lynch said Australia’s policy of returning boats to Indonesia or ending boat arrivals to PNG or Nauru is against the Refugees Convention. Mr Lynch said Australia has not responded to questions about boat arrivals and questioned whether Australia was prepared to “honour [its] obligations”. Immigration Minister Scott Morrison dismissed suggestions Australia was breaching international law. He said the “policy is working” and the boats are stopping. Mr Morrison announced that no boats had reached Australia for over four months.

There is ongoing speculation on whether Australia will make a deal with Cambodia to resettle asylum seekers. In an interview with Fairfax, Mr Morrison said the government was encouraging countries that were willing to offer resettlement places to expand "permanent solutions" for people seeking asylum.

A federal circuit court judge reserved his decision on whether a case involving a group of asylum seekers who were named in the Immigration Department’s data-breach in February will continue to a full hearing. He said that the review process is still being developed and it is “premature for the asylum seekers to be seeking injunctions and declarations.”

Weekly media round-up No. 34

Twenty-six families with children born in detention received written assurance from the Immigration Department that neither they nor their children would be sent to offshore detention centres on either Nauru or Manus Island until a case on their legal status is resolved.

The Royal Australian Navy announced that one commanding officer will be removed from command and another administratively sanctioned due to a series of incursions into Indonesian waters in December and January. The announcement came on the same day that Guardian Australia revealed one of the Australian customs vessels went further into Indonesian waters than had previously been disclosed, within 27 kilometres of the Indonesian shore.

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees’ representative in Indonesia, Manuel Jordao, said the number of asylum seekers registering in Indonesia has fallen from around 100 a day to 100 a week since December. Mr Jordao said it was too soon to say whether the decrease was due to the Australian Government’s policy Operation Sovereign Borders, under which no one arriving in Australia by boat is eligible for resettlement in Australia.

Indonesia’s top military commander said Australia had agreed to stop turning back boats to Indonesia, but Immigration Minister Scott Morrison contradicted this, saying that the government’s policy had not changed. Military Commander General Moeldoko made the comments after speaking with Australia’s defence chief, David Hurley. However, Mr Morrison told Fairfax Media that details of the conversation had been “misreported”. Indonesia and Australia are expected to discuss the issue further at the Bali Process this week.

Weekly media round-up No. 33

Immigration Minister Scott Morrison this week defended a possible arrangement with Cambodia to resettle asylum seekers to Australia. His visit to Phnom Penh follows a trip by Foreign Minister Julie Bishop earlier this year.

Asylum seekers will be able to settle temporarily in Nauru if found to be refugees with 60 per cent of claims for refuges status expected to be finalised within a month. Meanwhile, Australian Human Rights Commissioner Gillian Triggs, head of the Australian Human rights Commission, has urged the Abbott Government to release children from detention. She also accused the government of orchestrating the denial of UN inspectors access to offshore processing centres on Nauru and Manus Island. Scott Morrison has rejected the claim.

The release of Bob’s Carr’s autobiography reveals his support for Kevin Rudd’s PNG solution, as well as his efforts to convince Julia Gillard to support Tony Abbott’s asylum policies upon entering federal parliament in 2012. Former Labor frontbencher Melissa Parke has urged the Opposition to soften its asylum policy following a poor result in the Western Australian upper house election re-run.

The Federal Court found that a refugee who spat at a guard and damaged property was denied procedural fairness in having his refugee status refused. A Sri Lankan asylum seeker has self-immolated and is fighting for his life in a Sydney hospital.

Charges against protesters that held a prayer vigil in the Sydney offices of Immigration Minister Scott Morrison have been dropped. Walk for Justice for Refugees rallies were held around the country on Palm Sunday.

Weekly media round-up No. 32

Immigration Minister Scott Morrison met with Cambodia’s Interior Minister Sar Kheng this week to discuss the possibility of resettling asylum seekers in Cambodia. The move was criticised by a member of the Cambodian Opposition party, Son Chhay, who said that the country should not be seen as a “dumping ground.”

The majority of asylum seekers on Manus Island have been interviewed for refugee status, with both the Australian and Papua New Guinean governments confirming that all those determined to be refugees will be resettled in PNG. An Iranian asylum seeker being assessed at the Manus Island detention centre is seeking to challenge Australia’s offshore processing policy before the High Court.

Meanwhile, the Abbott Government refused to release a report concerning details of the inquiry into the death of Reza Barati on Manus Island. The Australian Federal Police also declined to assist the interviewing of witnesses in relation to the death.

Asylum seekers at the Villawood detention centre in Sydney failed in a last minute legal bid to thwart an impending relocation to the Kimberley region of Western Australia. A group of more than 60 people gathered at Villawood to protest the transfer.

A report containing details of an internal review of Australian boat incursions into Indonesian waters was met with scrutiny by the Opposition and the Greens.  The report was censured for its lack of detail around the incidents that occurred under Operation Sovereign Borders.

Médecins Sans Frontières released a report detailing the harsh conditions facing asylum seekers living in detention in Greece.

Weekly media round-up No. 31

29 March marked 100 days since an asylum seeker boat reached Australia. An estimated eight boats have been turned back to Indonesia in that time.

The Senate Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee found it may not be possible for boats to be turned around safely without the risk of Australian naval vessels crossing into Indonesian waters. The Committee reported on six incursions into Indonesian waters between December 1 and January 20.

ABC’s 7.30 aired new witness statements alleging Australian personnel purposely inflicted burns on the hands of three men on an asylum-seeking boat in January. The Australian Government maintained the claims are baseless and attacked the ABC’s ‘recycling’ of the story.

Children held in detention in Australia described conditions as ‘hell’. The Australian Human Rights Commission is conducting the inquiry into children in immigration detention in Australia. The Commission made its first visit to children in detention on Christmas Island this week.

The UN refugee agency Asylum Trends 2013 report says there was a sharp rise in asylum claims in 44 industrialised countries last year, driven primarily by the crisis in Syria. According to UNHCR, 612,700 people applied for asylum in North America, Europe, East Asia and the Pacific last year - the highest total for any year since 2001. UNHCR reported (p 6) an increase of 54 per cent (24,300) in asylum applications in Australia compared to 2012 (15,800).

According to the European Union, nearly half a million people sought asylum in Europe last year, the most in two decades. The largest number came from Syria. In total, 434,160 people sought protection in the EU's 28 member states in 2013, an increase of nearly 30 per cent from 2012 when there were 335,000 applications.

Weekly media round-up No. 30

This week Papua New Guinea launched an inquiry into the violence and alleged human rights violations at the Manus Island detention centre last month, to be assisted by Amnesty International. Justice David Cannings is leading the investigation, which is separate to a constitutional challenge to the centre mounted by PNG opposition leader, Belden Namah.

The PNG Supreme Court temporarily halted the inquiry due to the allegation of Mr Cannings’ bias, however Mr Canning launched a second inquiry, appointing Australian lawyer Jay Williams to take evidence from detainees. There is speculation this inquiry could also be shut down by the PNG government, because Mr Williams is not registered to practice in PNG. The Age reported that the Australian Government was consulted and backed the decision of the PNG government to shut down a human rights inquiry.

PNG Prime Minister Peter O’Neill met with the Abbott Government and said PNG would not be able to resettle all refugees on Manus Island. Both leaders agreed most people in the centre are not  “genuine refugees”. During an inspection of the centre asylum seekers shouted to visiting journalists that Reza Barati had been thrown off a balcony.

More reports have been issued about conditions on Manus Island: an asylum seeker told a PNG court about eating worm-infested bread and PNG police were shown in a video using dogs in an alleged attack on an unarmed man. Three suicide attempts have been reported. ABC’s 7.30 showed footage taken on board of asylum seekers intercepted at sea, including threats to Navy officers.  Immigration Minister Scott Morrison said the report further justifies the government’s tough border policies.

Mr Morrison announced it has been 89 days since a successful people smuggling venture arrived in Australia. Indonesian immigration officials say they stopped 1000 asylum seekers last year.

Legal action following the breach of asylum seekers’ personal information began. The Guardian reported that if their cases fail, these asylum seekers would pay the legal costs of the Department of Immigration and Border Protection.

In 2013 the Immigration Department required asylum seekers to leave school at the age of eighteen. From November the Coalition reversed the policy, allowing teenagers to complete schooling after they turned eighteen.

Weekly media round-up No. 29

A report from the Human Rights Law Centre criticised Australia’s close cooperation with Sri Lanka, saying it had jeopardised the safety of asylum seekers fleeing that country. The Australian government denies that anyone sent back to Sri Lanka has been harmed, though the report found (p 6) at least one man returned had been “severely tortured”.

 The Immigration Department apologised to thousands of asylum seekers for releasing their personal information online. Department secretary Martin Bowles wrote a letter stating the department will "assess any implications for you personally as part of its normal process". Dozens of asylum seekers are believed to be planning court action over the breach, which saw the full names, nationalities and dates of birth of almost 10,000 asylum seekers made available on a government website.

Fairfax Media reported police on Manus Island are close to charging several men with the murder of Reza Barati. Some suspects are believed to still be working at the facility.

The chief justice of Nauru, Australian citizen Geoffrey Eames QC, resigned saying he “could not be assured that the separation of powers and the independence of the judiciary would be respected”. Eames had his visa cancelled earlier this year when he issued an injunction to prevent the government deporting the country’s only magistrate. The Department of Foreign Affairs said the episode gave “rise to concerns about the rule of law in Nauru and Nauru’s reputation internationally”. Sixteen asylum seekers are awaiting trial in Nauru over a July 2013 riot on the island, where the Australian government has been sending asylum seekers since 2012.

Defending the treatment of asylum seekers on Manus Island and Nauru in an interview with the BBC, Australia’s foreign minister Julie Bishop wrongly stated that those found to be refugees may later be settled in Australia, that the claims of those in the centres are being processed (only one positive determination has been made on Nauru), and that children in detention go to school.

A former employee of the Salvation Army published an account of life inside the Nauru detention centre. Mark Isaacs relates the haphazard selection process for camp staff and their lack of training, as well as the asylum seekers he befriended who went on to self-harm.