Australia (see also Indonesia)

UN calls for review of detention policy

The UNHCR urged the Australian government to review its policy of mandatory detention of asylum seekers, after a mass hunger strike and suicide threats among migrants held in detention centers.  Ruud Lubbers, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, said many of the refugees have fled persecution and have suffered torture and trauma in their countries of origin, and they should not be put through additional ordeal. 

About 1,100 Afghans are currently in detention in Australia or camps in Papua New Guinea and Nauru, which were set up last year as Canberra toughened its stance on boatpeople and began diverting asylum seekers to Pacific islands.  Another 3,000 are living in Australia on temporary residency visas, having already been recognized as refugees.  Some 11,570 asylum seekers have filed an application in Australia last year, but the figure does not include those who arrived offshore or whose requests are being processed on Manus Island, Papua New Guinea or Nauru since September. 

 Woomera escapees, accomplices nabbed

More people were arrested on 5 February for assisting the Woomera detention center breakout on 3 February.  Four were captured on 4 February when police stopped a vehicle near Burra in South Australia after a high-speed chase.  The driver was charged with aiding and abetting an escape from immigration detention.  Two more people were arrested in Burra for the same offense.  Five asylum seekers who escaped the Woomera center in South Australia had been captured on 5 February.

On 7 February, between 25 and 30 people were arrested as demonstrators, protesting against the government’s policy of detention, clashed with police. About 150 protesters and dozens of police clashed outside the Cockle Bay nightlife precinct.  The protest turned ugly when police moved in along a narrow terrace and attempted to move the protesters back downstairs from the second floor venue, where Immigration Minister Ruddock was to be the guest of honor of a Liberal Party function.   

Escape from Villawood

Nine asylum seekers escaped from Villawood Immigration Center on 14 February by cutting a hole in the fence.  During the break out, people helping the asylum seekers attacked guards with tire levers and tried to drive them over. The breakout is the second this month. Six male detainees escaped from Woomera center on 3 February. Three Australians were charged with helping the breakout and police has since captured all six escapees.     

Rioters deported

Three Chinese charged over the New Year’s Eve riots in Villawood Detention Center have been deported.  They were part of a group of 11 men charged over the riots, which caused A$500,000 damage at the detention center.  Another six men - one British national, one from Jordan, two Vietnamese, one from Lebanon and one from China - appeared in Sydney’s Central Court where their cases would be heard until 19 March.  The remaining two Chinese nationals have yet to appear. 

Hard-line stance on refugees defended

The government defended its hard-line stance on asylum seekers after a refugee committed suicide when he was officially advised to return to Afghanistan.  Centacare said the 46-year old man hanged himself on 3 February at Murray Bridge in Adelaide, after he received a letter from the Immigration Department advising him to voluntarily return to Afghanistan.  Immigration Minister Philip Ruddock said he was saddened by the death, but there was no proof that it was prompted by government policies. Despite criticisms of its policy on asylum seekers, the government insists that the policies are necessary to maintain the integrity of the country’s borders and to prevent the influx of refugees.           

Visa violators held

A total of 88 people have been detained in Sydney for being in the country illegally or in breach of visa conditions.  The Immigration Department said of the 59 men and 29 women detained since 31 January, 74 were in Australia unlawfully and the remaining 14 were found to have violated their visa conditions.  Those detained include 24 Indonesians, 24 Chinese, nine South Koreans, seven Thais and four Malaysians.  All of them were detained at the Villawood Immigration Center. 

Sources:  AFP, “Australia urged to review refugee detentions,” Khaleej Times, 2 February 2003;  “More arrests for assisting Woomera escape,” The Age, 6 February 2003; AFP, “Australia defends strict policy on refugees,” New Straits Times, 7 February 2003;  “Scores arrested in refugee protest,” The Australian, 7 February 2003;  “88 detained for visa violations,” The Australian, 9 February 2003;  “Detainees involved in riots deported,” The Age, 12 February 2003; AAP, “Detention center breakout, nine escape,” The Age, 14 February 2003