Treatment of Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Australia What is the difference between a refugee and an asylum seeker? Change Slide According to the UN’s Refugee Convention, a refugee is a person who is outside of their own country and is unable or unwilling to return due to a well-founded fear of being persecuted because of their; race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion. An asylum seeker is a person who has fled their country and is seeking international protection but whose refugee status has not yet been determined. Change Slide For a refugee to seek refuge in Australia, they must either carry a valid visa, be placed in immigration detention until they are granted a visa, or be removed from Australia. Explain the major human rights documents that apply Australia is a signatory of 3 main treaties, amongst many more that seek to enforce that the rights of refugees and asylum seekers are respected & protected: Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) 1948 Change Slide Under Article 14 of the Universal Declaration of human rights, international customary law recognizes the right of persons to seek asylum from persecution in other countries. It also establishes the United Nations Convention relating to the Status of Refugees as the main document that defines who a refugee is and sets out the rights of asylum seekers and the responsibilities of nations. International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) 1976 Article 9 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, provides for the right to liberty and security of person and prohibits arbitrary detention. Further, under article 10, people deprived of their liberty must be treated with humanity and dignity. Convention Against Torture (CAT) 1987 Under article 13 of the Convention Against Torture, it is stipulated that no one should be subjected to torture, cruel or inhuman or degrading treatment. Further, the Covention against torture prohibits states from removing a person to a country where there are substantial grounds for believing that he or she would be in danger of being subjected to torture. Analyse the domestic laws that apply Change Slide Despite being a signatory nation of these 3 treaties which protect against the arbitrary detention of individuals, Australia has the right to exercise their state sovereignty by governing their own affairs such as immigration and creating laws that may conflict with the goals of international law. Under the Migration Act 1958 (Cth), asylum seekers who arrive in Australia, without a valid visa must be held in immigration detention until they are granted a visa or removed from Australia. Change Slide Immigration detention is indefinite and asylum seekers and refugees can spend years in immigration detention going through health, identity and security checks, awaiting approval as refugee status. Change Slide The Migration And Maritime Powers Legislation Amendment (Resolving The Asylum Legacy Caseload) Act 2014 amended and modified the legal management of asylum seekers through the introduction of Temporary Protection visas (TPVs) and Safe Haven Enterprise Visa (SHEV), rather than offering permanent protection for those who seek asylum in Australia. This amendment means asylum seekers are only granted protection if they are found eligible for being part of Australia’s protection obligations, ultimately limiting the accessibility of asylum at the hands of the government's discretion. Change Slide A Sri Lankan family living in Kempsey are facing deportation after the father, the primary visa holder for the family, passed away from cancer. His wife and their 4 children were given a month to appeal or leave the country. Immigration lawyers have said “the Minister should use discretionary powers to allow the family to stay on compassionate grounds”. The department of immigration denied their application for protection visas, arguing the family was unlikely to be persecuted in Sri Lanka and had a house in Colombo they could live in. This case highlights the flaws of Australian migration policies, and exposes how temporary visas don’t always benefit refugees. Describe the non-legal responses to the issue Change Slide Amnesty International is an NGO that supports refugees and asylum seekers, and campaigns against offshore detention and for the implementation of solutions that help more people find a safe place to live. Amnesty also actively reprimands the ‘stop the boats’ policy, as well as contributing to regional search and rescue operations. The NGO is currently pushing for an increase in Australia’s annual humanitarian intake to a minimum of 30,000 places per year, to give more people the opportunity to rebuild their lives in Australia. Change Slide Further, there has been a growing dissatisfaction with the treatment of asylum seekers who arrive by boat. This is evident in the innumerable rallies held in 2019 fighting against the reintroduction of offshore detention by the Rudd Labour government six years ago. Thousands of protestors have urged for the closure of the detention centres on Manus and Nauru, and demanded policy-makers to work harder towards a solution that doesn’t continue to violate the human rights of refugees (‘Australians protest six years of offshore detention’, SBS News, 2019). However, little has been done in response to these protests, thus highlighting the limited effectiveness of the non-legal action. Evaluate the legal and non-legal responses to the issue Change Slide Legal responses such as the introduction of the Migration And Maritime Powers Legislation Amendment Act 2014 seek to better protect the human rights of asylum seekers under Australian domestic law in line with international standards, however, it has failed to effectively protect the rights of those detained in offshore detention centres on Nauru and Manus Island. Despite introducing Temporary Protection visas (TPVs) and Safe Haven Enterprise Visas through the 2014 amendment, they have been criticised for causing many visa holders to feel like they don’t have a permanent home. It is also argued that these visas are only put in place to strategically deny protection, evident in the case of the Sri Lankan family previously mentioned, proving legal measures to ineffectively protect the rights of asylum seekers. Change Slide Non-legal responses such as Amnesty International and the act of protesting have been more effective in raising awareness and fighting for change. Both these non-legal methods reflect community standards, and the collective ambition for change. Amnesty aim to return refugees and asylum seekers to safety, and have done so, as seen in the many numbers of detainees resettled in safer locations. Therefore, non-legal responses have been more effective in improving the treatment of refugees and asylum seekers in Australia, however, legal methods must better enforce the protection of the rights of asylum seekers for more just outcomes to be achieved. Bibliography: Amnesty International. (n.d.). BRINGING REFUGEES IN OFFSHORE DETENTION TO SAFETY. [online] Available at: https://www.amnesty.org.au/campaigns/offshore-detention-refugees/. Anon, (n.d.). Convention and Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees. [online] Available at: https://www.unhcr.org/protect/PROTECTION/3b66c2aa10.pdf. Commonwealth of Australia Explanatory Memoranda. (2014). MIGRATION AND MARITIME POWERS LEGISLATION AMENDMENT (RESOLVING THE ASYLUM LEGACY CASELOAD) BILL 2014 Explanatory Memorandum. [online] Available at: http://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdoc/au/legis/cth/bill_em/mamplatalcb2014832/memo_0.ht ml?context=1;query=migration%20amendment;mask_path= humanrights.gov.au. (n.d.). 4. Australia’s Human Rights Obligations | Australian Human Rights Commission. [online] Available at: https://humanrights.gov.au/our-work/4-australias-human-rights-obligations humanrights.gov.au. (n.d.). Asylum seekers and refugees | Australian Human Rights Commission. [online] Available at: https://humanrights.gov.au/our-work/rights-and-freedoms/publications/asylum-seekers-and-refu gees Refugee Council of Australia. (2016). The Refugee Convention - Refugee Council of Australia. [online] Available at: https://www.refugeecouncil.org.au/international-law/3/ Refugee Council of Australia. (2019). Detention statistics for Australia - Refugee Council of Australia. [online] Available at: https://www.refugeecouncil.org.au/detention-australia-statistics/ Refugee Council of Australia. (n.d.). Migration and Maritime Powers Legislation Amendment (Resolving the Asylum Legacy Caseload) Act 2014: What it means for people seeking asylum. [online] Available at: https://www.refugeecouncil.org.au/legacy-caseload-brief/?gclid=Cj0KCQiAnb79BRDgARIsAOV bhRo-KEKYLoCao7_6qfQYSvob6KTLbRAxe2I7X-IzMEMs9FlvM_l_3SUaAk1tEALw_wcB [Accessed 15 Nov. 2020]. SBS News (2019). Australians protest six years of offshore detention. [online] SBS News. Available at: https://www.sbs.com.au/news/australians-protest-six-years-of-offshore-detention the Guardian. (2019). “We are a part of this country”: refugees protest in Sydney over temporary visas. [online] Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/aug/12/we-are-a-part-of-this-country-refugee s-protest-in-sydney-over-temporary-visas www.abc.net.au. (2020). Sri Lankan family facing deportation after their primary visa holder dies. [online] Available at: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-11-12/sri-lankan-family-living-legally-in-nsw-face-deportation/ 12863974 [Accessed 15 Nov. 2020].
