ISSUES INVESTIGATION
WHAT IS THE CURRENT AUSTRALIAN POSITION ON REFUGEES AND ASYLUM SEEKERS?
During 2012-13 Australia’s Refugee and Humanitarian program increased from 13,750 to 20,000 places divided between offshore resettlement and onshore protection. It resulted in 87% rise in the number of offshore resettlement visas granted. The alternatives include indefinite mandatory detention and mandatory detention. Asylum seekers who arrive without prior valid visas usually have to go through mandatory detention. They usually stay in detention for an average of 450 days. Community placement are another alternative. Many asylum seekers from immigration detentions centers are released are placed on bridging visas so they can live in community. Although
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Today 60 million refugees, and asylum seekers are internally displaced . This is almost double what it was 10 years ago. Mega conflicts in Syria and Iraq have displaced millions of people. These are conflicts that are pushing refugees and migrants into flight. The world is in the midst of an unprecedented humanitarian crisis. Yet Australia’s approach in recent years has been to punish people seeking asylum, while increasing the numbers of refugees it resettles. This contrasting approach threatens the long and proud history Australia has of successful integration of refugee communities. This report reflects what we have heard from refugees and people seeking asylum, and the people supporting them. We thank all of the people who contributed to this report. The past two years have been a dramatic and traumatic period for refugees, both at home and abroad. More people are seeking safety – from persecution, conflict, violence and violations of human rights – than at any time since World War II. In the past two years, we have seen lifeless children washing up on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea. We have seen ordinary Europeans lining up to help refugees at train stations. We have seen Australians demanding successfully that their leaders let in an extra 12,000 people fleeing the crises in Syria and Iraq.
The focal issue of this argument is when an Asylum Seeker arrives in Australia without a visa, they are required to stay in detention well beyond the period of time it should take to gather basic information about an asylum claim, health identity or security issues. This can lead to an asylum seeker often being detained for months and sometimes for years. Under the Migration Act (Cth.) 1958 there is no time limit on this detention and only very limited review by the courts is available. The ‘United Nations Rules for the Protection of Juveniles Deprived of their Liberty’, rule 11 (b) (UNHCR) considers ‘detention as; confinement within a narrowly bounded or restricted location, where freedom of movement is substantially curtailed, and where the only opportunity
For many years refugees have been demonized by the country through the spread of fear and misconception. Furthermore, the disgusting treatment of refugees in the detention camps by the Australian Government has been roundly criticised by the international community.
The resettlement of refugees in Australia is a controversial topic; many people believe that they come here to commit crime, change our culture and steal our jobs. ‘The Happiest Refugee’ has enhanced my belief that refugees should be allowed to live in Australia. I believe that refugees are here to escape war and persecution; they are not criminals, nor do they want to change our culture or steal our jobs. Refugees are generally grateful for their new lives in Australia and they embrace our culture. ‘The Happiest Refugee’ is a source of evidence that supports this.
Can you imagine that your little town is being attacked or even a natural disaster may be occurring and you have nowhere to go? What would you do? How would you survive? You would have to flee your home away from the tragic disaster. You would have no place to call home and all you would have is the clothes on your back. Some in the process of leaving their town never get to see their family again and are lucky if they survive. This is why I believe that refugees should be allowed into the United States under certain conditions. These include having a positive background, being eligible for a job and respecting our nation as well as the people in it. As the US turns refugees away, thousands of lives are being taken away. We could easily help them by taking them into our country. Although some people that enter the country may commit crimes, that doesn’t mean we should turn all of them away. It would cause way more harm than good. Most crimes that happen in the United States are caused by the people that are US citizens rather than the refugees. All of these innocent lives are just being taken away and as many Americans sit back and do nothing about it. When we could be out there saving lives. Our country has to step in and do something about this serious situation. There are solutions we could use to solve these problems by making sure all people that enter this country are good at heart. Outside of very few exceptions our country is mainly made up of refugees and
Another technique used in the documentary to challenge the viewers’ assumptions was the use of narration to present facts about the refugee situation. These facts and figures give the viewers a truthful and realistic picture of the situation. Some beliefs that exist in Australian society are that we are taking in too many refugees; they are criminals, they are taking over Australia, using Australian tax payers’ money and changing our culture. However, we are presented with facts and figures that change our assumptions. For example, more than 30 million people have fled their homes with nothing but the clothes they wear, boat smugglers charge up to and over $10, 000 US dollars, 13, 000 refugees are accepted annually only 2,000 of those refugees arrive by boat. Despite what many people think, like Raye who believed refugees in Australia are “handed everything on a gold platter,” life in detention centres is hard. In Villawood Detention Centre, over 9 months, three detainees committed suicide and 18 caused self-harm.
“My hope finished now. I don’t have any hope. I feel I will die in detention.” Unaccompanied 17 year old, Phosphate Hill Detention Centre, Christmas Island, 4 March 2014. Few social justice issues in Australia have attracted as much attention and controversy in recent times as the issue of asylum seekers. An asylum-seeker ‘is an individual who has sought international protection and whose claim for refugee status has not yet been determined’. In contrast, a refugee is an individual whose protection has been deemed necessary by the UNHCR or a State who is a signatory to the Refugee Convention. The issues surrounding asylum seeker has divide opinions and evoke strong emotional responses across the community. We are aware that asylum seekers are often vulnerable people, desperately fleeing civil unrest, warfare and persecution from across the world. We know that Australia is a destination of choice for many people seeking to embark on a new life in safety. And we know that there are people who will exploit the vulnerability of asylum seekers by offering them unsafe passage by sea to our shores. There were 584 children detained in immigration detention centres on mainland Australia and 305 children on Christmas Island. A further 179 children were detained on Nauru as at 31 March 2014.
Political unrest and local war happens around the world all the time. Many people live in a dangerous situation and suffered from violence. Hence, large amount of asylum seeker undertakes a huge perilous, try to cross the ocean and arrive Australia. To deal with this issue, Australian government enacted mandatory detention policy and offshore processing policy, these policies become highly contentious in the community with many arguments and criticisms. This report will focus on the nature and purpose of these immigration policies and the impact towards the asylum seeker as well as the criticism form international. To propose some advice about how the future policies should be framed.
The term ‘illegal immigrants’ is a term used by the media to manipulate public opinion and thereby attempt to change or shape government policy. Asylum seekers are not terrorists wishing to corrupt the Australian way of life, but simply victims of western imperial aggression seeking safety in Australian
As our knowledge of Sierra Leone is very limited. The information which we can obtain in Australia from the newspapers, internet and government can be biased. The fact remains that these refugees arrived lawfully to compete in the 2006 Commonwealth Games. A fair go for refugees is a fair go for all Australians, most of the current arrivals have fled from conflict zones. Very few passed "safe countries" on their way to Australia, as most countries in our region, are not signatory to the Refugee Convention and are well-known for maltreatment of asylum seekers The law at the time was changed by the government to prevent asylum seekers that arrived by boat.
Asylum seekers have been escaping their hostile countries for decades now, but where are they fleeing to? Not to Australia. With the Australian government forcing asylum seekers to Thailand and other foreign countries, it is lessening the number we, as Australians, have to "deal with", at least that is the government’s plan. Many Australians believe that asylum seekers and refugees don't deserve to come here to Australia, however if those Australians were to be forced to flee Australia due to war, they would support them coming. The point being made is that asylum seekers deserve as much as any Australian. Australia is a free country, and we want the entire world to believe that, so why are we trying to relieve asylum seekers of the joy of
Another important stakeholder in this issue is the children themselves. Almost all of the children present in detention centres are asylum seekers whom arrived in Australia by boat, and are classified as ‘unauthorised maritime arrivals’ (Humanrights.gov.au, 2015). These asylum seeker children all held the same responses to some degree. Their responses were all surrounded by the main aspect of ‘Wanting to be free and safe’.
Asylum seekers or refugees have fled their countries’ due to volatile circumstances such as war, or fear of prosecution. Upon arrival in Australia they are moved to detention centres. Detention centres hold people who have come without a visa, any non-national and all unauthorised boat arrivals (Australian Human Rights Commission, 2014). These centres hold refugees for indefinite periods and in poor conditions. They are used as a spectacle to represent illegality and a threat to Australian society (Marfleet, 2007, p672).
According to UNHCR, a refugee is someone who has been forced to flee his or her country because of persecution, war, or violence. A refugee has a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, political opinion or membership in a particular social group. Most likely, they cannot return home or are afraid to do so. War and ethnic, tribal and religious violence are leading causes of refugees fleeing their countries. When people flee their own country, and seek sanctuary in another country, they apply for asylum – the right to be recognized as a refugee and receive legal protection and material assistance. An asylum seeker must demonstrate that his or her fear of persecution in his or her home country is
Good morning delegates of the youth parliament and observing members. Today I stand before you to discuss an issue that continues to evoke high emotions and create deep divisions within Australian society. I refer to the matter of refugees and Australia's immigration policy. Not since the second world war has the world faced such an upheaval with so many people displaced. In 2015 there were 65.3 million people forcibly displaced from their homes because of conflict and persecution. Developing countries hold 84% of refugees while wealthier countries like Australia prioritise the need to reduce asylum seekers within their borders. The current policy contravenes the proper treatment of refugees and asylum seekers; because regardless of their mode of entry, once here Australia has a duty to provide protection.
Citizens often thought those people would bring terrorists, unemployment and infrastructure stress. However, refugees will be able to make out importance in affecting the potential social, cultural and economic contributionsupon their area of resettlement. Australia has a long history of accepting refugees for resettlement and over 700 000 refugees. As a consequence, Australia’s offshore humanitarian programme is heralded as one of the best in the world. Accepting more refugees and boat people into the country is one of the greatest contributions that can make to improving the world around us and enhancing our own living standards. In addition, by having more people in country there are more people to cooperate with, more people to trade with and more people to grow the market. They help supply the economy through participating in the labour market and bring with them diversity, new work approaches and funds. As our wealth and economy grows there is more money for the finer things in life.