STOP CHILD REFUGEES BEING LOCKED UP ON A DESERT ISLAND FOREVER
What can we do if they are locked up on bloody Christmas Island?
Please, at least send your MP an email. We've got a week, basically.
norrie mAy-welby 28 April 2006
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On 13 April 2006 the Federal Government announced harsh changes to the treatment of asylum seekers who arrive by boat.
Amnesty International Australia believes these changes undermine Australia's international human rights obligations. AIA is particularly concerned that:
asylum seekers who arrive by boat will be sent to offshore detention centres for processing, and even those determined to be refugees, will remain there indefinitely until a 'third country' accepts them;
boats of asylum seekers will be forced to return to the very places they fled, facing the risk of abuse, torture or worse;
children will be back in detention behind razor wire.
It is likely that these laws will be passed when Parliament sits again from 9 May. This is why I urge you to act quickly on this issue.
We have a very limited window to mobilise pressure on the government to stop this inhumanity. We could not do this without your support.
Take action now. Tell the Government that laws that deny basic human rights to refugees and asylum seekers are unacceptable.
Kind regards,
Graham ThomNational Refugee Co-ordinator
Take action now to oppose changes to refugee policy
20 April 2006
On 13 April 2006 the Federal Government announced harsh changes to the way asylum seekers arriving by boat are treated.
The government is yet to provide full details of the proposed changes and is currently drafting new legislation. This legislation will probably go to parliament in May so now is the time to take action. Let your local Member of Parliament and Senators know that you oppose any changes to refugee policy that will have a negative impact on the human rights of asylum seekers.
Recommended Action
Please write emails or letters to your elected Member of Parliament and Senators asking them to uphold Australia's international obligations and provide protection to refugees.
Amnesty International Australia is concerned about the following key aspects of the announced policy:
that all asylum seekers who arrive by boat will be sent to offshore detention centres for processing and will stay there until a 'third country' accepts them;
that boats of asylum seekers will be forced to return to the very places they fled;
that the proposed changes undo the Government's positive changes of 2005, such as the release of children from detention.
In your letter you could include some of the following key points:
People who have a fear of persecution have a right to seek asylum and must not be punished for the way they arrive in a safe country. Transferring asylum seekers to detention centres in remote, offshore locations is a form of punishment.
Australia has an international legal obligation to provide protection to refugees who land in Australia. This obligation can not be left to a 'third country' to meet.
Both asylum seekers and refugees will face the prospect of indefinite detention in a remote and isolated location.
Children will again be forced to grow up in detention.
Asylum seekers will be denied access to a fair and impartial review process via the Refugee Review Tribunal. Access to legal advice and representation could also be restricted. The Tribunal has reversed thousands of the government's decisions in recent years. Without this review refugees may be returned to face persecution.
The Federal Ombudsman will be unable to review offshore cases of long-term detention.
The proposed changes deny basic human rights to people who have faced persecution and breach Australia's international obligations under the Refugee Convention.
Read the media release:
Changes to Australia's Migration Act a travesty of justice