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Face the facts:ASYLUM SEEKERS AND
REFUGEES • 2014
The Australian Human Rights Commission encourages the dissemination and exchange of information provided in this publication.
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Attribution
Material obtained from this publication is to be attributed to the Australian Human Rights Commission with the following copyright notice:
© Australian Human Rights Commission 2014.
Face the Facts: Asylum seekers and refugees • 2014
IISBN 978-1-921449-67-3
Design and layout Dancingirl DesignsInfographic Design Firefly InteractiveContent James Iliffe, Black and White Media Australia
Electronic format
This publication can be found in electronic format on the website of the Australian Human Rights Commission: http://www.humanrights.gov.au/publications
Contact details
For further information about the Australian Human Rights Commission, please visit www.humanrights.gov.au or email [email protected].
You can also write to:
Communications Team Australian Human Rights Commission GPO Box 5218 Sydney NSW 2001
Face the Facts: Asylum seekers and refugees • 2014 • 1
www.humanrights.gov.au/face-facts
2
Asylum seekers and refugees
• Asat31January2014therewere1,006childreninimmigrationdetentionfacilitiesinAustraliaand132childrendetainedinNauru.3Asat19August2013,therewere358unaccompaniedminorsheldinimmigrationdetentionfacilities,ranginginagefromsevento17years.4TheaverageageofchildrenincloseddetentionfacilitiesinSeptember2013was10 years.5
• Thenumberofpeopleseekingasylumin2012(15,963)6madeuplessthansevenpercentofAustralia’sannualimmigrationintakeandfourpercentofouroverallpopulationgrowth.7ThetopfivesourcecountriesforasylumseekerswhoarrivedinAustraliabyboatin2012wereAfghanistan,SriLanka,Iran,PakistanandIraq.8
• Around90percentofasylumseekerswhoarriveinAustraliabyboatareultimatelyfoundtoberefugeesandaregrantedprotectionvisas.9
Key issues for asylum seekers and refugees
• Australiahasoneofthemostrestrictiveimmigrationdetentionsystemsintheworld.Itismandatory,indefiniteandprovidesnoopportunityforpeopletochallengetheneedfortheirdetentionincourt.10Asat31January2014,theaveragelengthoftimeapersonspentinimmigrationdetentionwassevenmonthsandninedays.However,119peoplehadbeenheldinimmigrationdetentionforovertwoyears.11
• Prolongeddetentioncanhaveadevastatingandlong-lastingimpactonthementalhealthofasylumseekers,especiallychildren.Further,thecostoftreatingmentalillnessescausedormadeworsebyprolongeddetentionisconservativelyestimatedatanaverageof$25,000perperson.12
SeekingasyluminAustraliaisnotillegal.Infact,itisabasichumanright.Allpeopleareentitledtoprotectionoftheirhumanrights,includingtherighttoseekasylum,regardlessofhoworwheretheyarriveinAustralia.
CountriesthathaveratifiedtheConventionRelatingtotheStatusofRefugees1951,suchasAustralia,arerequiredtoassessasylumseekers’claimsforprotectionfrompersecution.TheRefugeeConventiondefineswhoisarefugeeandsetsoutthebasicrightsthatcountriesshouldguaranteetorefugees.
Australia’spolicyofmandatoryimmigrationdetentionwasintroducedin1992.UndertheMigrationAct1958,anynon-citizenwhoisinAustraliawithoutavalidvisamustbedetained.
InAugust2012,theAustralianGovernmentintroduced“thirdcountry”processing.Underthissystem,asylumseekerswhoarrivebyboatwithoutavalidvisaaretransferredtoanddetainedinNauruorPapuaNewGuinea(PNG).ThoseasylumseekerswhoaretransferredwillhavetheirclaimsforprotectionassessedunderNauruanorPNGlaw,notAustralianlaw.
About• Asat31January2014,therewere5,867peopleinimmigrationdetentionfacilitiesand3,391peopleincommunitydetentioninAustralia.1Forty-threepercent(3,967)weredetainedinfacilitiesonthemainland,37 percentwereincommunitydetention(3,391)and20percentwereheldonChristmasIsland(1,900).2
• Asat31January2014,therewere1,012asylumseekerswhohadbeentransferredbytheAustralianGovernmentanddetainedinNauru.Therewereafurther1,353asylumseekersdetainedonManusIslandinPNG.
Face the Facts: Asylum seekers and refugees • 2014 • 3
• In2012–13,therewere846reportedincidentsofself-harmacrossAustralia’simmigrationdetentionsystem.13
• AsylumseekersarrivinginAustraliabyboatonorafter13August2012whohavebeengrantedbridgingvisasarenotallowedtowork.14Thisrestrictiononworkingandearninganincomecanhaveseriouseffectsonaperson’swell-beingandcontributetoproblemswithphysicalhealth,mentalhealth,socialisolationandfamilybreakdown.15
• ImplementingAustralia’spolicyofmandatoryimmigrationdetentioncostAustraliantaxpayers$1.235billionin2011–2012.16
Supporting asylum seekers and refugees
• Australiahasresettledaround800,000refugeessince1945andconsistentlyranksamongtheworld’stopthreeresettlementcountries.17
• Atotalof13,750peoplewillbeacceptedthroughAustralia’sHumanitarianProgramin2013-2014.18
• Alternativestoclosedimmigrationdetention,suchascommunityarrangements,saveAustraliantaxpayersmoneyandinvolvefewerriskstothehealth,safetyandwell-beingofasylumseekersandrefugees.Thishelpslowerratesofself-harmandleadstofewerclaimsforcompensation.19
Did you know?AsofAugust2013,therewere52 refugees who faced indefinite detention in Australia becauseASIOhaddeemedthemasecurityrisk.TheUnitedNationsHumanRightsCommitteefoundthattheindefinitedetentionofagroupofrefugeeswithadversesecurityassessmentswasinflictingseriouspsychologicalharmuponthem,amountingtocruel,inhumanordegradingtreatment.
Find out more• AustralianHumanRightsCommission,Asylum
seekers, refugees and human rights: Snapshot Report(2013)
• AustralianHumanRightsCommission,A last resort? Report of the National Inquiry into Children in Immigration Detention(2004)
• ConventionRelatingtotheStatusofRefugees1951andProtocolRelatingtotheStatusofRefugees1967
• A.Houston,P.AristotleandM.L.’Estrange,Report of the Expert Panel on Asylum Seekers(2012)
• UNRefugeeAgency(UNHCR),MonitoringvisittoManusIsland(2013)andNauru(2013)
Our roleTheCommissionhasundertakenextensiveworkintheareaofAustralianlaw,policyandpracticerelatingtoasylumseekers,refugeesandimmigrationdetention.Thishasincludedconductingnationalinquiries;examiningproposedlegislation;monitoringandreportingonimmigrationdetention;andinvestigatingcomplaintsfromindividualssubjecttoAustralia’simmigrationlawsandpolicies.
Wehavealsodevelopedminimumhumanrightsstandardsforimmigrationdetentionandadvocatedforstrongerfederallawstoensurethattheconditionsinimmigrationdetentionmeetinternationalstandards.
TheNationalChildren’sCommissionerworkscollaborativelywithintheCommissiontoprotecttherightsofchildasylumseekersandunaccompaniedminors.
Findoutmoreaboutourworkinthisarea.
InFebruary2014,theCommissionannouncedthatitwouldundertakeafollow-upNationalInquiryintoChildreninImmigrationDetention.TheinquirywillinvestigatewhathaschangedinthetenyearssincetheCommissionreleasedA last resort? Report of the National Inquiry into Children in Immigration Detentionin 2004.
Face the Facts: Asylum seekers and refugees • 2014 • 3
4
Endnotes
1 DepartmentofImmigrationandBorderProtection,AustralianGovernment,Immigration Detention and Community Statistics Summary: 31 January 2014(2014)p3.
2 DepartmentofImmigrationandBorderProtection,AustralianGovernment,above,p3.
3 DepartmentofImmigrationandBorderProtection,AustralianGovernmentnote1,pp3-4.
4 AustralianHumanRightsCommission,Asylum seekers, refugees and human rights: Snapshot Report, October 2013,footnote54,55.DepartmentofImmigrationandCitizenship,ResponsetotheAustralianHumanRightsCommission’s13August2013requestforinformationconcerningdetentionandasylumseekers,providedbyemailtotheCommissionon16September2013,p3.
5 AustralianHumanRightsCommission,above,footnote43.6 AustralianHumanRightsCommission,note4,footnote18,19;
DepartmentofImmigrationandCitizenship,Asylum statistics – Australia, Quarterly tables – March Quarter 2013(2013),p1;UnitedNationsHighCommissionerforRefugees(UNHCR),UNHCR Global Trends 2012, Displacement: The New 21st Century Challenge(2013),p3.
7 AustralianHumanRightsCommission,note4,footnote20,21;AustralianBureauofStatistics,3101.0–Australian Demographic Statistics, Dec 2012(June2013).
8 AustralianHumanRightsCommission,note4,p8.9 See,forexample,thestatisticsprovidedbytheDepartmentof
ImmigrationandBorderProtectionforthelastfivefinancialyearsinAsylum Trends – Australia: 2012-13 Annual Publication(2013),p30.
10 AustralianHumanRightsCommission,note4,ExecutiveSummary.11 DepartmentofImmigrationandBorderProtection,Australian
Government,note1,p10.12 AustralianHumanRightsCommission,note4,footnote94;TWard,
Long-term health costs of extended mandatory detention of asylum seekers(2011).
13 AustralianHumanRightsCommission,note4,ExecutiveSummary.14 AustralianHumanRightsCommission,Tell Me About: Bridging Visas
for Asylum Seekers(April2013).15 AustralianHumanRightsCommission,above,footnote5.16 AustralianHumanRightsCommission,note4,footnote39;Australian
NationalAuditOffice,Individual Management Services Provided to People in Immigration Detention, Report No 21(2013),p12.
17 AustralianHumanRightsCommission,note4,ExecutiveSummary.18 SeeMid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook, Appendix A: Policy
decisions taken since the 2013-14 Budget –Expense Measures – Immigration and Border Protection.
19 AustralianHumanRightsCommission,note4,footnote103;InternationalDetentionCoalitionandLaTrobeRefugeeResearchCentre,There are alternatives: A handbook for preventing unnecessary immigration detention(2011),section5.
Face the Facts: Asylum seekers and refugees • 2014 • 5
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