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| First Nauru refugees leave for US resettlement | First Nauru refugees leave for US resettlement |
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| The first 52 refugees to be accepted for resettlement in the United States under a contentious agreement with Australia have left the Pacific island camps where they had been held for years. | The first 52 refugees to be accepted for resettlement in the United States under a contentious agreement with Australia have left the Pacific island camps where they had been held for years. |
| Their move comes as reports from Washington indicate the US is preparing to announce it is further slashing its overall refugee intake to its lowest level in a decade. | Their move comes as reports from Washington indicate the US is preparing to announce it is further slashing its overall refugee intake to its lowest level in a decade. |
| The first 25 refugees from the men-only camp on Papua New Guinea’s Manus Island had flown out of the capital, Port Moresby, on Tuesday for the United States via the Philippines and Qatar, Refugee Action Coalition spokesman Ian Rintoul said. | The first 25 refugees from the men-only camp on Papua New Guinea’s Manus Island had flown out of the capital, Port Moresby, on Tuesday for the United States via the Philippines and Qatar, Refugee Action Coalition spokesman Ian Rintoul said. |
| Another 27 refugees flew to Port Moresby on Wednesday from a camp in Nauru, he said, also bound, ultimately, for Los Angeles. | Another 27 refugees flew to Port Moresby on Wednesday from a camp in Nauru, he said, also bound, ultimately, for Los Angeles. |
| US government officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday and Australian officials declined to comment. | US government officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday and Australian officials declined to comment. |
| The refugees will be resettled across the United States, including in Georgia, Oregon, Colorado, Texas and Arizona. They will be assisted with housing, physical and mental healthcare, English lessons, enrolment of children in schools, and in finding employment. | The refugees will be resettled across the United States, including in Georgia, Oregon, Colorado, Texas and Arizona. They will be assisted with housing, physical and mental healthcare, English lessons, enrolment of children in schools, and in finding employment. |
| The Trump administration is reportedly preparing to announce its new refugee cap for the forthcoming fiscal year – which runs from October to September – at the lowest level in a decade. | The Trump administration is reportedly preparing to announce its new refugee cap for the forthcoming fiscal year – which runs from October to September – at the lowest level in a decade. |
| Shortly after taking office the US president, Donald Trump, issued two travel ban executive orders that directed the US state department to accept a maximum of 50,000 refugees for permanent resettlement in the fiscal year to 30 September. That figure was less than half the 110,000 places the former president Barack Obama had authorised. | Shortly after taking office the US president, Donald Trump, issued two travel ban executive orders that directed the US state department to accept a maximum of 50,000 refugees for permanent resettlement in the fiscal year to 30 September. That figure was less than half the 110,000 places the former president Barack Obama had authorised. |
| Court challenges to those orders have resulted in more than 50,000 admitted to the US: the figure was at 51,000 to the end of August. But the figure of 45,000 refugee places, if adopted next fiscal year, would be the lowest refugee acceptance level since 2006. | Court challenges to those orders have resulted in more than 50,000 admitted to the US: the figure was at 51,000 to the end of August. But the figure of 45,000 refugee places, if adopted next fiscal year, would be the lowest refugee acceptance level since 2006. |
| Margaret Huang, executive director of Amnesty International USA, said the reported reductions, if true, were a betrayal of the American tradition of helping people escape war and violence. For decades, the US has been the largest third-country resettler of refugees in the world. | Margaret Huang, executive director of Amnesty International USA, said the reported reductions, if true, were a betrayal of the American tradition of helping people escape war and violence. For decades, the US has been the largest third-country resettler of refugees in the world. |
| “Refugees are ordinary people who have lost everything,” Huang said. “They deserve our compassion and concern as they rebuild their lives. Instead, President Trump is prioritising a dangerous agenda of bigotry and hate. We cannot allow fear-mongering to block vulnerable people from gaining safety.” | “Refugees are ordinary people who have lost everything,” Huang said. “They deserve our compassion and concern as they rebuild their lives. Instead, President Trump is prioritising a dangerous agenda of bigotry and hate. We cannot allow fear-mongering to block vulnerable people from gaining safety.” |
| Obama’s administration had agreed to accept up to 1,250 of Australia’s refugees, mostly from Iran, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka, in exchange for Australia agreeing to accept refugees from the “northern triangle” countries of El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras, under a US-led resettlement program. | Obama’s administration had agreed to accept up to 1,250 of Australia’s refugees, mostly from Iran, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka, in exchange for Australia agreeing to accept refugees from the “northern triangle” countries of El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras, under a US-led resettlement program. |
| Trump lashed his predecessor’s deal as “dumb”, and complained in a phone call to the Australian prime minister, Malcolm Turnbull, that it would “make me look terrible”. | Trump lashed his predecessor’s deal as “dumb”, and complained in a phone call to the Australian prime minister, Malcolm Turnbull, that it would “make me look terrible”. |
| Trump ultimately agreed to honour the agreement, subject to “extreme vetting” of refugees. | Trump ultimately agreed to honour the agreement, subject to “extreme vetting” of refugees. |
| The US is under no obligation to take a set number of refugees. Australian officials are confident the US will resettle somewhere approaching the 1,250 figure publicly speculated, but have conceded the number will not be enough to “clear” Australia’s offshore detention islands and find durable solution for all refugees currently under Australia’s control offshore. | The US is under no obligation to take a set number of refugees. Australian officials are confident the US will resettle somewhere approaching the 1,250 figure publicly speculated, but have conceded the number will not be enough to “clear” Australia’s offshore detention islands and find durable solution for all refugees currently under Australia’s control offshore. |
| Refugee Action Coalition’s Rintoul said there had been no indication how many of the more than 2,000 asylum seekers on Papua New Guinea and Nauru would be left behind. | Refugee Action Coalition’s Rintoul said there had been no indication how many of the more than 2,000 asylum seekers on Papua New Guinea and Nauru would be left behind. |
| “People [in the camps] are happy that these people have gone, but the big question is what happens to the rest,” he said. | “People [in the camps] are happy that these people have gone, but the big question is what happens to the rest,” he said. |
| “It raises the level of anxiety and uncertainty and that’s been magnified by the fact that US officials have indicated that while they expect that there will be other groups being processed, it could take as long to process the next group of people as it has to process this one, which is several months. | “It raises the level of anxiety and uncertainty and that’s been magnified by the fact that US officials have indicated that while they expect that there will be other groups being processed, it could take as long to process the next group of people as it has to process this one, which is several months. |
| “There is no transparency, no timelines, no numbers, no certainty, except the fact that there will be hundreds left behind,” he added. | “There is no transparency, no timelines, no numbers, no certainty, except the fact that there will be hundreds left behind,” he added. |
| US officials say security is paramount. All refugees approved for travel to the United States from Nauru and Papua New Guinea have passed the same stringent vetting processes that apply to all refugees considered for admission to the United States, and any individual not deemed to have met US vetting requirements will not be admitted. | US officials say security is paramount. All refugees approved for travel to the United States from Nauru and Papua New Guinea have passed the same stringent vetting processes that apply to all refugees considered for admission to the United States, and any individual not deemed to have met US vetting requirements will not be admitted. |
| Australia’s asylum policy mandates that no refugee who arrives in Australia by boat can ever be resettled in the country, a policy the government says dissuades asylum seekers from attempting the dangerous and occasionally deadly ocean crossing from Indonesia. | Australia’s asylum policy mandates that no refugee who arrives in Australia by boat can ever be resettled in the country, a policy the government says dissuades asylum seekers from attempting the dangerous and occasionally deadly ocean crossing from Indonesia. |
| Australia instead pays Papua New Guinea and Nauru – at a cost of nearly $10bn over the past four years – to house asylum seekers in camps that have been plagued by consistent revelations of physical violence – including murder – sexual abuse of women and children, allegations of torture by guards, medical neglect leading to death, and catastrophic rates of mental health damage, self-harm, and suicide attempts. | Australia instead pays Papua New Guinea and Nauru – at a cost of nearly $10bn over the past four years – to house asylum seekers in camps that have been plagued by consistent revelations of physical violence – including murder – sexual abuse of women and children, allegations of torture by guards, medical neglect leading to death, and catastrophic rates of mental health damage, self-harm, and suicide attempts. |
| More than 2,000 asylum seekers remain in Australia’s offshore system. Many have been held there for more than four years. | More than 2,000 asylum seekers remain in Australia’s offshore system. Many have been held there for more than four years. |