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Lawmakers’ Report Condemns Australia Over Rioting at Pacific Island Detention Center Australia Failed to Protect Asylum Seekers, Report Says
(about 9 hours later)
SYDNEY, Australia — The Australian government failed to protect asylum seekers locked up in Papua New Guinea during two days of riots in February that left one man dead and others seriously wounded, a parliamentary inquiry has concluded. SYDNEY, Australia — The Australian government failed to protect asylum seekers locked up in Papua New Guinea during two days of riots in February that left one man dead and others seriously wounded, a parliamentary inquiry has concluded.
The inquiry’s nearly 200-page report, submitted to Australia’s Senate on Thursday, depicts a crowded, hastily built center on Manus Island, off northern Papua New Guinea, where three Australian prime ministers have sent more than 1,000 asylum seekers, most of them from Iran and Afghanistan, to prevent them from settling in Australia. The inquiry’s report, submitted to Australia’s Senate on Thursday, depicts a crowded, hastily built center on Manus Island, off northern Papua New Guinea, where three Australian prime ministers have sent more than 1,000 asylum seekers, most of them from Iran and Afghanistan, to prevent them from settling in Australia.
Prime Minister Tony Abbott has taken a hard line on refugee policy, turning around boats at sea and towing them out of Australia’s territorial waters and moving refugees to offshore processing centers, with the result that their requests to settle in Australia are stymied.Prime Minister Tony Abbott has taken a hard line on refugee policy, turning around boats at sea and towing them out of Australia’s territorial waters and moving refugees to offshore processing centers, with the result that their requests to settle in Australia are stymied.
In response to the report, prepared by politicians from the conservative governing Liberal Party as well as the opposition Labor and Greens Parties, Scott Morrison, the immigration minister, said, “We’ve stopped the boats, and we are getting on with the job of resettlement, once again cleaning up a Labor mess in partnership with the government of Papua New Guinea, who retains sovereign control and responsibility for the center.”In response to the report, prepared by politicians from the conservative governing Liberal Party as well as the opposition Labor and Greens Parties, Scott Morrison, the immigration minister, said, “We’ve stopped the boats, and we are getting on with the job of resettlement, once again cleaning up a Labor mess in partnership with the government of Papua New Guinea, who retains sovereign control and responsibility for the center.”
But the report found conditions at the Manus Island center failed to meet basic human rights, and from Feb. 16 to 18, the inadequately staffed compound erupted in violent protests. The violence eventually involved detainees, residents and the police and resulted in the shooting of one man, while another, Reza Barati of Iran, was killed after being beaten with a stick and hit on the head with a rock. Other asylum seekers were punched to the ground and kicked. One man had his throat slashed. The report found that staff members who were expected to maintain some control over the center spoke of leaving detainees to fend for themselves. But the report found conditions at the Manus Island center failed to meet basic human rights, and from Feb. 16 to 18, the inadequately staffed compound erupted in violent protests. The violence eventually involved detainees, residents and the police and resulted in the shooting of one man, while another, Reza Barati of Iran, was killed after being beaten with a stick and hit on the head with a rock. The report found that staff members spoke of leaving detainees to fend for themselves.
“It is clear from evidence presented to the committee that the Australian government failed in its duty to protect asylum seekers including Mr. Barati from harm,” it said. Mr. Barati died after being beaten on Feb. 18. Two men from Papua New Guinea have been charged with his murder and are scheduled to stand trial next year. The report said his death was foreseeable.“It is clear from evidence presented to the committee that the Australian government failed in its duty to protect asylum seekers including Mr. Barati from harm,” it said. Mr. Barati died after being beaten on Feb. 18. Two men from Papua New Guinea have been charged with his murder and are scheduled to stand trial next year. The report said his death was foreseeable.
“The report details the cruel way successive Australian governments have locked up asylum seekers, locked them up indefinitely, in inhumane conditions, delaying the process of resettlement so people languish without any hope,” Daniel Webb, director of the Human Rights Law Center in Melbourne, Australia, said in a telephone interview after the report was released. “Manus Island forces people to choose the location of their abuse: They can stay at Manus indefinitely, or they can choose to return home to persecution.” “The report details the cruel way successive Australian governments have locked up asylum seekers, locked them up indefinitely, in inhumane conditions, delaying the process of resettlement so people languish without any hope,” Daniel Webb, director of the Human Rights Law Center in Melbourne, Australia, said after the report was released.
In the report, Nicole Judge, a former Salvation Army employee sent to work at Manus Island after a stint at another regional processing center on the small Pacific island of Nauru, said: “Manus Island shocked me to my core. I saw sick and defeated men crammed behind fences and being denied their basic human rights, padlocked inside small areas in rooms often with no windows and being mistreated by those who were employed to care for their safety.” The Salvation Army provided welfare services on Manus Island. Appalling conditions, high temperatures and crowded, windowless rooms heightened tensions among asylum seekers, the report said, but the government’s delay in processing claims for asylum led to the rioting.
Senators from the governing party who were on the committee said that most of the problems on Manus Island were the result of the previous Labor government, which established the center in haste. They said that contracts with service providers had been drawn up under the Labor Party and that there had been scant staff training and little planning. Many of the challenges of Manus Island have since been overcome, they said.
But in its submission to the inquiry, Amnesty International described asylum seekers forced to stand in line for long periods in shadeless yards, in rain or extreme heat, to collect meals or receive medical attention. The report described rooms packed with bunk beds, offering no privacy and in contravention of fire safety regulations.
“The toilets were filthy with toilet paper constantly on the floor,” one witness told the inquiry. “The floors in all the facilities were constantly wet, and there was a strong smell of sewage around the center at all times.” Hand sanitizer was not provided to detainees, and toilet paper was handed out one sheet at a time. The center ran out of soap. There was limited running water, and when it was available, asylum seekers could not drink it.
“I have personally found small worms and flies baked into bread and also in meat being offered to staff and transferees,” Ms. Judge said. “I have found small dead flies in my bread on a daily basis. This was such a regular occurrence it was to be expected.”
Appalling conditions, high temperatures and crowded, windowless rooms heightened tensions among asylum seekers, the report said, but the Australian government’s delay in processing claims for asylum led to the rioting.
“The committee believes that the hopelessness of the situation transferees found themselves in, with no clear path forward and no certainty for the future, was the central factor in the incident of 16 to 18 February,” the report said, adding that the harsh conditions had increased the volatility and made protests inevitable.“The committee believes that the hopelessness of the situation transferees found themselves in, with no clear path forward and no certainty for the future, was the central factor in the incident of 16 to 18 February,” the report said, adding that the harsh conditions had increased the volatility and made protests inevitable.
It said the Australian government should provide compensation to Mr. Barati’s family and to other asylum seekers wounded in the riots. The report also said the government should provide medical treatment for those injured and mental health services for those affected.
Senator Sarah Hanson-Young of the Greens Party said, “Overwhelmingly what this report shows is that the Australian government has total responsibility for what happens inside the center and must accept responsibility for the attacks that happened that night.”
In a statement issued on Thursday, Amnesty International said that Australia’s policy of processing asylum seekers offshore must end.