Face the facts:ASYLUM SEEKERS AND

REFUGEES • 2014

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Face the Facts: Asylum seekers and refugees • 2014

IISBN 978-1-921449-67-3

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Face the Facts: Asylum seekers and refugees • 2014 • 1

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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

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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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