Has The Treatment Of Asylum Seekers Significantly Essay Example

provide urgent medical treatment for the remaining survivors.

The response from the Howard government was the implementation of what became known as the Pacific Solution. This strategy consisted of a three-pronged bill that excluded Australia's Pacific islands from its immigration zones. It also required Australian Defence Force patrol boats to intercept incoming arrivals and establish asylum camps on these islands. Detainees were processed before being transferred to third world countries based on their determined status. Howard aimed at granting more authority to prevent a recurrence of the Tampa incident and prevent boat passengers from landing on Australian soil.

Howard’s actions during the Tampa affair and his legislative response to the incident faced criticism from the international community. Norway reported Australia to the International Maritime Organization and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, accusing them of human rights violations (Freeman).

Interestingly, despite this criticism, the Australian public showed support for the new immigration policies. This was evident in polls where John Howard's popularity increased in the latter half of 2001 (Freeman). However, as media reports on suicide attempts, detainees' mental health, and detention of children became more frequent, public opinion started to shift.

As a result of growing criticism towards the government's treatment of asylum seekers, one of the first acts by the newly elected Labour government was to reform Australia’s approach towards asylum seekers and refugees when they came into power after ten years of conservative rule. During their 2007 campaign, Kevin Rudd promised reforms regarding immigration policies.

While progress has been made by Labour in implementing some election promises and enacting significant reforms, it has been slow-paced which has limited opportunities for substantial impact (Crock, p.7).

After the election,

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd claimed to have ended the Pacific Solution and included the Pacific islands in the Australian immigration zone. He permitted boats carrying asylum seekers to enter Australian waters and closed detention centers for asylum seekers on the mainland, keeping only the camps on the Pacific islands open (Freeman). Although these policies seemed different from those of the Howard government, they were ultimately diluted when implemented. The opposition criticized the Labor party for softening Australia's asylum policy and being unable to control the influx of foreign settlers. This reignited concerns among the public about the country's vulnerability to sea invasions (Crock p. 7-8). The opposition also highlighted issues with Labor's border control policy, particularly concerning the arrival of boats from Afghanistan and Sri Lanka in 2009-2010 (Crock, p. ; Oakes).

At first, Rudd displayed indifference towards the influx of asylum seekers into Australia. It was predicted that the rise of the Taliban and the strife in Sri Lanka would result in an increase in boat arrivals (Crock p. 7). Nonetheless, on April 9, 2010, the government enforced measures to limit the privileges of asylum seekers. They suspended processing refugee claims for individuals who had arrived from Afghanistan for half a year and those from Sri Lanka for three months (Crock p. 8).

Stephen Smith MP (Minister for Foreign Affairs) and Brendan O’Connor MP (Minister for Home Affairs) released a statement together, stating that due to the suspension and changing circumstances in Sri Lanka and Afghanistan, more asylum claims from these two countries are likely to be refused in the future (“A Joint Media Release” 1). Some refugee advocates criticized these policy changes, suggesting that they

were a step towards reinstating the Howard government’s approach to asylum seekers (Crock p. ). While the Labour government’s asylum policies were seen as slightly more lenient, they still largely maintained the structures established by the coalition. The government was perceived to have softened asylum policy, but in reality, they made very few substantial changes to the Coalition’s policies and laws (Crock p3). Crock points out that the new government’s actions were merely a continuation of the rationalization and retreat from excessive measures that had already begun in 2005, when the conservative Coalition was still in power.

Despite the popular belief, the Labour government was not responsible for initiating the scaling back of the strict reforms implemented by the Howard government. The process of change had already begun before Rudd took office. The High Court made significant rulings on controversial immigration laws in 2004, which influenced the development of policies regarding the legality of mandatory detention (Crork p. 3). As a result of pressure from backbenchers and the public, individuals like Mr Al-Kateb, who were deemed illegal immigrants, were released from detention. Additionally, starting from June 2005, children were no longer subjected to mandatory detention and imprisonment was considered only as a last resort (Crork p. 3-4).

The Pacific strategy underwent downsizing, including the closure of Manus in 2004 (ABC News). At the time Rudd took power, most asylum seekers had their applications for Australian residency approved. The reforms implemented by the Rudd government were driven by necessity and practicality rather than radical changes to the asylum policy. For instance, the Labour government's removal of Temporary Protection Visas had minimal impact since most eligible individuals had already

been approved for permanent residency by the Howard government (Crork p. 4). Additionally, the Temporary Protection Visa scheme was abandoned due to its recognized cruelty and ineffectiveness in deterring asylum seekers (Crork p.).

4). The Rudd government did not differ significantly from the asylum policy of the Howard Government, as demonstrated by their failure to completely halt the 'Pacific Strategy'. They continued aspects of the Coalition's policies such as offshore processing and excluding offshore territories from Australia's migration zone (Crork p. 4). Although Rudd's policies were not as strict as the Howard government's approach, which resulted in offshore deaths under Operation Relex, some elements of Labor's strategies mirrored the push-back policy advocated by the Coalition (Crork p. 4; Whitmont). This is evident in the Rudd government's effort to redirect boat people attempting to reach Australian shores back to Indonesia (Hodge).

Rudd maintained the offshore processing policy on Christmas Island, which attracted people smugglers and resulted in the facility being overcrowded. After the 2007 election, refugee advocates hoped for a new government that would reform asylum policies. However, Labor's achievements were initially seen as positive, but they did not significantly impact governmental policy and law. It was argued that the decision to freeze processing on April 9th went against international norms and may breach the Refugee Convention by discriminating based on nationality. Despite opposition claims of danger, it is not in Australia's best interest to continue the punitive approach of the Howard government. (Crork p5; The Australian)
References
1. ABC News, 2004, "Last detainee leaves Manus island," ABC. Available at: http://www.abc.netThe following text contains references to three different sources with their corresponding URLs and dates of access:

1.

Crock, Mary, 2010, "First term Blues: Labour, Refugees and Immigration Reform", The University of Sydney. Available at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1601086 [accessed 26/9/2010]

2. Freeman Fancesca, 2010, "Pacific Solution: How Australia Reversed Course on Its Treatment of Asylum Seekers", Program on Human Rights: Stanford University. Available at http://humanrights.stanford.edu/docs/438 [accessed 26/9/2010]

3. Hodge, Anna, 2010, "Oceanic Viking deal will encourage other queue-jumpers: UN", The Australian. Available at: http://www.heaustralian.

Please note that the URL for the third reference is incomplete.

The following links were accessed on 26/9/2010:

com. au/politics/oceanic-viking-deal-will-encourage-other-queue-jumpers-un/story-e6frgczf-1225844978206 [accessed 26/9/2010]

Oakes, Laurie, 2010, Asylum arrivals rock Rudd’s election boat, The Daily Telegraph Available at: http://www. dailytelegraph.com. au/news/opinion/asylum-arrivals-rock-rudds-election-boat/story-e6frezz0-1225851989846 [accessed 26/9/2010]

Smith, Stephen ; O’Connor, Brendan, 2010, Changes to Australia’s Immigration Processing System, Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Available at: http://www.

The Australian Minister for Immigration's website at minister.immi.gov.au/media/media-releases/2010/ce10029.htm [accessed 26/9/2010] provides the information. Furthermore, The Australian newspaper has an article titled "Christmas Island Detention Centre Reaches Asylum Seeker Limit" accessible at http://www.news.

The text below includes a link to the website com. au/national/christmas-island-detention-centre-reached-asylum-seeker-limit/story-e6frfkvr-1225849088201 [accessed 26/9/2010]. Additionally, it contains a bullet point that mentions Debbie Whitmont's report "To Deter and Deny" on Four Corners. The report can be found at http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/archives/2002a_Monday15April2002.htm [accessed 26/9/2010].