The Albanese state has enacted a patchwork of premature and poorly thought-out laws that aim to skirt the unavoidable fact that it is immoral for governments to punish individuals in the five times since the great court rendered its landmark decision in NZYQ.
The Albanese state has attempted to compel, restrain, and malicious people who have been detained for immigration so that as many as possible take being removed from Australia through exceedingly complex means.
The first section of the president’s misguided answer commenced in November, when it made regulations subjecting people released from confinement to a series of punishing restrictions, including nightly curfews and electric monitoring. For the first time, violation of those card circumstances was made a criminal offence, punishable by a mandatory minimum expression of 12 months ‘ prison.
No other card holders in story have been subject to these restrictions, which far outweigh the requirements for parole or parole. Considering that none of the detained people were actually serving a fugitive sentence,
The government then introduced an unusual plan to pre-emptively punish individuals for upcoming acts in December.
And once, only on Tuesday, the immigration minister, Andrew Giles, introduced still more policy aimed at coercing current and former inmates to embrace imprisonment. If passed, the legislation would effectively prevent refugees from entering American shores in the first place by prohibiting the application of a card by any member of a “removal problem land.” Additionally, it would allow the minister to designate someone a “removal pathway non-citizen” and compel them to cooperate with their removal or face up to five years in prison.
When filing a criminal charge, a person’s fear of torture or death upon returning to their home country will not qualify as a justification. Even a person who is unfit to assist with their removal may face charges.
ASF17, an Iranian man who has been imprisoned for ten years, has filed a lawsuit against his detention, saying he will be tortured and abused because of his sexuality, in less than a month. Another Iranian man, AZC20, has made an effort to intervene in that situation. He was detained for ten years while pursuing asylum and is medically unfit to assist with removal.
Both these men were refused protection under the Coalition government’s “fast track” asylum determination process. Various UN organizations have voiced resounding criticism against that regime on the grounds that it deprives people of basic hearing and review rights. The “fast track” process is fundamentally skewed towards refusing claims.
This is precisely why the Labor party’s 2021 platform called for the abolition of “fast track” review, and its replacement with a “procedurally fair, simple, affordable and accessible process”. And that is why the Labor government passed legislation in late 2023 that will end “fast track” reviews and take effect from July 1 to July 2024.
In actuality, people who are imprisoned for another five years wo n’t be forced to go to hell or die. It will only make their suffering worse and create a never-ending loop between immigration detention and prison.
Every migrant and refugee who enters Australia’s shores is reminded of the fate that might lie ahead of them by the cruel core of our migration and refugee policies.
Last November, the high court gave the Albanese government a crucial opportunity to reform a system that has cost people years of their lives and earned international condemnation.
It could have affirmed the high court’s decision and taken the time to create a process that could independently evaluate detention, enabling release from the community with dignity and safety.
Instead, the government’s chaotic and punitive response will define its term, but for very different reasons. There is still time for the government to change its course and finally give people an opportunity to rebuild their lives as its most recent legislation is being considered by a Senate committee over the next month.
