Albanese Government makes secret deportation cope with Nauru for nearly half a billion {dollars}

Refugee organisations have slammed the Albanese Government for making yet one more secret cope with Nauru, this time paving the way in which for mass deportations at a value to the taxpayer of practically half a billion {dollars} initially in addition to one other $70 million yearly.

A press release silently uploaded to the web site late Friday afternoon confirmed that Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke has secretly travelled to Nauru to signal an settlement with the Pacific nation. Past agreements with Nauru have been fraught with corruption, and in simply August it was revealed that the chief of the infamous Finks bikie gang was promised $40 million in Australian taxpayers’ cash for safety and policing.

The transfer offers context to the Government’s makes an attempt this week to sneak legal guidelines into the Parliament that will strip the correct to equity from choices to deport individuals beneath this association. They are anticipated to attempt to rush the legal guidelines by means of within the coming week.

This secret deal has actual life implications for an enormous variety of individuals, opening the door to mass, without-notice deportations to hurt beneath the powers the federal government gave themselves of their brutal Bills handed within the final sitting week of 2024, which have the potential to use to over 80,000 individuals, tearing households aside and destroying lives ceaselessly.

Jana Favero, Deputy CEO of the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre mentioned:

“The Albanese government has already thrown $13 billion of Australian taxpayers money down the toilet in these outrageous deals to inflict cruelty on people. These secret deals send one clear message – in Australia, some people will be punished simply because of where they were born. This deal is discriminatory, disgraceful and dangerous. At a time when the entire country has just voted for unity and rejected fear, rather than embrace this and show leadership, the Albanese Government has launched yet another attack on migrants and refugees. An attack that will result in the most significant of outcomes – mass deportation.”

Sarah Dale, Centre Director and Principal Solicitor on the Refugee Advice and Casework Service mentioned:

“Earlier this year it was found by the UN that the Australian Government could not outsource their obligations to Nauru. The Government was found to have breached the human dignity of those it sent there. It’s extraordinarily alarming, some months later, the Government proposes to send even more people warehoused offshore in yet another secret backdoor deal. Where does it end? The human cost, including that of family separation under this evolving offshore regime just continues to escalate.”

Bethany Rose from the Visa Cancellations Working Group (a nationwide coalition of attorneys, teachers and professionals) mentioned:

“This is policy-making at its worst. It takes Australia down a dangerous path: secret deals, avoidance of scrutiny, without-notice exiling of refugees; and outsourcing of key responsibilities at extreme human cost. We are talking about people’s lives. Like anyone else, these people have served their time and restarted their lives in the communities, recovering after what may be years of indefinite detention. When the Government starts offshoring its citizens into responsibilities and dismantling key legal and accountability protections, we should all be gravely alarmed.”

Media enquiries

For additional data or to request an interview, contact Natasha Blucher (ASRC) on +61 412 034 821 or [email protected]

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