Australian Refugee Policy

“Asylum seekers who arrive without a prior valid visa (by sea or air) continue to be subject to indefinite mandatory detention. As of 31 May 2016, 1,570 people were held in closed immigration detention facilities in Australia, 529 of whom were asylum seekers who had arrived by boat. The average length of detention for people in closed detention facilities was 459 days, with 693 people (44% of the total population) having been detained for over a year and 399 for more than two years” (Refugee Council of Australia). Even though this is constantly happening, there are still people who believe that the Australian Refugee Policy should remain because it keeps the system strong and organized. If there are this many people being detained, it is

The Australian Refugee Policy should be abolished due to the inhumane treatment in the offshore detention centers and the unfairness in resettlement. The current Refugee Policy in Australia is unfair when it comes to who is chosen to resettle in Australia. Several politicians have fears that these asylum seekers show a threat to Australia and its borders. However, many people think that social media has just been making it worse and are fanning the flames. Currently, “Politicians on both sides have played up the idea of the ‘good refugee’ (who waits in a camp for resettlement) and the ‘bad refugee’ (who ‘jumps the queue’ by coming by boat)” (McAdam). It shows favoritism and labeling towards the refugees. The “good refugees” may get chosen faster to settle in Australia, which makes sense because they waited their turn. However, the fact that they label the type of refugee someone may be is not right. Even

Someone’s rights as a human is something they should always be given and allowed to have. Article Five in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that, “No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment” (United Nations General Assembly). This right was broken when they began to use violence in the detention centers where they have been holding the refugees. Also, when they restricted the amount of water they were allowed to drink a day in the severe temperatures, it went against this article. When Australia is only been letting one percent of refugees resettle in their country each year, it begins to break a couple rights. Article Fourteen claims that, “(1) Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution. (2) This right may not be invoked in the case of prosecutions genuinely arising from non-political crimes or from acts contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations” (United Nations General Assembly). Article Fifteen explains that, “(1) Everyone has the right to a nationality. (2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to change his nationality” (United Nations General Assembly). Even though these articles have not been completely broken yet, it is very close and something people have to