The Albanese Government passed a set of controversial migration laws on Thursday night, with support from the Coalition, sparking mass outrage among human rights advocates.
These laws are being described as the “most brutal migration laws that we have ever seen,” raising serious concerns about their impact on vulnerable communities.
Here’s everything you need to know.
What are the new Australian migration laws?
Let’s break down what these new laws actually entail:
- Payment to Third-Party Countries: The government can now pay third countries to accept non-citizens, including recognised refugees.
- Criminal Penalties for Non-Cooperation: Non-citizens who refuse to comply with their own deportation could face criminal charges. So this means previously if someone whose recognised refugee status has been revoked or if someone’s asylum claims have been rejected and they refuse to cooperate with deportation efforts, they can go to prison.
- Expanded Powers in Detention: Detention centres will now have the authority to conduct searches for drugs and confiscate personal items, including mobile phones.
On top of that, these laws allow the government to impose travel bans on countries that do not accept involuntary removals. This means banning individuals trying to enter Australia for various reasons — whether it’s for study, business, or family visits — putting pressure on their home countries to accept forced returns. Countries that have historically not accepted involuntary removals include Iran, China, Cuba, Iraq, Cambodia, Laos, Zimbabwe and South Sudan.
The government can also reverse refugees’ protection findings, further jeopardising the safety of those seeking asylum.
A recent Senate inquiry into this legislation found that more than 80,000 noncitizens are at risk of deportation under the laws.
There are major concerns over the new migration policy in Australia
The backlash from human rights organisations has been swift and fierce. Kon Karapanagiotidis, CEO of the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre (ASRC), described the laws as “an ultimate betrayal”, stating it was “reminiscent of the darkest days of our White Australia policy”.
“Today, our two major political parties sent a clear message that they are prepared to punish refugees, people seeking asylum and migrant communities by tearing families apart, jailing people unjustly, detaining them indefinitely and deporting them back to the very persecution and harm they fled,” he said.
Greens senator David Shoebridge was equally scathing, calling these “the most far-right wing and anti-migrant and anti-refugee laws in a generation.”
He painted a stark picture of potential consequences: “Under these laws, a woman who fled a country like Iran because she feared for her life could be forced to a third country with no protections, or face mandatory immigration detention.”
Josephine Langbian from the Human Rights Law Centre described the measures as “the most brutal migration laws that we have ever seen”.
“We could see children shipped off to third [party] countries. We could see parents being forced to leave their children behind,” Langbian told SBS News. She was particularly concerned about the lack of transparency, noting it was “scary” that the government hadn’t disclosed which countries might be targeted.
Humans Right Watch pointed out that the new laws don’t require the third-party countries where refugees will be sent to, to be parties to the Refugee Convetion, “contrary to international standards“.
The Refugee Council of Australia’s CEO Paul Power emphasised the broader implications, describing the laws as “some of the most extreme that we have seen in over a decade”.
“There is no doubt that the draconian measures in these laws will have a disastrous and long-term ripple effect on the Australian community,” Power said.
Despite the devastating blow, human rights organisations remain defiant. As Karapanagiotidis put it: “We know Australians everywhere take enormous pride in the diversity of this beautiful country and will continue to stand up for refugees.”
It seems that some organisations are still hopeful for change, the ASRC statement concluded: “Our clear message to those political leaders today is: You are wrong and the fight is not over.”
Lead image: Getty images
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