“Ten years too long”: Protests across Australia call for the end of offshore detention

By JUSTIN COOPER

People have gathered across the nation to mark ten years since the Australian Government began subjecting asylum seekers to offshore detention centres, calling for the remaining refugees to be granted resettlement.

Over the weekend, multiple cities held protests against the mistreatment of asylum seekers within various detention centres across the Pacific Islands.

Groups are now calling for the permanent closure of Nauru and Papua New Guinea detention centres and for the permanent resettlement of the last 80 people being held in PNG.

Sydney Protests

On Sunday, hundreds of people gathered in front of Town Hall in Sydney to stand in solidarity to the remaining refugees in PNG, and protested the past and current mistreatment of asylum seekers.

Speaking at the rally, advocate and former Manus Island refugee, Ramsi, described the terrible condition and hardships he experienced over 8 years in the detention facilities.

“We are human beings, they should have respected us,” says Ramsi.

He continued calling out the government’s funding towards the centres and labelled the limited and restrictive visas available for refugees as “bullshit.”

Common 6-month visas are provided to refugees with limited access to either work or studying, and still risks individuals of deportation if visas are not allowed to be renewed.

David Towson, a representative of the Independent Education Union, also spoke at the rally and questioned the current policies.

“There really needs to be an assessment of these cruel and inhumane policies, and they need to be scrapped,” says Towson.

The 19th of July marked a decade since the Rudd Government sent over 3,000 asylum seekers to various offshore detention centres, where many were left for extended periods in dangerous conditions.

Refugee experiences 

The protests follow a new report from the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre titled “‘Finish this Crisis’: Stories exposing the horrors of offshore detention,” detailing experiences from 7 individuals held within detention centres.

According to the report, over 2,000 refugees were eventually granted residency in Australia or other countries. However, over 760 people were forced to return to their country of origin and 16 people died as a result of detention facilities.

One of the testimonies from Mardin Arvin, who spent 6 years in PNG and 2 years in Australia where he was then denied permanent residency, labelled the policy as a “massive human disaster.”

Arvin eventually gained permanent residency in Canada but describes the trauma following the treatment and lack of security from the Australian Government.

“I cannot, nor will I forget those eight years, during which they destroyed my youthful energy and passion; something so completely unimaginable,” says Arvin.

Similarly, former refugee and advocate Qudratullah Qhausi says that “people do not trust Australia anymore” following the horrible conditions and treatments he experienced in detention facilities.

Being held on Nauru, Qhausi describes the lack of “basic human rights” from the facilities management. The treatment led to many people experiencing severe health issues, including Qhausi who developed a rare blood disease from an untreated blood clot.

Following the report, ASRC’s Director of Advocacy, Ogy Simic, requests the Australian Government take action against current policies.

“The Albanese Government now has the choice to maintain this cruelty or ensure all people are treated equally and humanely,” continued Simic.

“In the case of offshore detention people did not simply lack human rights, they had their rights denied to them by the Australian Government.”

The ASRC and advocates are now calling upon the Government to conduct a Royal Commission into offshore detention.