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| PNG court rejects asylum seekers' application to go to Australia on technicality | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The supreme court of Papua New Guinea has dismissed an application to send asylum seekers held on Manus Island to Australia on a paperwork technicality. | The supreme court of Papua New Guinea has dismissed an application to send asylum seekers held on Manus Island to Australia on a paperwork technicality. |
| A ruling in favour of the 302 detainees would have ordered the PNG and Australian governments to transfer them to Australia within 30 days, a political nightmare for Malcolm Turnbull. | A ruling in favour of the 302 detainees would have ordered the PNG and Australian governments to transfer them to Australia within 30 days, a political nightmare for Malcolm Turnbull. |
| Under Australia’s immigration laws, asylum seekers intercepted trying to reach the country by boat are sent for processing on Manus and the tiny South Pacific island nation of Nauru. | Under Australia’s immigration laws, asylum seekers intercepted trying to reach the country by boat are sent for processing on Manus and the tiny South Pacific island nation of Nauru. |
| Lawyer Ben Lomai confirmed the case had been dismissed and that the detainees planned to refile the application. | Lawyer Ben Lomai confirmed the case had been dismissed and that the detainees planned to refile the application. |
| The case was dismissed because the court filings were signed by the principal lawyer, Lomai, instead of the direct claimants, Ian Rintoul, a spokesman for the Refugee Action Coalition, who was present at the hearing, told Reuters. | The case was dismissed because the court filings were signed by the principal lawyer, Lomai, instead of the direct claimants, Ian Rintoul, a spokesman for the Refugee Action Coalition, who was present at the hearing, told Reuters. |
| “The reality is the refugees are facing longer in detention and that’s extremely disappointing,” he said. “The legal issues have not been resolved and it does not change the fact that these men are detained illegally.” | “The reality is the refugees are facing longer in detention and that’s extremely disappointing,” he said. “The legal issues have not been resolved and it does not change the fact that these men are detained illegally.” |
| The group will go back to Manus next week to collect the signatures but getting a hearing at the supreme court may be difficult, Rintoul added. | The group will go back to Manus next week to collect the signatures but getting a hearing at the supreme court may be difficult, Rintoul added. |
| “We lost trust in any court or lawyer or justice,” Behrouz Boochani, an Iranian who has been on Manus for more than three years, told Reuters. | “We lost trust in any court or lawyer or justice,” Behrouz Boochani, an Iranian who has been on Manus for more than three years, told Reuters. |
| Australia has vowed the asylum seekers will never set foot in the country after being intercepted by its navy and shipped to Manus. | Australia has vowed the asylum seekers will never set foot in the country after being intercepted by its navy and shipped to Manus. |
| Many of the asylum seekers have spent three years in the centre, which the supreme court ruled in April was unconstitutional and must close. | Many of the asylum seekers have spent three years in the centre, which the supreme court ruled in April was unconstitutional and must close. |
| For men like Abdul Aziz, 24, who fled his home in Sudan amid a bloody civil war, the court case had stirred hopes of finally leaving the centre after 38 months. | For men like Abdul Aziz, 24, who fled his home in Sudan amid a bloody civil war, the court case had stirred hopes of finally leaving the centre after 38 months. |
| “I’m optimistic that after the court case, I will be sent back to Australia. We are keeping our fingers crossed,” Aziz told Reuters by telephone before the case was dismissed. “We sought asylum from Australia, not PNG.” | “I’m optimistic that after the court case, I will be sent back to Australia. We are keeping our fingers crossed,” Aziz told Reuters by telephone before the case was dismissed. “We sought asylum from Australia, not PNG.” |
| A ruling in favour of the 302 detainees would have set a precedent for all 823 detainees, asylum seekers predominately from Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan. | A ruling in favour of the 302 detainees would have set a precedent for all 823 detainees, asylum seekers predominately from Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan. |
| The United Nations and human rights groups have condemned Australia’s immigration policy, citing human rights abuses in the centres. | The United Nations and human rights groups have condemned Australia’s immigration policy, citing human rights abuses in the centres. |
| Many asylum seekers on Nauru are being driven to attempt suicide to escape the prison-like conditions they face in indefinite detention, Amnesty International said last week, amid reports of assaults and sexual abuse. | Many asylum seekers on Nauru are being driven to attempt suicide to escape the prison-like conditions they face in indefinite detention, Amnesty International said last week, amid reports of assaults and sexual abuse. |