Claims of sexual assault rife in immigration detention, reports show

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/oct/24/claims-sexual-assault-immigration-detention

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Dozens of serious allegations of sexual assault have been made by staff, adults and children in Australian immigration detention centres, according to incident reports obtained under freedom of information laws.

Since Serco began managing Australia’s immigration detention in 2009 there have been at least 34 reports of sexual assaults in detention facilities. The written reports have descriptions of allegations of rapes and inappropriate touching.

In one instance an allegation is made of a carer “inappropriately touching a minor” in South Australian community detention. Another report on Christmas Island says a female detainee alleges her daughter “may have been inappropriately touched while at school”. The most recent allegation listed occurred in community detention early this year, and reads "subcontractor sexually assaulted by client".

In one of the most serious claims, a detainee on Christmas Island said he had been raped by a number of other detainees, according to a report filed by a Serco officer.

“I was informed by Mental health in a meeting...that client [REDACTED] has been sexually assaulted since he has arrived at NWP and here in Phosphate Hill APOD Bravo compound. The last time it happened was previous night. He has said it had been up to 15-20 Iranian males. The problem is that they have transferred from NWP to PH Apod. He is physically afraid to go back into the compound. [REDACTED] now resides in A block room,” the officer writes in the incident report.

In an update of the incident the following day the officer writes the detainee has decided not to identify the alleged assaulters.

“I spoke to the local police … at approx 13:00 … his advise [sic] was that if the client does not wish to press charges there is little further they can do.”

In a review of the incident the report states that a cause and contributing factor of the assault was “previous alleged ongoing sexual abuse by clients at clients last place of detention and at Phosphate hill”.

In the part of the report that recommends changes to procedures, processes and training the review states “the incident was handled professionally and appropriately”.

In relation to several incidents allegations are made about detainees sexually assaulting staff. One report from a community detention facility reads: “Client allegedly sexually assaulted Youth Care Worker.”

Guardian Australia has obtained the incident reports from the Immigration Department and from Comcare, the agency responsible for commonwealth workers’ safety. Many of the department’s incident logs have also been published on the Detention Logs website.

The sexual assault data provided by Comcare also suggests that the Immigration Department did not report all of the incidents to Comcare, which oversees the safety of government workplaces.

Only one of the 26 assaults that occurred in detention centres between October 2009 and May 2011 appears to have been reported to Comcare. Guardian Australia does not have a complete set of incidents of sexual assaults from the immigration department from June 2011 to October 2013 to determine how many of these have been reported to Comcare.

Sharron Caddie, assistant national secretary of the security workers' union United Voice, said: “United Voice is concerned by reports of alleged harassment and sexual assault at immigration detention centres.

“Serco, which operates Australia's immigration detention centres, has a legal and moral obligation to take all reasonable steps to make sure the centres are safe for employees and for detainees.”

The Department of Immigration and Border Protection referred questions about the incident reports to the minister’s office. A spokesperson for the immigration minister, Scott Morrison, told Guardian Australia: “Acknowledging that sexual assault is a potential issue across the community, there is a high level of supervision across all facilities. It is the responsibility of the service provider to ensure the welfare of wellbeing of all detainees is the highest priority.

“In the event of a disclosure of this nature, the mental health team of the department’s contracted health services provider would be engaged to offer counselling and psychological support services.

“In the event of any alleged sexual assault, state, territory or federal police would be contacted by the service provider. A referral would be made. It is up to the discretion of these authorities as to whether a formal investigation will take place.”

In July, the SBS programme Dateline reported allegations of sexual assault on the Manus Island detention facility. The Immigration Department has commissioned an independent review of those allegations that was due to be complete at the end of September.

Guardian Australia asked Morrison whether his department would commission independent reviews of the other sexual assault allegations. His spokesperson declined to answer, but said: “Any allegation of misconduct is taken seriously, and we encourage anyone with information about these allegations or any other allegations to contact the department so it can investigate.”

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