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Version 1 Version 2
Why is an Australian baby locked up in detention? Why is an Australian baby locked up in detention?
(5 months later)
Last Friday night was one of the saddest Last Friday night was one of the saddest nights of my life.
nights of my life. Accompanied by two colleagues, I had the grim job of visiting a mum and dad at the Brisbane immigration detention centre. We had to tell them that we had lost an application for an urgent high court injunction to stop the federal government from forcibly removing them and their three children – including their six-month old baby, Ferouz – to Darwin the next morning.
Accompanied by two colleagues, I had the Naturally, they were distraught. They’ve already spent most of their lives on the move, first escaping terror in their villages in Burma, then to Malaysia, then Indonesia, before seeking protection in Australia. In the last seven months alone, they’ve been on Christmas Island, Nauru, Brisbane and now Darwin. All at the hands of our own government.
grim job of visiting a mum and dad at the Brisbane immigration detention I’ve not practised much criminal law, but I felt I was sending them off to a long prison sentence. And yet, they have committed no crime. They have done nothing illegal, no matter how much the Abbott government pretends otherwise. All they have done is what any parent would do – seek a better life for their kids.
centre. We had to tell them that we had lost an And can you blame them? They fled their homes for a reason. The mum’s family home was confiscated by the Burmese military regime, and she lost contact with her father after he was conscripted into forced labour. The dad’s own father had been killed by the military when he was seven and he had been attacked by them as well.
application for an urgent high court injunction to stop the federal government Sadly, this mistreatment has continued since they reached our shores. They were shunted from Christmas Island to the hellhole of Nauru, despite concerns for the mum’s pregnancy.
from forcibly removing them and their three children – including their six-month old baby, Ferouz – to Darwin the next morning. They then spent weeks in Australian government-auspiced detention in Nauru, in conditions described last year by the United Nations as “inhumane” and not fit for children. UN inspectors found that the tents that accommodate families on Nauru are rat-infested, there is inadequate water and little shelter from extreme heat.
Naturally, they were distraught. They’ve already spent most of their lives on In November 2013, Ferouz’s mum was brought from Nauru to Brisbane to give birth to him, due to pregnancy complications. Shortly after his birth, his mum was returned to detention and separated from him, while he remained in special care with respiratory problems. They were then told they would be returned to Nauru at any time. This was, for the moment at least, prevented by taking urgent legal action. And now they have been taken thousands of kilometres from the friends and support networks they have made in detention, the doctors who are treating their children, and the lawyers who seek to enforce their basic legal rights.
the move, first escaping terror in their villages in Burma, then to Ironically, this all happened the same week as the federal government announced the removal of legal aid for boat arrivals, the imposition of extra costs on the pro bono lawyers who are supposed to fill the void, and the dispatching of other asylum seekers who’ve legally challenged government decisions concerning them to farflung detention centres.
Malaysia, then Indonesia, before seeking protection in Australia. In the last seven months alone, they’ve been But the worst part is that Ferouz should not be in detention at all. He was born in Brisbane’s Mater Hospital, the very place where I, and my own children were born. He holds a Queensland birth certificate. Until Saturday, he had never left Brisbane.
on Christmas Island, Nauru, Brisbane and now Darwin. All at the hands of our Despite this, the federal government argues, relying on a section of the Migration Act 1958, that Ferouz came to Australia by boat. They recently refused to consider his application for a protection visa, arguing that he is, in the Orwellian language of that Act, an “unauthorised maritime arrival”. That’s right, according to our government, a boy born in Brisbane in fact came here by boat.
own government. I believe in certain fundamental truths. I believe that Ferouz is an Aussie. Even better, he’s a Queenslander. That’s why we have lodged a high court challenge to this absurd decision. If we are correct, since Ferouz and his family are not recognised as citizens in Burma or any other country, he is entitled to apply for Australian citizenship. In our very strong view, the Australian government is currently keeping an Australian child in detention.
I’ve not practised much criminal law, but I However, all the legal challenges in the world won’t truly fix this stain on our nation. We must convince our fellow Australians that this cruelty has to stop. I get that, currently, most Australians don’t have much sympathy for refugees. I get that deaths at sea must be prevented. But I also get that Australians believe in a “fair go”, and that what our government is doing, in our name, is anything but fair.
felt I was sending them off to a long prison sentence. And yet, they have It’s not fair that children – or anyone for that matter – should be locked up for years on end, without any consideration of their claims to protection.
committed no crime. They have done nothing illegal, no matter It’s not fair that the conditions in offshore detention camps, overseen by our own government, are dangerous, inhumane and deliberately designed to break people’s spirit.
how much the Abbott government pretends otherwise. All they have done is what any parent would do And it’s not fair that Australia – ranked by the IMF as the 10th richest country in the world – should pass our refugee “problem” on to countries that are far poorer and less safe than many of the countries from which refugees come in the first place.
– seek a better life for their kids. Australia can do better than this. Over our history, we have led the world in protecting others in distress, and in improving the rights and living conditions of our citizens and those across the world. We should live up to our history.
And can you blame them? They fled their We’ll keep fighting for Ferouz and his family, no matter how difficult the government makes it. And all of us who object to this shameful policy, must keep fighting to convince our fellow Australians that it is not what our country is about.
homes for a reason. The mum’s family home was confiscated by the Burmese
military regime, and she lost contact with her father after he was conscripted
into forced labour. The dad’s own father
had been killed by the military when he was seven and he had been attacked by
them as well.
Sadly, this mistreatment has continued
since they reached our shores. They were
shunted from Christmas Island to the hellhole of Nauru, despite concerns for
the mum’s pregnancy.
They then spent weeks in Australian
government-auspiced detention in Nauru, in conditions described last year by
the United Nations as “inhumane” and not fit for children. UN inspectors found
that the tents that accommodate families on Nauru are rat-infested, there is
inadequate water and little shelter from extreme heat.
In November 2013, Ferouz’s mum was brought from
Nauru to Brisbane to give birth to him, due to pregnancy complications. Shortly after his birth, his mum was returned
to detention and separated from him, while he remained in special care with
respiratory problems. They were then told they would be returned
to Nauru at any time. This was, for the moment at least, prevented by taking urgent
legal action. And now they have been taken thousands of
kilometres from the friends and support networks they have made in detention,
the doctors who are treating their children, and the lawyers who seek to enforce
their basic legal rights.
Ironically, this all happened the same week
as the federal government announced the removal of legal aid for boat arrivals,
the imposition of extra costs on the pro bono lawyers who are supposed to fill
the void, and the dispatching of other asylum seekers who’ve legally challenged
government decisions concerning them to farflung detention centres.
But the worst part is that Ferouz should
not be in detention at all. He was born
in Brisbane’s Mater Hospital, the very place where I, and my own children were
born. He holds a Queensland birth certificate. Until Saturday, he had never
left Brisbane.
Despite this, the federal government argues,
relying on a section of the Migration Act
1958, that Ferouz came to Australia by boat. They recently refused to consider his
application for a protection visa, arguing that he is, in the Orwellian
language of that Act, an “unauthorised maritime arrival”. That’s right, according to our government, a
boy born in Brisbane in fact came here by boat.
I believe in certain fundamental truths. I
believe that Ferouz is an Aussie. Even better, he’s a Queenslander. That’s why
we have lodged a high court challenge to this absurd decision. If we are correct, since Ferouz and his
family are not recognised as citizens in Burma or any other country, he is
entitled to apply for Australian citizenship. In our very strong view, the Australian
government is currently keeping an Australian child in detention.
However, all the legal challenges in the
world won’t truly fix this stain on our nation. We must convince our fellow
Australians that this cruelty has to stop. I get that, currently, most Australians
don’t have much sympathy for refugees. I
get that deaths at sea must be prevented. But I also get that Australians believe in
a “fair go”, and that what our government is doing, in our name, is anything
but fair.
It’s not fair that children – or anyone for
that matter – should be locked up for years on end, without any consideration
of their claims to protection.
It’s not fair that the conditions in
offshore detention camps, overseen by our own government, are dangerous,
inhumane and deliberately designed to break people’s spirit.
And it’s not fair that Australia – ranked
by the IMF as the 10th richest country in the world – should pass our refugee
“problem” on to countries that are far poorer and less safe than many of the
countries from which refugees come in the first place.
Australia can do better than this. Over our history, we have led the world in
protecting others in distress, and in improving the rights and living
conditions of our citizens and those across the world. We should live up to our history.
We’ll keep fighting for Ferouz and his
family, no matter how difficult the government makes it. And all of us who object to this shameful
policy, must keep fighting to convince our fellow Australians that it is not
what our country is about.