The Australian government helped Papua New Guinea draft new arrangements for refugees in the Pacific country, despite saying it has no ongoing role in their management.
VIDEO: Refugees in PNG say new deal puts their safety at risk - ABC News
PM promises a positive election campaign amid concerns of safety and polarisation, SBS News
In the run-up to this year's federal election, issues of community safety, polarisation and faltering social cohesion are coming to the fore. Advocates say migrant and refugee communities are feeling increasing division, and fear they will experience the affects of that in a federal election campaign.
PM promises a positive election campaign amid concerns of safety and polarisation, SBS News
Australian immigration and the federal election By Peter Hughes, P&I
The Albanese Government has done a reasonable job in repairing the immigration train wreck it inherited from the Coalition. However, excessive caution and fear of being wedged has severely limited its achievements. In the forthcoming election, the Dutton Opposition can be expected to be short on policy, but to stoke up fears about border security and foreigners. He will borrow from the nasty Trump playbook when convenient. Australia deserves better immigration policy and administration.
Australian immigration and the federal election By Peter Hughes, P&I
Maria is struggling to get ahead at work. She wonders if her accent is to blame. By Lera Shvets & Emma Brancatisano, SBS News
The survey suggested linguistic background affected female speakers, but had no effect for male speakers.
Canada’s immigration process is increasingly digitized, but that can make if difficult to navigate. By Ashika Niraula, The Conversation
Changes to immigration policies can often leave migrants confused about what their rights are and the opportunities available to them. This confusion can damage Canada’s image as a country welcoming to immigrants.
From Thai sweatshop to buying her own home, Nan says she owes her settled life to an Australian cafe program. By Esther Lozano & Shirley Glaister, SBS Spanish
Vanessa Brettell and Hannah Costello established Stepping Stone to provide hospitality skills to migrant and refugee women.
Dozens of women from 20 different countries have so far benefited from the program and worked at two cafes in the ACT.
The entrepreneurs, who ran an identical program in Colombia before the pandemic hit, were recently recognised with 'Local Hero' awards.
Mike's app helps prevent Australian shark attacks — but why are they rising? By Sandra Fulloon, SBS News
A migrant from India is helping to keep swimmers safer, with a service that sends alerts about shark activity.
Helping people to avoid contact with sharks is one reason Vasavada developed SharkSmart, after migrating from India as a student in 1999. Like many migrants, Vasavada remains cautious about Australia's powerful marine predators.
"People have a natural fear of sharks, and as somebody who migrated to Australia, I look at the water and I think there must be sharks out here," he says. "Of course, when you are living overseas people are always talking about sharks in Australia, as well."
Inquest into Sydney detention centre suicides raises questions over missed medication and care routines. By Jordyn Beazley, The Guardian
Three people who killed themselves in a Sydney immigration detention centre all received appropriate mental health care, an inquest has found.
But it was unclear why detainees at Villawood detention centre routinely did not take their medication or attend medical appointments, the inquest said.
Villawood, in western Sydney, was operated by the private operator Serco at the time of each of the suicides, and health services in the centre were managed by International Health and Medical Service.
The health services are now run by another provider, and Secure Journeys, a local subsidiary of Management & Training Corporation (MTC), will soon take over operation of Villawood from Serco.
The inquest recommended the federal government commission an independent study to examine why detainees routinely do not take their medication, or attend appointments.
Evacuations Research Hub, Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law, UNSW
Evacuations can be a lifesaving tool. But as recent global conflicts and unprecedented disasters have shown, without careful planning and oversight, evacuations can also displace people – often for prolonged periods and at great social, economic and personal cost.
The emergency nature of evacuations means that governments tend to focus on immediate assistance and may overlook longer-term needs, potentially leaving people in legal, physical and emotional limbo, without homes, livelihoods or support networks.
Evacuations Research Hub, Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law, UNSW
Misinformation on refugees and migrants is rife during elections. We found 6 ways it spreads – and how to stop it. By Daniel Gezelbash & Saul Wodak (UNSW), The Conversation
…Australia is not immune to such deception. While refugees and migrants make significant positive economic, social and cultural contributions to their host societies, politicians across the spectrum have falsely blamed them for issues ranging from rising house prices to crime……
…Building on these principles and an extensive review of research literature, we developed an evidence-based framework for countering misinformation about refugees and migrants.
It provides a step-by-step guide on what to do when faced with falsehoods, starting with recognising whether the misinformation is anticipated or already circulating.
Securing Australia's new Pacific Engagement Visa costly, slow and 'stressful', applicants say. By Lucy Cooper, ABC News
The Australian government launched the Permanent Engagement Visa last year saying it would "strengthen" the nation's links with the Pacific.
The PEV will grant permanent residency to citizens from the Pacific and Timor-Leste chosen through a random ballot, similar to the "Green Card Lottery" seen in the US.
Those selected can apply for a visa, and up to 3,000 visas are available each round.
It's opened a major new migration pathway for Australia's closest neighbours and generated huge interest in the region, with more than 56,000 people applying.
But more than five months after applications closed, the federal government has allocated less than 5 per cent of the total visas available this round.
Increased cruelty fears for refugees amid harsh new migration laws. By Lesa Sholl, The Melbourne Anglican
Brigidine Asylum Seeker Project co-founder Sister Brigid Arthur said the effects of the migration amendments haven’t been seen, yet, but detainees were scared.
“It scares everybody that people could be deported. They can be sent to any other country,” she said. “It could be used in really awful ways, very cruel ways, and it’s against international law.”
Sister Arthur said it was sheer cruelty to have people locked up indefinitely, not knowing if they would ever be let out.
The Harmful Rhetoric and Political Game Against Refugees and People Seeking Asylum Must Stop, By Zaki Haidari, Refugee Rights Campaigner, Amnesty International Australia
I was forced to flee my home in Afghanistan back in 2011 after the Taliban threatened my family’s lives. I made it to Australia, but for years, I lived in limbo, trapped on temporary visas, unable to reunite with my family. After a decade of relentless campaigning, I helped abolish temporary visas, finally securing permanent residency and the right to bring my family to safety. But many refugees in Australia are still waiting, many remaining indefinitely separated from their loved ones.
In my 13 years in Australia, I have been embraced by everyday Australians —a kindness I will cherish forever. Yet, for just as long, politicians have weaponised our lives, demonising us with dangerous rhetoric and cruel policies. Seeking votes, they introduce laws designed to break us, keep families apart, and make it near impossible for people in danger to find safety. These policies are not just cruel and inhumane, they violate Australia’s international legal obligations.
Australia to play Afghanistan at ICC Champions Trophy despite boycotting other matches with nation. By James Vyver, ABC News
The cricketing world is caught in a vicious cycle when it comes to balancing sport and human rights.
Shafiqa Khan, a bowler with the exiled Afghanistan women's team, now lives as a refugee in Australia.
"If I compare my life to Afghan women they do not have anything, this feeling like breaks my heart all the time," Khan said.
Extra 220 children may have been wrongly detained as adult people smugglers in Australia, government admits. By Christopher Knaus, The Guardian
In 2023 the federal court ordered $27.5m compensation for an initial estimated 220 Indonesian minors wrongly detained – but that number has now doubled.
The health crisis in offshore detention. ASRC (Asylum Seeker Resource Centre)
… six years on after the eventual abolishment of the Medevac legislation, 39 people still remain abandoned in PNG with no way to access the care they need.
The health crisis in offshore detention. ASRC (Asylum Seeker Resource Centre)
Musab longs for a call from his family overseas. But every time it rings, he's filled with dread. By Sam Dover, SBS News
Communication with loved ones in Sudan is rare and fleeting for Musab Hassan.
A member of the Zaghawa ethnic group, Hassan survived what in the early 2000s the International Criminal Court labelled as genocide in Darfur.
Now, from the safety of Sydney, he's spent every day waiting on word from the family he left behind.
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade says in a statement that: "The Australian Government is extremely concerned by the conflict" and they "unequivocally condemn the appalling violence directed at civilians."
For Musab, such condemnation and concern is welcome, but provides little comfort while he despairs for the safety of his family.
It would take 100 years to resolve claims of 7,000 asylum seekers stuck on bridging visas Greens claim. By Krishani Dhanji, The Guardian
Before the 2022 election, Labor promised to abolish the the TPV and SHEV visas and allow them to apply for a permanent Resolution of Status (RoS) visa.
However, about 7,000 asylum seekers got rejected through the fast track process.
Their only pathway to permanent status in Australia is through ministerial intervention by the home affairs minister, assistant immigration minister, and assistant minister for citizenship and immigration.
The intervention would allow those people to apply for permanent visas.
Figures released to the Guardian show that between July and 24 November, just 24 people have had their cases considered; 19 whose cases were intervened, and five were not.
At this pace, Shoebridge said it would take about a century to process the cohort, calling it a “farce”. “That’s not a process, it’s a cruel hoax,” he said.
Asylum seeker slated for deportation to Nauru has removal posponed due to legal challenge. By Ben Doherty, The Guardian
Home affairs minister Tony Burke says he is confident in government’s power to deport the man and ‘will proceed with removal to Nauru as soon as possible’.
Legal challenge launched to Australia's paid deportation to Nauru. By Tom Crowley, Jake Evans and Maani Truu, ABC News
The Human Rights Law Centre is representing a man who will challenge his deportation to Nauru in the High Court, in the first test of laws passed last year that allow the Australian government to pay other countries to accept deportees.
HRLC's associate legal director Laura John said the deportations: "Could set a dangerous precedent for the kind of treatment refugees and migrants are subjected to, both in Australia and around the world.