Thursday, July 28, 2005

a good day but the way is long

As this blog has suggested more than once, as our institutions increase their scrutiny of asylum seeker detention the Government's policies will unravel. Today's decision of the Federal Court putting the onus on the Government to prove that deportees will be safe in their home country is a good outcome for thousands of refugees on TPVs.

The hypocrisy of the Government knows no bounds. This week has seen the spectacle of Ruddock citing human rights grounds for review of anti-terrorism laws, whilst key provisions of international human rights and asylum law are contravened by our asylum seeker system. This looks like a further threat to civil rights.

Today also sees the release of children in detention into some vague form of 'community detention'. Unsurprisingly, there are reports of confusion and worry at the camps today as released children and their guardians readjust to this new reality.The uncertainty for those caught up in this horror will continue as the Government makes populist decisions on the hop.

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