Howard adopts punitive approach to social dysfunction in remote Aboriginal communities

With his usual lack of sensitivity and bully boy style, Howard has swept aside the rights of indigenous communities in the Northern Territory to come down hard on child abuse. It is not difficult to work out the politics. If its not asylum seekers its the weakest minority in our society under the hammer. The fact that child welfare problems are a function of decades of paternalistic repression and neglect that has robbed traditional communities of their dignity and cultural pride, and the resources they need to enable local solutions, does'nt figure in the Howard/Brough macho stance. Aboriginal community leaders and advocates have been crying out for self-determined solutions to problems of disadvantage for decades and getting 'white fella' rule in response. Brough is another in a long line of bully boy politicians who think they know the answers - when, in fact, all they know is how to whip up antipathy and hate.

Can anyone sniff an election in the wind? I would not be surprised if Aboriginal land rights are threatened down the track under this backward looking regime.

David Marr has an excellent piece on how the great centraliser has attacked Aboriginal policy in the NT under the guise of a 'national emergency'.

"But why stop with the Northern Territory? The Prime Minister spoke yesterday of a national emergency but did not offer a national solution. Noel Pearson has clearly inspired much of this tough response but his stamping ground on Cape York won't be touched by Canberra's dramatic intervention.

Yet the whole point of the 1967 referendum - the anniversary of which we've been making a song and dance about lately - was to allow Canberra to assume the national leadership role with respect to Aborigines.

The really brave course in 2007 would be to tackle the problems of Aboriginal communities everywhere - in the Kimberley, in the Pitjantjatjara Lands and out in western NSW. But Howard is only picking off the Northern Territory.

Lawyers are puzzling over the rushed prose of yesterday's announcement. It's not a blueprint for change. It's barely a sketch. To make the new regime work, the national parliament will have to pass legislation. Only then will the devils in the detail be apparent.

Howard is handing a victory to white hardliners who have claimed for years that Aboriginal customary law encourages domestic violence and sexual assaults by letting blacks off lightly. The Howard plan will see customary law disappear as a "mitigating factor" in sentencing and bail conditions in the territory.

Canberra scrubbed customary law from the Commonwealth Crimes Act late last year. At that time the Human Rights and Equal Opportunities Commission pleaded with the Government to think again: "The bill is not based on, or supported, by any evidenced research. It is in conflict with every major inquiry into the role of cultural background and customary law in the Australian legal system."

Now Howard is proposing the same outcome up north - despite instructions from the territory's Attorney-General, Syd Stirling, that prosecutors must never allow customary law to be used "to curtail an Aboriginal woman's or child's right to individual safety and freedom from violence."

The conservative constitutional commentator Professor Greg Craven, of Curtin University, urges caution. "When I was Crown counsel in Victoria I did everything I could to stop recognition of customary law, and then I came to Western Australia and I realised it is a much more complex position than one thinks.

"I'm not saying every aspect of customary law is a good thing and should be recognised. But it is a real issue. That is one of the very few occasions in my life where I have been comprehensively wrong."

Refugees in Australia - Q & A (v) - If someone can pay people smugglers, can they be a refugee?

It has been alleged that people who have the resources to pay people smugglers could not possibly be genuine refugees. The UNHCR disputes claims about 'cashed up' refugees saying that payments made to people smugglers in fact range from AUD $4000 - $5000. In reality, many families and communities pool their resources in an attempt to send their relatives to safety, so great is the desperation to escape certain persecution.

Amnesty International acknowledges and upholds the right of nation states to maintain border integrity, and recognises that organised people smuggling undermines policing who may or may not enter Australia.

However, punitive policies imposed by the Australian government in an effort to stop people smuggling deliberately punish the refugees who entered Australia without documents for the crimes of the people smugglers.

People smuggling is a crime that the international community needs to combat. Yet at all times this must not undermine the legitimate right of those fleeing persecution to seek refuge. The international community, in eradicating people smuggling, is also required to address the growing numbers of asylum seekers throughout the world. Australia has a role to play in this.

World Refugee Day - "It takes courage to be a refugee"

In marking World Refugee Day the UNHCR has articulated the courage it takes to become a refugee:

"As ordinary people living peaceful lives, we rarely have to put our courage to the test. Refugees are ordinary people, too, except that through no fault of their own, they find themselves in extraordinary circumstances. As such, they are often required to dig deep into their own inner sources of strength in order, as another dictionary puts it, to find “the ability to overcome fear.”

Initially, that fear may be the immediate one of trying to escape the horrors of war and persecution, the pain of losing homes and loved ones, and the ordeal of flight. Later comes the deeper anxiety of uncertainty —the worry of how to rebuild their lives, either in completely new circumstances, or back home where they now may not be welcome.

Yes, it certainly does take courage to be a refugee. It takes courage not to give up hope. Courage to make the most of the hand that has been dealt. Courage to start a new life against daunting odds, eventually to become contributing and enriching members of society once more.

There is no typical refugee. Every story is different, every loss is a personal one. But around the world different crises affect different groups. Some are almost settled. Other conflicts are new, with fresh refugee problems."

Oh yes, Mr Howard, these are the same people you have vilified, demonized and terrified to shore up your 'tough on boat people' image. One of the lowest acts of a leader is to whip up fear within a community for political gain. It goes to the character of the man and his capacity to provide moral leadership. We have been badly served on this front for the last eleven years and in the process the nation has lost its moral compass. A cursory trawl through some of the virtual cesspits masquerading as political blogs will confirm who let the junkyard dogs of racism out. Who knows what'll it take to get them chained up again, and pinned under a large spotlight!

Refugees in Australia - Q & A (iv) - Don't we already take our fair share of refugees?

Something to think about: 381 623 refugees applied for asylum in the European Union in 2002. 117 005 applications had been lodged in Europe during the first five months of 2003. In contrast, 5 645 reached Australia by boat or plane during the period of 2000-01; 1 523 applications had been lodged in Australia during the first five months of 2003. UNHCR estimates there were 1.1 million Afghan refugees in Iran and 1.2 million Afghan refugees in Pakistan at the start of the year 2003.

The burden of assisting refugees is borne mostly by the world's poorest nations, with Asian countries hosting 45 percent of all refugees, followed by Africa (30 percent), Europe (19 percent) and North America (5 percent).

Per capita, according to the Immigration Department Australia is the "second most generous" country after Canada with the Humanitarian Program taking 12,000 refugees every year. But this refers to a program in which only nine countries participate. Second out of nine is commendable (and more countries might consider similar programs) but second in the world is a misleading assumption.

Using per capita ratios, the US Committee for Refugee figures tell yet another story, listing the Gaza Strip (1:2) as having the most significant refugee population within its territory, followed by Jordan and the West Bank (both 1:3), then Lebanon (1:11) followed by a number of African countries. Australia, at about 1:1200, hasn't been ranked, but might be unfavourably compared with countries such as Germany (1:456) and Canada (1:566) who are much further up the list. Australia receives relatively few refugees by world standards. The Humanitarian Program allows for a maximum of 12 000 refugees per year - a number that has remained static for five years, despite the fluctuating numbers of refugees worldwide.

Refugees in Australia - Q & A (iii) - What about refugees arriving without visas - are they Illegal entrants?

Think about this: Under International, as well as Australian, law a person is entitled to make an application for refugee asylum in another country when they claim they are fleeing persecution. This is a basic human right that all people are granted.

According to DIMIA, people are identified as arriving illegally in Australia if they "arrive with no travel documents or present documentation which is found to be fraudulent, but which they might have used for check-in at overseas airports".

It is important to remember that people who arrive on our shores seeking refugee status are not illegal. They are asylum seekers - a legal status under International Law. Many must leave their countries in haste and are thus unable to access appropriate documentation. In many cases oppressive authorities, such as those in Iran and Iraq, actively prevent normal exit from their countries. They hold 'blacklists' of those speaking out against the government in the name of freedom and prevent them from freely leaving their country. Given the chaotic nature of those fleeing human rights abuses, refugees often have no real choice but to arrive in Australian without proper documentation in order to seek safety.

If asylum seekers in detention are illegal, they should be formerly charged with an offence, appear before a judge and be found guilty before a jury of committing an offence. This process never occurs, asylum seekers are detained without the right to have a judicial body review their incarceration.

New film on Australian asylum seeker policy

I have just become aware of a new film on Australia's detention of asylum seekers:

"In 2006, a group of young people of different nationalities, backgrounds, attitudes and political views took a trip to the Baxter Detention Centre. The stories of the people they met behind the razor wire surprised, moved and challenged them.

WE WILL BE REMEMBERED FOR THIS” documents their journey. It is a film for everyone. It is a clear, rational and nonpoliticised look at the human issues of Australia’s mandatory immigration detention policy. This film poses the essential questions surrounding Australia’s refugee policy. Who are the people behind the fences? How did they come to be there? What are the psychological and legal battles they now face? How much do average Australians know about this policy, and if they knew the truth, would they want it to change?

The Justice Project is proud to sponsor the world premiere of “We Will be Remembered for This”, a film about Australia’s treatment of asylum seekers in recent years."

For further details see www.wewillberemembered.wordpress.com

Refugees in Australia - Q & A (ii) - Aren't Boat People Queue Jumpers?

Doubts: Australia has a permanent Humanitarian Immigration program for placement of refugees split into an 'Offshore' and 'Onshore' component. The Offshore program refers to people overseas, many of whom have already been determined by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to be refugees. They are granted official permission and assistance to enter Australia prior to arrival. The Onshore component consists of people who apply for protection in Australia, subsequently are determined by the Department of Immigration or the Refugee Review Tribunal (RRT) to meet the criteria of a refugee.

The Offshore resettlement program is a positive and welcome initiative, one that Australia can be proud of. However, the Offshore program has created the impression that there is a 'queue' for asylum seekers to join. In countries like Afghanistan and Iraq, two countries from which millions of people are fleeing persecution, Australia has no diplomatic representation. Refugee flows from these countries - and others - are chaotic. Few countries between the Middle East and Australia are signatories to the Refugee Convention, the human rights treaty that outlines the duty of care that countries must provide refugees, and so refugees are forced to continue to other countries to find secure and sustained protection.

There is no standard refugee process for these people to wait in line and have their applications considered. They must often flee suddenly without proper documentation or visas to a safe country, and those forced to flee this way must not be penalised for doing so.

Refugees in Australia - Q & A (i) - Who are the Real Refugees?

Consider this: Refugees are people outside their country of origin fleeing a fear of persecution - regardless of the means by which they flee. They are survivors of fear, torture or persecution. They may be doctors, lawyers, teachers, journalists, artists, mothers, fathers, children: they are simply ordinary people, forced to flee their homes to escape human rights abuses. If deported home, refugees possibly face persecution, torture - or death. Refugees may have been threatened - but they are not a threat.

Iraqis and Afghans in 1999 and in 2003.
97% of applicants from Iraq and 93% of applicants from Afghanistan seeking asylum without valid visas in Australia in 1999 were recognised as genuine refugees. They were provided with visas and allowed to stay in Australia. During the year 2002-2003, the recognition rate had declined to 79% for Iraqis and 77% for Afghans.

Generally, 84% of all asylum seekers arriving without proper documentation are found to be legitimate refugees and are able to stay in Australia