Introduction: What is a Detention Centre

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Introduction What is a Detention Centre?
Detention centres are where our Government
facilitates illegal migrants, Asylum Seekers or
refugees while they are being assessed to find
out whether or not to be suitable for a legal
status in Australia and are to be granted a visa.
Detention Centres began in 1992 when Australias
official Migration Law was announced Unlawful
Non-Citizens must be detained until they are
granted a visa or are removed from the country
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Different Kinds of Detention Facilities
Immigration Reception and Processing Centres
(IDF) Primarily used for unauthorised boat
arrivals eg. Christmas Island Immigration
Reception and Processing Centre (Open since
September 2001)
Immigration Detention Centres (IDC) Mainly used
to detain people in beach of their visa
conditions or people refused entry at Australias
International Airports or over-stayers.
Residential Housing Projects (RHP) Enable women
and children to live in family style
accommodation while remaining in Immigration
detention.
Immigration Detention Facilities (IDF) Used to
detain a range of Unlawful non-Citizens
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Definition of an 'Illegal Non-Citizen'
You Are an Illegal Non-Citizen if You
Enter the Country Without a Valid Visa
Enter the Country With a Valid Visa but stay past
the Visa's Expiration date
Enter the Country With a Valid Visa but Break the
Conditions of the Visa
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Facility
Men
Women
Children
Total
324
43
0
367
50
42
8
0
0
0
14
14
117
10
127
0
0
0
0
0
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Why Detention Centres are Unfair
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Why Detainees are Here
Australia and Canada are the only countries in
the world to detain people who are forced to
leave their country without the appropriate
paperwork. The main reasons for people to seek
asylum are political and or religious issues
that pose a problem or potential threat to their
life or way of life. Although on arrival they
are placed in isolated facilities of
questionable conditions for up to years at a time
until they are either granted legal status or
sent back to their country (As per the Official
Migration law 1992) is this any way to treat
people who have already undergone hardships of
such Magnitude?
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The United Nations Legislation of Child Rights
Every child deprived of his or her liberty
shall have the right to prompt access to legal
and other appropriate assistance, as well as the
right to challenge the legality of the
deprivation of his or her liberty before a court
or other competent, independent and impartial
authority, and to a prompt decision on any such
action.
Every child deprived of liberty shall be treated
with humanity and respect for the
inherent dignity of the human person, and in a
manner which takes into account the needs of
persons of his or her age. In particular, every
child deprived of liberty shall be separated from
adults unless it is considered in the child's
best interest not to do so and shall have the
right to maintain contact with his or her family
through correspondence and visits, save in
exceptional circumstances.
No child shall be subjected to torture or other
cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or
punishment. Neither capital punishment nor life
imprisonment without possibility of release
shall be imposed for offences committed by
persons below eighteen years of age.
Between 1999-2003, over 2000 children sought
asylum in Australia.
No child shall be deprived of his or her liberty
unlawfully or arbitrarily. The arrest, detention
or imprisonment of a child shall be in conformity
with the law and shall be used only as a measure
of last resort and for the shortest appropriate
period of time.
They were all held in immigration detention and
8 weren't granted refugee status
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In 2003 a young asylum seeker had a banana and a
sachet of sugar confiscated On the grounds that
they could have been used as weapons
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Why Detention Centres are Necessary
Alylum Seekers, Refugees etc. come to Australia
without any legal documents
To allow people into our country without being
processed first would leave them stranded
without any legal status
This could also erupt breaches in Australia's
health safety
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Bibliography
Face the Facts Produced by the Acting federal
Race Discrimination Commissioner


2005
http//www.amnesty.org.au/refugees
http//www.immi.gov.au
DIMIA, Refugees and Humanitarian
issues-Australias Response, Canberra Oct


2001
http//chilout.org/