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  • Being at Baxter - Easter 2005 "...The Baxter complex stands as a terrible, chilling symbol of that detention policy. At least one kilometre in length and 400 metres wide, its perimeter fence is about 4.5 metres high. It is constructed of grid metal mesh, topped by razor-wire strips and 'energised' with electric shock current..." by G. Hastwell

  • In trouble again: Australia in the dock at the UN "...Australia's commitment to the observance of universal human rights standards, and its co-operation with the
    international institutions established to monitor them, has been one regrettable casualty of this populist, foreign policy position" by Spencer Zifcak, Associate Professor of Law at La Trobe University in Melbourne. Published in the NewMatilda.com, issue No 33 - Wednesday 13, April 2005.

  • Tearing hearts to pieces "...Most Australians are unaware that their government is knowingly deporting innocent people to situations of extreme danger and possibly torture and death. No, not our boys in Iraq, but unsuccessful asylum seekers who are deported either back to the countries they fled or to third countries..." by Caroline Lurie, literary agent, publisher, teacher and aid worker. Published in the NewMatilda.com, issue No 32 - Wednesday 6, April 2005.

  • Selective evidence "...The saga of the Bakhtiyari family has highlighted many misconceptions about the way Australia's refugee intake and screening system works. These misconceptions are played upon by politicians of both stripes, and are not put to rest by journalists..." writes Dr Steven Churches, Adelaide Lawyer. Published in Eureka Street - April issue.

  • Once You've Been to Baxter You Can't Sit on the Fence "....I spent this Easter in the desert. I spent this Easter protesting at Baxter detention centre to draw the world's attention to the injustice of Australia's racist and inhumane mandatory detention system and treatment of asylum seekers.." writes Anna Rose, NUS National Environment Officer. Published on Baxter 05.

  • Time for a commonsense detention policy "... Australia's present policy of keeping asylum seekers behind bars, sometimes indefinitely, while their claims are being assessed continues to fail the large majority of genuine refugees, as well as taxpayers. Its time we adapt our immigration policies to meet the needs of this changed environment..." writes Tim Martyn, Policy and Research Officer at Jesuit Social Services. Published in the NewMatilda.com, issue No 30 - Wednesday 23, March 2005.

  • UN Committee on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination Sixty-Sixth Session, 21 Feb - 11th March. Concluding Observations and recommendations of the committee on the elimination of racial discrimination- Australia

  • Different Kinds of Gulags "In a world often on the brink of calamity, how many people really care about a few lost mortals half way around the world? Well, there may be some humanitarians that seek out the most hopeless of causes, but the vast majority of self-absorbed road warriors are just too busy surviving the outback of technocratic complexity" by Sartre published on EtherZone.com

  • Racial Discrimination Committee: 66th session The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination today concluded its sixty-sixth session and issued its concluding observations on reports presented by the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, France, Luxembourg, Australia, Ireland, Bahrain and Azerbaijan on how those countries implement the provisions of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. Published I-Newswire 12 March 2005.

  • Perfecting the art of dobbing "The land of the fair go is becoming a myth of the past as more Australians are fast becoming fearful toadies to our lying politicians. What a heroic land we are building for our children, full of people ever ready to snitch and tell" by Pamela Curr, Campaign Coordinator at the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre in Melbourne. Published in the NewMatilda.com, issue No 28 - Wednesday 9, March 2005.

  • Honesty Matters: the ethics of daily life - 'It is difficult to understand why the government insisted on removing a family it had damaged so badly, unless its purpose was to send a message: not to people smugglers, but to us. Its message to us is this: We hold absolute power; we do not have to acknowledge public sentiment; we can crush anyone who messes with us' by Julian Burnside. Published in the NewMatilda.com, issue No 27 - Wednesday 2 March 2005.

  • Talking about Cornelia statement by Baxter detainees about Cornelia Rau, who was 'lost' inside Australia as 'Anna', classed as an illegal immigrant without any evidence for this by Department of Immigration staff, and locked away in prisons and detention centres - Jack Smit founder and co-ordinator of Project SafeCom Inc., Published in the NewMatilda.com, issue No 27 - Wednesday 2 March 2005.

  • Let them stay or send them away? - Predictors of negative attitudes toward asylum seekers - The research reported here examines the extent to which nationalism, self-esteem, false beliefs, and socio-demographics (gender, age, political orientation, and education) relate to attitudes toward asylum seekerswritten by Murdoch University's Anne Pedersen, Jon Attwell, and Diana Heveli. March 2, 2005

  • Report on Asylum Seekers in Expedited Removal - "A Study by refugee and asylum experts appointed by the Commission, as authorized by Section 605 of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998. The report examines, and makes recommendations on, the protection and detention of asylum seekers who are placed in Expedited Removal in the United States" February 8, 2005.

  • The Baxter Detention Centre - " Although more than enough is known about day-to-day life in Baxter Detention Centre, little is known about its construction, the cost of building and development of the site, the subcontractors, the unions involved, the computer facilities, the training of the personnel and so on" writes John Hooker. Published in the NewMatilda.com, issue No 26 - Wednesday 23 February 2005.

  • Detention without trial - Anne Coombs, writer, co-founder RAR writes 'If this policy is not changed, where will it end? If a young woman with an Australian accent can be locked up for supposedly violating the Migration Act what other abuses are possible?' Published in the NewMatilda.com, issue No 25 - Wednesday 16 February 2005.

  • The plight of Cornelia Rau - Editorial published in the NewMatilda.com, issue No 24 - Wednesday 9 February 2005.

  • The transformation of Philip Ruddock - "Andrew West, a former journalist with the Sun-Herald and the Sydney Morning
    Herald, is the author of Bob Carr: A Self-Made Man (HarperCollins, 2003). He has covered Washington DC, including the Clinton White House, for United Press International, and his work has appeared in newspapers around the world, including the New York Times". This article was published in the NewMatilda.com, issue No 23 - Wednesday 2 February 2005.

  • Never again, they said - by Jack Smit, Project SafeCom writes 'And the names of Guantanamo Bay, Curtin, Derby, Baxter, Nauru, Christmas Island, Manus Island, Villawood and Maribyrnong join too easily that long line-up of other names that make me weep...:Bergen-Belsen, Treblinka, Dachau, Auschwitz-Birkenau, Buchenwald, Theresienstadt, Sobibor, Vught, Westerbork.' This article was published in the NewMatilda.com, issue No 23 - Wednesday 2 February 2005.

  • Indefinite detention - Madeleine Byrne is a former SBS and ABC journalist, whose writing on Europe
    has appeared in local and international publications. This article was published in the NewMatilda.com, issue No 22 - Wednesday 26 January 2005.

  • A late night 'removal operation' - James Gallaway and Jack Smit report on an eye witness account of a forced deportation. Published in the NewMatilda.com, issue No 25 - Wednesday 26 January 2005.

  • Burnside: A day of reflection - Julian Burnside QC is a Melbourne barrister, specializing in commercial litigation and human rights. Published in the NewMatilda.com, issue No 21 - Wednesday 19 January 2005.

  • "Somewhere between God and Caesar" – political commentary in www.NewMatilda.com, issue No. 20 of Wednesday 12 January 2005, by Tony Kevin, on Dr Tom Frame’s recent reviews of A Certain Maritime Incident – the Sinking of SIEV X.

  • Visiting Tol Tran - An advocates account in www.NewMatilda.com, issue No. 19 of Wednesday 12 January 2005, by Kaye Bernard (available by subscription)

  • Eye witness report of deportation 13/12/04; a harrowing first hand account of a forced deportation by Sonia Chirgwin.

  • "Tragedy of a common man" – a commentary on the current Bakhtiari (Bakhtiyari) family case, by Associate Professor Mary Crock, Faculty of Law, University of Sydney

  • 'No way out: the High Court and children in detention'; by Spencer Zifcak; New Matilda, 12.1.05 (available by subscription)

  • Housing Need and Provision for Recently Arrived Refugees in Australia - This report presents the findings of a research project into housing need and provision for refugees in australia (TPV and PPV holders). The report is based on the findings of 434 interviews conducted in Adelaide, Brisbane and Perth during 2002-2003. Authors: Andrew Beer and Paul Foley for the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute.

  • Exposing the shoddy treatment of refugees; review of Alwyn Evans novel Walk in My Shoes by Annolies Truman for Green Left Weekly December 2004. Half of all royalties from sales of the book go to CARAD, the Coalition for Asylum Seekers, Refugees and Detainees

  • I am still in the water with the dying of SIEVX by Amal BasryWorld Refugees published in the AxisofLogic.com; United States - Nov 1, 2004 "(This is Amal's story in her own words as told to me. At the time of writing, we had never met, but had conversed regularly over the phone for the best part of a year. Amal Basry is a patron of JANNAH - Mary Dagmar Davies, Founder, JANNAH, THE SIEVX MEMORIAL.)"

  • 'Not a Given'; review of Tony Kevin's 'A Certain Maritime Incident' by Damien Kingsbury, Australian Book Review, October 2004. (With thanks to the Australian Book Review)

  • The Mental Health of Moving Asylum Seekers From 'temporary' to 'permanent' Protection Visas: It's Much More Than a Quick Political Fix. Contemporary Nurse Volume 17 Number 3, (October 2004) written by Nicholas G Procter, Associate Professor, School of Nursing and Midwifery, University of South Australia.

  • Julian Burnside: Betraying our basic values Julian tells us that ".. Australia can do better than this". and asks "..Does anyone care?" New MathildaWednesday, October 20, 2004 by Julian Burnside

  • Where Do We Go From Here Now? – reflections and a proposed strategy, on the occasion of the third anniversary of the sinking of SIEV X - website commentary by Tony Kevin, Sunday 17 October 2004

  • Reporters Without Boarders Australia - 2004 Annual Report - Reporters Without Borders is an association officially recognised as serving the public interest - Defending press freedom. Their 2004 report ranks Australia 41st in the world press ranking while New Zealand is ranked 9th.

  • 'Compassion, Sustainability, Impact: Report on the Oxfam Conference, 1-3 October 2004' - Available on the Oxfam/Community Aid Abroad website at http://www.oxfam.org.au/news/conference/index.html

  • 'Deported to Danger: A Study of Australia's Treatment of Rejected Asylum Seekers' - Research report from the Edmund Rice Centre into the fate of returned asylum seekers, available at http://www.erc.org.au/research/1096416029.shtml.

  • Border security in fact and fiction... "Where logic fails, intuition can sometimes succeed. Where scientific reports do not move the politician's head, art can move the heart. Since the Government adopted the radical approach to refugees after the Tampa episode, artists, musicians, playwrights and poets have expressed some of the alarm felt by many in the general population. Two contrasting novels that approach the issue are Thomas Keneally's The Tyrant's Novel (Random House Australia; $22.95) and Sandy McCutcheon's The Haha Man (HarperCollins; $29.95)". A review by Dr Tony Smith.

  • Michael Leach and Fethi Mansouri, Lives in Limbo: Voices of Refugees Under Temporary Protection, Sydney, UNSW Press, 2004, reviewed by Tony Smith, Writer, Bathurst.

  • Book Review: Kevin's 'A Certain Maritime Incident: the Sinking of SIEV X' A thought provoking review by Professor Gavin Mooney Chair of the Social and Public Health Economics Research Group (SPHERe) at Curtin University, Western Australia and co-convenor of the WA Social Justice Network. Mooney concludes that "...whoever is returned at the federal election on 9 October set up a judicial inquiry into SIEV X. All of us deserve that".

  • The need for a SIEV X judicial inquiry – a recent discussion on the BBC World Service ("The World Today", 24 August 2004, broadcast interviews with Tony Kevin and Senator George Brandis, as transcribed from BBC tapes received by Tony Kevin by post on 11 October 2004)

  • The devil is in the detail Peter Mares has written on the government's recent changes to refugee rules for the Australian Financial Review. Peter is a senior researcher in the Institute for Social Research at Swinburne University of Technology and the author of Borderline: Australia’s Response to Refugees and Asylum Seekers in the Wake of the Tampa (UNSW Press 2002). This article first appeared in the Australian Financial Review.

  • A Family Apart in Australia this article provides a detailed account of the Bakhtiyaris' experience published by The Los Angeles Times, 10 April 2002, Richard C. Paddock

  • From Dreamtime to Nightmare: John Howard's Olympian Deception October 1, 2000 the word 'Eternity' was up in lights on the Sydney Harbour Bridge as a multicultural Australia welcomed people from all over the world to the Olympics. [...] One year later everything had changed. Australia, instead of stepping boldly and independently into the future, was lead backward to revive the most repressive and cruel aspects of a colonial past. The voice of human rights, reconciliation and understanding was dismissed by the strident bullying voice of authoritarianism. The author, Mary Dagmar Davies is the founder of Jannah The SIEV X Memorial. She is also a regular contributing writer for Axis of LogicAxis of Logic Aug 11, 2004

  • Never a Last Resort for Children in Detention UNHCR's recently release report, "A last resort", highlighted a fundamental breach of a child's right to be detained as a measure of last resort and for the shortest period of time. What was needed was not band aid remedies or detention in housing projects but a radical revisal of the detention regime to allow families into the community while their claims are being processed, similar to those who come by air with a visa and then seek asylum. By Tom Mann, an Australasian Correctional Management staff and author of Desert Sorrow: asylum seekers at Woomera. This article appeared in the Axis of Logic; Aug 2, 2004

  • Bordering on the Fake: Australia's Treatment of Asylum Seekers This article by Stephen Smith; July 29, 2004, draws on Peter Carey's latest work, 'My Life as a Fake' which Smith describes as 'an allegory of Australia's treatment of asylum seekers'. The essay explores the racism at the heart of attitudes to asylum seekers, and examines the exploitation of such attitudes by the Australian government, both in the lead-up to the last federal election and subsequently. Stephen Smith is a freelance writer based in Canberra. The article is available from ZNet Magazine; July 29, 2004.

  • Democrats Refugee E-bulletin (Edition #4 11 August 2004) The latest bulletin from the Australian Democrats, which provides comprehensive, high quality information and links on refugee issues, particularly from a parliamentary/political perspective.

  • Ombudsman's Report - Shahraz Kiane The Commonwealth Ombudsman's report into the death of Mr Shahraz Kiane, who died in April 2001 following a self-immolation protest over the failure of DIMIA to expeditiously process his family re-union applications made between 1996 and 2000, raises serious questions about the procedural effectiveness and motivations of DIMIA in the affair. A key factor in DIMIA's reluctance to approve the applications appears to have been the potential costs of medical assistance for Mr Kiane's disabled daughter [read the report]

    Labour Rights and Border Protection: Attempts at a Viable Life on the Temporary Protection Visa - This University of NSW Studies in Human Resource Management and Industrial Relations in Asia, Monograph Number 4, by Nigel Hoffmann, aims to explain the political space of exclusion that the Temporary Protection Visa (TPV) produces, and the ways that asylum seekers negotiate their social conditions after being released from immigration detention. Price $30.00 (incl. GST) plus $5 postage and handling. Available from the Industrial Relations Research Centre, UNSW e-mail IRRC@unsw.edu.au.

    A Review of the Federal Government's Immigration Policies This report by Patricia Lee is a review of clippings collected spasmodically over three years from the Sydney Morning Herald regarding the Howard Liberal government's immigration policies and actions and their effect on ordinary human beings.

    Bordering on the Fake Australia's Treatment of Asylum Seekers by Stephen Smith freelance journalist published on Z-net, an independent monthly magazine dedicated to resisting injustice, defending against repression, and creating liberty.

  • The Better Way: Refugees, Detention and Australians This report from Justice for Asylum Seekers (JAS) is now available in downloadable format. The document, which recommends an alternative model for processing asylum claims and dealing with asylum seekers, is a good resource for groups to use when lobbying local MPs and others. It shows asylum seekers can be housed in different types of accommodation according to their needs, at considerably lower cost than the current 'one size fits all' maximum-security mandatory detention system. The report is one of many resources available on the group's website, including background research, letter writing and lobbying resources, case studies, help with the media and holding public forums. You can also use the website to get in touch with other interested people in your electorate.

  • Long Journey, Young Lives This award-winning interactive AFC-ABC documentary provides an intimate insight into the experiences of child refugees on their perilous journeys, and also explores the opinions of young Australians on issues surrounding asylum seekers.

  • A Last Resort? Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commissions (HEROC) comprehensive and detailed report on children in immigration detention, was tabled in Parliament on 13th March 2004. The report details ten years of systematic human rights abuse of children held in Australian detention centres. Using the Department of Immigration, Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs (DIMIA) and Australasian Correctional Management’s (ACM) own documentation, the report accuses the Australian government of widespread violations of the Convention of the Rights of the Child, the most widely ratified human rights treaty in the world. It details the cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment that children in detention have had to endure.

  • History of RAR - Address by Helen McCue AM; RAR Co-founder; delivered at the RAR 2004 National Conference. This paper is a useful summary of the history of RAR. "We know that we will eventually succeed and that Australia will one day regain its place in the world community as a compassionate, humane and caring society. We all know that with continued effort we will continue to ensure that Australia meets it international obligations" says Helen

  • A media refresher course: Context for the forthcoming trial of alleged peopler smuggler Khaled Daoed (in Brisbane, starting 5 April) - An alert to media and NGO's of the importance on the trial of Khaleld Daoed. The report sets out critical events and puts forward strong credible questions. "This trial is a unique opportunity. It is the only chance we will ever get for a SIEV X -related trial in Australia. We need to fight for exposure of truth in this trial.Otherwise it may turn out to be just another step in the long series of SIEV X cover-ups" by Tony Kevin
  • Australians Welcome Refugees - The Untold Story A report to the 60th session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights; prepared by Margaret Reynolds, National President of the United Nations Association of Australia; April 2004. An in-depth analysis of the human costs of long-term mandatory detention and other aspects of Australia's current refugee policy.
  • Annual World Refugee Survey 2004 (46th Edition). In addition to assessing the plight of refugees, asylum seekers and internally displaced persons around the world, the latest edition of this annually updated survey explores the issue of the 'warehousing' of refugees. The 2004 Survey documents the breadth and scope of this practice, and details why it is a violation of international law, as well as providing individual case studies.
  • ChilOut Ambassadors' Reports - These accounts, by six of the young people who recently went as a delegation to visit Canberra, provide some interesting insights into the character and attitudes of different politicians, not only towards refugees but towards youth as well.
  • Afghani Asylum seekers and refugees in the Republic of Indonesia' (First Report); Hassam Ghulam; April 2004. Hassan, who is recognised as an official representative of asylum seekers in Lombok, Indonesia, has returned from his recent trip to Europe and Indonesia and prepared this thought-provoking report on the interplay of UNHCR, IOM and the Australian and Indonesian governments in the current situation on Lombok. The report includes a number of pragmatic recommendations, as well as a note of thanks to the various advocacy groups and supporters, including RAR, for assisting with costs for the trip. The report is available from Hassan at hazara_es@bigpond.com, mobile (0409) 612554
  • Sending Them Home: Refugees and the New Politics of Indifference; by Robert Manne with David Corlett; Quarterly Essay, Issue 13, 2004. Contact John Ball at jball@ncca.org.au. (Cost approximately $12.50)
  • Support for Temporary Protection Visa Holders: Partnering Individual Mental Health Support and Migration Law Consultation'; Nicholas G Procter PhD, Associate Professor Division of Health Sciences, University of South Australia. This report, based on the author's clinical work with refugees and asylum seekers, highlights the trauma associated with detention and the refugee experience, and calls for a greater nexus between providers of mental health services and legal advocates in dealing with such clients. The report is available from nicholas.procter@unisa.edu.au
  • Refugees in a Region: Afghans in Young, NSW Ð by Frank Stillwell, University of Sydney; Journal of Urban Policy and Research, Vol 21 No 3, 235 Ð248; September 2003. Available from Jago Dodson, School of Environmental Planning, Griffith University, e-mail J.Dodson@griffith.edu.au, phone (07) 3875 6680
Queue jumper

Nicholson of "The Australian" newspaper: www.nicholsoncartoons.com.au

2004 National RAR Conference Papers

[more reports will be posted in this section over the next few weeks]

 

Books & Videos

Refugee Policy

Legal Process

Visa Types

Cost of Detention

Essays & Articles

Refugee Accounts

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