1. The Abuse of Power:

The Bill provides that people who arrive by boat and are found to be refugees will never be offered permanent protection in Australia.  Instead they will be offered a Temporary Protection Visa (TPV) or Safe Haven Enterprise Visa (SHEV).

Temporary Protection Visas are used globally in genuinely temporary situations, such as following disasters or during short-term conflict.

A Government expert panel on asylum seekers has noted that: ‘More of the world’s refugees are in protracted exile than ever before, and for longer periods.’

2. The Harm:

“TPVs are a kind of torture.  Your body is released; you can walk on the street, walk in the city,

but mentally you’re not released.” – Former TPV holder

TPVs were trialled in Australia from 1999 to 2008 and proved to be harmful, ineffective, wasteful and cruel.

During this period, 11,206 refugees were placed on TPVs, with 90 per cent eventually given permanent protection, proving that the vast majority of asylum seekers coming to Australia need long-term protection.

The ASRC witnessed first-hand the devastating human impact of TPVs during this time.

People:

• Lived in anxious uncertainty, forced to re-prove their refugee status every few years
• Suffered serious mental health issues because of uncertainty and fear for their future safety
• Struggled to find stable employment, forcing them into a cycle of poverty and disadvantage
• Lived with constant heartache and worry because they weren’t allowed to bring their partners and children to Australia and were banned from travelling overseas to see them
• Were unable to fully settle into the Australian community and participate in social, employment and educational opportunities

1. The Abuse of Power

The Government is seeking to remove most references to the 1951 Refugee Convention in the Migration Act and instead replace them with its own re-interpreted definitions of Australia’s refugee obligations.

While the Government declares these laws are compliant with international maritime and refugee law, they are simultaneously seeking to remove their obligation to be bound by those responsibilities under Australian law.

This strips away decades of legal precedent in Australia and turns our back on our role in the global community.

2. The Harm

Australia’s commitment to our human rights and non-refoulement obligations are entrenched in our current robust and fair refugee determination system.

The Bill removes these safeguards for asylum seekers, as well as denying them access to legal representation and protection from serious harm.

This will lead to refugees being returned to situations of danger, including torture, in breach of Australia’s current law and our non-refoulement obligations.

1. The Abuse of Power

Despite the fact that Australia has an existing comprehensive refugee determination process, the Bill establishes another parallel process for reviewing refugee decisions, under which all power will rest with the Minister.  The Minister alone will decide whether a person’s case is to be reviewed, as well as the outcome of any review.

The Minister’s decision will be based on initial paperwork only, with people denied the chance for a hearing or to provide new information.

Such a perfunctory review process risks vulnerable people slipping through the cracks and being sent home to danger.

The Bill also sets a dangerous precedent in terms of providing the Minister with unchecked power to personally determine people’s fates.

2. The Harm

The Bill establishes a ‘fast track’ refugee determination process, undermining our current robust and fair system. It is akin to a person being put in the hot seat for a game show-style mad minute interrogation.

While the ASRC supports the efficient processing of refugee claims, the so-called ‘fast-track’ process undermines people’s right to a fair hearing, forcing them to make their case in a compromised time-frame with a brief, cursory assessment of life and death decisions.

This significantly increases the likelihood of sending people back to a situation of grave danger.

This fast-track process is based on a UK model, which was recently found by the UK High Court to be unlawful, with Mr Justice Ouseley stating that ‘the DFT as operated carries an unacceptably high risk of unfairness’.^[1]

It found failings at various stages of the process where survivors of torture, victims of trafficking and other vulnerable people were not identified for protection.

1. The Abuse of Power

The Minister will unilaterally decide how many permanent protection visas will be issued each year, and will be able to chop and change this number at any time.

2. The Harm

A cap on the number of protection visas issued each year will deny refugees the chance to get on with their lives and leave them in a state of anxious limbo, as they wait for their number to come up in what is effectively a  ‘ visa lotto’.