Last week Immigration Minister Chris Bowen announced the immediate lifting of the six month freeze imposed in April on the processing of Afghan asylum seekers. The decision was cautiously welcomed by UNHCR and other refugee advocates, yet they also warned against praising the government for ending a policy that should not have been introduced in
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On 10th September, the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) issued a media release stating that 34 school-aged children currently detained in Darwin would begin attending classes the following Monday after the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between itself and the Northern Territory Department of Education and Training. The NT News picked up
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I often think everyone should ask themselves the basic question that I pose to myself each day: What would I do if I was fleeing for my life and trying to save my family? I know I would do whatever it took. I would get on a boat no matter how dangerous and would pay
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As part of its 2010 immigration election platform, the Liberal Party announced that it would reintroduce the ‘45-day rule’ for onshore protection applicants. The 45-day rule (which came into force in 1997 and subsequently abolished by the Labor Party in 2007) required asylum seekers who had arrived in the country legally by plane and on
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