REINSTATING ACCOUNTABILITY

Despite the Howard government claiming immigration as one of the most highly scrutinised portfolios, the People’s Inquiry heard that a number of factors allowed the Immigration Department to develop a culture which resulted in the gross abuses detailed in this report.

The public demonisation of asylum seekers and their supporters by ministers and senior officials encouraged their mistreatment by more junior officers. The remote locations in which asylum seekers were detained made it difficult for lawyers, human rights groups and supporters to offer effective assistance. The privatisation of detention centres and the imposition of fines for failing to meet standards created a conflict of interest for both the private operators and the department to accurately report on conditions in detention. Finally, the preparation undertaken by the department in advance of visits to detention centres by media, religious leaders and others, and the inability of human rights watchdogs such as the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC) and the Commonwealth ombudsman to enforce their recommendations, rendered the scrutiny ineffective.

The People’s Inquiry into Detention recommends the Rudd Labor government:

• Establishes a Royal Commission into the four aspects of immigration policy covered by this report: journeys into detention, the refugee assessment process, life in detention, and life for people after release from detention – in particular the role played by Australian government ministers and organisations including the Department of Immigration, the Royal Australian Navy and the Australian Federal Police;

• Holds a coronial investigation into the deaths of asylum seekers, immigration detainees and those refused asylum in Australia;

• Closes the Christmas Island detention centre;

• Restores government control of detention centres;

• Abolishes the ministerial intervention powers under the Migration Act and replaces them with reviewable administrative decisions;

• Allows media, human rights groups, religious leaders and politicians to make unannounced visits to detention centres;

• Resources an independent authority to effectively investigate immigration detainee complaints and make binding recommendations for their resolution.