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Boat Discussion
- Thread starter Rosy
- Start date
http://www.theage.com.au/federal-politics/abbott-sacks-asylum-seeker-health-advisers-20131215-2zfg8.html
"Abbott sacks asylum seeker health advisers
Date
December 16, 2013
Stephanie Wood
The Abbott government has disbanded a key group that provided advice on the health of asylum seekers in detention, as research reveals psychiatric problems - such as self-harm - are the most common reasons for the large number of detainee visits to hospital emergency departments.
Members of the Immigration Health Advisory Group (IHAG) received letters late on Friday telling them the group would be dissolved and replaced by one adviser.
Dr Paul Alexander, the group's chairman and a former head of Joint Health Command in the Defence Force, will become the sole independent health adviser to the Immigration Department.
"This is probably one of the most serious, high-risk approaches that [the] government could take in terms of the outcomes for asylum seekers and refugees," a source close to the situation said.
"They have sacked the people in the country who know the most about refugees. Torture and trauma services … psychologists who have worked extensively with refugees, mental health nurses who know about refugees."
The group included 12 medical professionals, among them psychiatrists, psychologists and GPs, with specialist knowledge about refugees.
According to Choong-Siew Yong, the Australian Medical Association's representative on the group, it was an important conduit back to professional organisations that had expressed concern about the standards of healthcare and the health needs of asylum seekers in detention.
"The decision to disband the group raises questions about how the concerns of the professions
will be addressed,” Dr Yong said.
"There's a shutdown of information [about asylum seekers] but this is a shutdown of government accepting the need for independent expert professional advice," said Professor Louise Newman, the director of the Centre for Developmental Psychiatry and Psychology at Monash University, and a member of the group.
A spokesperson for Immigration Minister Scott Morrison could not be reached.
The disbandment of the group follows the announcement on Friday that the federal government would not be renewing the Salvation Army’s contract to provide humanitarian services to asylum seekers on Manus Island and Nauru. The contract will end in February.
It comes as the latest edition of the Medical Journal of Australia publishes research revealing that 50.1 per cent of immigration centre detainees in Darwin had visited the Royal Darwin Hospital emergency department at least once in 2011. Of the 518 detainees who made 770 visits to the department, 155 people attended twice or more.
This included 187 attendances (24.3 per cent) for psychiatric problems, including self-harm, and 146 by children, of which 15 were for self-harm.
Again a decision that might be justified on it's own, though on form I wouldn't be expecting much information from Morrison, but taken along with the general attitude and statements of this government looks really bad. Of course it should send a message that Australia is not that concerned with the welfare of refugees which the PM might argue will help to stem the flow of boats and that the end justifies the means.
"Abbott sacks asylum seeker health advisers
Date
December 16, 2013
Stephanie Wood
The Abbott government has disbanded a key group that provided advice on the health of asylum seekers in detention, as research reveals psychiatric problems - such as self-harm - are the most common reasons for the large number of detainee visits to hospital emergency departments.
Members of the Immigration Health Advisory Group (IHAG) received letters late on Friday telling them the group would be dissolved and replaced by one adviser.
Dr Paul Alexander, the group's chairman and a former head of Joint Health Command in the Defence Force, will become the sole independent health adviser to the Immigration Department.
"This is probably one of the most serious, high-risk approaches that [the] government could take in terms of the outcomes for asylum seekers and refugees," a source close to the situation said.
"They have sacked the people in the country who know the most about refugees. Torture and trauma services … psychologists who have worked extensively with refugees, mental health nurses who know about refugees."
The group included 12 medical professionals, among them psychiatrists, psychologists and GPs, with specialist knowledge about refugees.
According to Choong-Siew Yong, the Australian Medical Association's representative on the group, it was an important conduit back to professional organisations that had expressed concern about the standards of healthcare and the health needs of asylum seekers in detention.
"The decision to disband the group raises questions about how the concerns of the professions
will be addressed,” Dr Yong said.
"There's a shutdown of information [about asylum seekers] but this is a shutdown of government accepting the need for independent expert professional advice," said Professor Louise Newman, the director of the Centre for Developmental Psychiatry and Psychology at Monash University, and a member of the group.
A spokesperson for Immigration Minister Scott Morrison could not be reached.
The disbandment of the group follows the announcement on Friday that the federal government would not be renewing the Salvation Army’s contract to provide humanitarian services to asylum seekers on Manus Island and Nauru. The contract will end in February.
It comes as the latest edition of the Medical Journal of Australia publishes research revealing that 50.1 per cent of immigration centre detainees in Darwin had visited the Royal Darwin Hospital emergency department at least once in 2011. Of the 518 detainees who made 770 visits to the department, 155 people attended twice or more.
This included 187 attendances (24.3 per cent) for psychiatric problems, including self-harm, and 146 by children, of which 15 were for self-harm.
Again a decision that might be justified on it's own, though on form I wouldn't be expecting much information from Morrison, but taken along with the general attitude and statements of this government looks really bad. Of course it should send a message that Australia is not that concerned with the welfare of refugees which the PM might argue will help to stem the flow of boats and that the end justifies the means.
KnightersRevenge said:
I suspect this is being done to stop any information leaking out of the detention centres, although I'd bet my bottom dollar that some horrific stories will eventually emerge from the hell hole existence that these refugees are forced to endure. We've seen it all before, I expect suicides and self harm to become the norm, there will be institutional child abuse and these people will be treated worse than convicted murderers. Mean would be an understatement.
We certainly are, and so we should. Same goes for our recent track record on environmental issues.rosy23 said:
FACT CHECK
Tony Abbott incorrect on asylum seekers breaking Australian law
Updated Fri 24 Jan 2014, 5:34pm AEDT
Prime Minister Tony Abbott has tried to discredit a group of asylum seekers who allege they were mistreated by the Royal Australian Navy, by claiming they were attempting to break Australian law.
Footage obtained by the ABC shows several asylum seekers - who Indonesian police say were on a vessel forced back by the Australian Navy on January 6 - being medically assessed for burns on their hands. The asylum seekers say they were burnt and kicked when the Australian Navy forced them to touch part of their boat's engine.
The Government has denied the allegations and defended the professionalism of the Navy, with Mr Abbott asking the question: "Do you believe Australian naval personnel or do you believe people who are attempting to break Australian law? I trust Australia's naval personnel," he said.
Is Mr Abbott right to say asylum seekers who make the journey to Australia are attempting to break Australian law?
The claim: Tony Abbott says asylum seekers who come to Australia are attempting to break Australian law.
The verdict: Mr Abbott is incorrect. Australia recognises people's right to seek asylum and entering Australia without a valid visa is not a criminal offence.
Last year ABC Fact Check looked at the legal position of asylum seekers arriving in Australia.
Immigration Minister Scott Morrison was found to be correct when he described people who come without a valid visa as having "illegally" entered Australia. However, Fact Check also found such people did not break any law.
While Mr Morrison used correct terminology, Mr Abbott may have overstepped the mark.
Fact Check contacted the Prime Minister's office to clarify whether his comment related to asylum seekers or crew members. People smuggling is a criminal offence under Australian law.
No response was received by the time of publication. It is therefore necessary to take a look at the context of the remarks.
It is clear from the exchange during his press conference that Mr Abbott was referring to asylum seekers seeking to enter Australia by boat without a valid visa. He was asked about the ABC report, which referred only to allegations by asylum seekers.
What Australian law are they attempting to break?
Fact Check also asked the Prime Minister's office what law he says these people were attempting to break. In the absence of any clarification or suggestion of any unrelated criminal acts by the asylum seekers, Fact Check takes him to mean that the people were attempting to break Australian migration law.
As noted in the earlier fact check relating to Mr Morrison's comments, entry into Australia is governed by the Commonwealth Migration Act 1958.
While it is accurate to describe asylum seekers who enter Australia without a valid visa as "unlawful" or even "illegal entrants", it is not a criminal offence to enter Australia without a visa. Calling someone "unlawful" or an "illegal entrant" is a description of how they entered the country and determines the way authorities process them. It does not mean they have broken any law. Arriving without a visa can only result in criminal sanctions if there is some other offence involved such as falsifying a passport or forging a document.
Professor Jane McAdam, director of the International Refugee and Migration Law Project at the University of New South Wales, told Fact Check Australia's ratification of the 1951 UN Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees was also relevant to Mr Morrison's comments.
"By ratifying the Refugee Convention, governments agree precisely not to treat asylum seekers as illegal," Professor McAdam said.
In relation to Mr Abbott's comments, immigration law expert Professor Andreas Schloenhardt of the University of Queensland law school told Fact Check that the last time it was a criminal offence to arrive in Australia without a visa was the 1970s. Doing so today "will not result in a criminal investigation, prosecution, or criminal punishment," he said.
"'Breaking the law' is generally understood to mean committing a criminal offence; persons arriving in Australia irregularly, especially asylum seekers, do not do that."
Professor Schloenhardt suggests that a more accurate description would have been "persons seeking to enter without complying with administrative rules relating to immigration".
The verdict
Mr Abbott is incorrect when he says that the asylum seekers making allegations against the Royal Australian Navy were attempting to break Australian law. Australia recognises people's right to seek asylum and entering Australia without a valid visa is not a criminal offence.
Tony Abbott incorrect on asylum seekers breaking Australian law
Updated Fri 24 Jan 2014, 5:34pm AEDT
Prime Minister Tony Abbott has tried to discredit a group of asylum seekers who allege they were mistreated by the Royal Australian Navy, by claiming they were attempting to break Australian law.
Footage obtained by the ABC shows several asylum seekers - who Indonesian police say were on a vessel forced back by the Australian Navy on January 6 - being medically assessed for burns on their hands. The asylum seekers say they were burnt and kicked when the Australian Navy forced them to touch part of their boat's engine.
The Government has denied the allegations and defended the professionalism of the Navy, with Mr Abbott asking the question: "Do you believe Australian naval personnel or do you believe people who are attempting to break Australian law? I trust Australia's naval personnel," he said.
Is Mr Abbott right to say asylum seekers who make the journey to Australia are attempting to break Australian law?
The claim: Tony Abbott says asylum seekers who come to Australia are attempting to break Australian law.
The verdict: Mr Abbott is incorrect. Australia recognises people's right to seek asylum and entering Australia without a valid visa is not a criminal offence.
Last year ABC Fact Check looked at the legal position of asylum seekers arriving in Australia.
Immigration Minister Scott Morrison was found to be correct when he described people who come without a valid visa as having "illegally" entered Australia. However, Fact Check also found such people did not break any law.
While Mr Morrison used correct terminology, Mr Abbott may have overstepped the mark.
Fact Check contacted the Prime Minister's office to clarify whether his comment related to asylum seekers or crew members. People smuggling is a criminal offence under Australian law.
No response was received by the time of publication. It is therefore necessary to take a look at the context of the remarks.
It is clear from the exchange during his press conference that Mr Abbott was referring to asylum seekers seeking to enter Australia by boat without a valid visa. He was asked about the ABC report, which referred only to allegations by asylum seekers.
What Australian law are they attempting to break?
Fact Check also asked the Prime Minister's office what law he says these people were attempting to break. In the absence of any clarification or suggestion of any unrelated criminal acts by the asylum seekers, Fact Check takes him to mean that the people were attempting to break Australian migration law.
As noted in the earlier fact check relating to Mr Morrison's comments, entry into Australia is governed by the Commonwealth Migration Act 1958.
While it is accurate to describe asylum seekers who enter Australia without a valid visa as "unlawful" or even "illegal entrants", it is not a criminal offence to enter Australia without a visa. Calling someone "unlawful" or an "illegal entrant" is a description of how they entered the country and determines the way authorities process them. It does not mean they have broken any law. Arriving without a visa can only result in criminal sanctions if there is some other offence involved such as falsifying a passport or forging a document.
Professor Jane McAdam, director of the International Refugee and Migration Law Project at the University of New South Wales, told Fact Check Australia's ratification of the 1951 UN Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees was also relevant to Mr Morrison's comments.
"By ratifying the Refugee Convention, governments agree precisely not to treat asylum seekers as illegal," Professor McAdam said.
In relation to Mr Abbott's comments, immigration law expert Professor Andreas Schloenhardt of the University of Queensland law school told Fact Check that the last time it was a criminal offence to arrive in Australia without a visa was the 1970s. Doing so today "will not result in a criminal investigation, prosecution, or criminal punishment," he said.
"'Breaking the law' is generally understood to mean committing a criminal offence; persons arriving in Australia irregularly, especially asylum seekers, do not do that."
Professor Schloenhardt suggests that a more accurate description would have been "persons seeking to enter without complying with administrative rules relating to immigration".
The verdict
Mr Abbott is incorrect when he says that the asylum seekers making allegations against the Royal Australian Navy were attempting to break Australian law. Australia recognises people's right to seek asylum and entering Australia without a valid visa is not a criminal offence.
Rosy there is a much bigger war at play here then the average person would ever know. The ABC will report their view and the Australian Government will never tell the truth. That's because they can't! Sometimes people just have support our own government and try to understand and respect the work our Navy and others are undertaking everyday.
There are a lot of deliberate Red herrings at play here and they are being used by certain groups to persuade the average person from the bigger truth.
There are a lot of deliberate Red herrings at play here and they are being used by certain groups to persuade the average person from the bigger truth.
Why do I just have to support any Government, particularly in this case? I'd be more likely to do so if they stuck to facts in the info they do give out rather than post ill-informed misinformation. What is the point in Abbot speaking of breaking the law if they aren't? It's not the first time he's made similar claims.
The average person's heart strings are pulled for the plight of the average asylum seeker. Are they all average? It' not just about Government.
crackertiger said:
Don't know if you're referring to me being average and my heart strings cracker but you didn't answer my question. The fact of the matter isTony has lied on multiple occasions. That is what I commented on rather than on the plight of the average asylum seeker.
So Tone gives the ABC a mighty backhander for being critical of the Navy, and then says the Navy entered Indo waters because they were "distracted by winds and tides". Would have thought that winds and tides would be something the Navy considered core competency Tone.
antman said:
Farcical, this guy is truly a buffoon, yet there will still be people lapping it up like good obedient sheeple.
