Lankan Tamils appeal rejection of asylum in Australia
August 24, 2010 11:33 am
CANBERRA, Australia — Two Sri Lankans appealed to Australia’s High Court on Tuesday to reconsider them for asylum and challenged as unfair the handling of their refugee claims offshore.
The two members of the Tamil ethnic group were detained in October 2009 at Christmas Island, a remote processing centre for would-be immigrants trying to reach Australia by boat.
An immigration department official assessed their cases before asylum was rejected, and a federal government contractor for Christmas Island cases upheld the decision. As a result, they face deportation back to Sri Lanka.
The asylum seekers, identified only as M61 and M69, are pleading a lack of procedural fairness because the immigration minister failed to personally consider their cases, said David Manne of the Refugee and Immigration Legal Centre.
Those denied refugee status while on the mainland of Australia can ultimately appeal their case to the immigration minister, who has the final say. Those who arrive illegally by boat are denied the right of full appeal.
“The government’s position is that under its offshore processing regime, unlike on the mainland, a court can’t look at whether the decisions on these life-or-death matters were made fairly or lawfully,” he told Australian Broadcasting Corp. radio. “But our clients are also saying that in this context that a fair and lawful process should be applied in the same way that it is for people who arrive on the mainland.”
The two Tamils fear persecution from the Sri Lankan army, agents of the government and paramilitary groups because of their alleged support for the Liberation Tamil Tigers of Eelam, Manne said. Sri Lanka’s army defeated the Tamil Tiger rebels last year after a quarter-century civil war that killed 80,000 to 100,000 people.
In Sydney, about 40 people gathered outside court offices to support the Tamils’ case, as well as other facing deportation to Iraq.
“If these people are deported, and I understand there are about 25 who are in imminent danger of deportation, they will be sent back to countries where their lives really will be in danger, and the whole point of being a refugee is that you seek asylum because of that threat to your life and your liberty,” said parliament member Sylvia Hale.
More than 4,000 asylum seekers have entered Australian waters this year, seeking refuge from violence and instability at home. Most come from Afghanistan, Iraq and Sri Lanka.
The Associated Press (CP)
The two members of the Tamil ethnic group were detained in October 2009 at Christmas Island, a remote processing centre for would-be immigrants trying to reach Australia by boat.
An immigration department official assessed their cases before asylum was rejected, and a federal government contractor for Christmas Island cases upheld the decision. As a result, they face deportation back to Sri Lanka.
The asylum seekers, identified only as M61 and M69, are pleading a lack of procedural fairness because the immigration minister failed to personally consider their cases, said David Manne of the Refugee and Immigration Legal Centre.
Those denied refugee status while on the mainland of Australia can ultimately appeal their case to the immigration minister, who has the final say. Those who arrive illegally by boat are denied the right of full appeal.
“The government’s position is that under its offshore processing regime, unlike on the mainland, a court can’t look at whether the decisions on these life-or-death matters were made fairly or lawfully,” he told Australian Broadcasting Corp. radio. “But our clients are also saying that in this context that a fair and lawful process should be applied in the same way that it is for people who arrive on the mainland.”
The two Tamils fear persecution from the Sri Lankan army, agents of the government and paramilitary groups because of their alleged support for the Liberation Tamil Tigers of Eelam, Manne said. Sri Lanka’s army defeated the Tamil Tiger rebels last year after a quarter-century civil war that killed 80,000 to 100,000 people.
In Sydney, about 40 people gathered outside court offices to support the Tamils’ case, as well as other facing deportation to Iraq.
“If these people are deported, and I understand there are about 25 who are in imminent danger of deportation, they will be sent back to countries where their lives really will be in danger, and the whole point of being a refugee is that you seek asylum because of that threat to your life and your liberty,” said parliament member Sylvia Hale.
More than 4,000 asylum seekers have entered Australian waters this year, seeking refuge from violence and instability at home. Most come from Afghanistan, Iraq and Sri Lanka.
The Associated Press (CP)