Australia
said Sunday its plan to send asylum seekers for processing in the Pacific
appeared untenable after a court ruled against a similar deal with Malaysia,
deepening the prime minister's woes.
Canberra's plan to send 800 boatpeople to Malaysia in
exchange for 4,000 of the Asian nation's registered refugees was part of a
proposed regional strategy to halt the flow of thousands of refugees arriving
on its shores each year.
Immigration Minister Chris Bowen said the government's
lawyers had reviewed Wednesday's High Court judgment against the so-called
"Malaysia Solution" and advised it threw the entire offshore
processing system into question.
Bowen said the solicitor-general, Stephen Gageler, had
expressed "no confidence" in plans to send asylum-seekers arriving by
boat to either Papua New Guinea or Nauru, as was being contemplated by the
government.
"The solicitor-general's advice confirms the significant
doubts over whether or not the government and immigration minister could make a
valid declaration for either Papua New Guinea or Nauru," Bowen said.
The judges said Australia could not ship asylum seekers
offshore unless the country in question was compelled to adequately protect
them. Malaysia is not a signatory to the UN convention on refugees.
Canberra's entire regional processing plan now looks fatally
flawed, with Gageler warning that offshore detention in PNG or Nauru was also
now not possible under current laws due to similar human rights concerns.
The conservative opposition said it would support amending
the Migration Act to overcome the problem, but the left-leaning Greens party --
who hold the deciding vote in the upper house -- signalled strong objection to
any changes.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon raised concerns about
Australia's refugee policy with Prime Minister Julia Gillard during a visit to
Canberra on Saturday, and the latest developments will deepen her troubles.
Gillard stumbled at the outset of the regional plan by
prematurely announcing that neighbouring East Timor could host Australia's
asylum-seekers and was forced to retreat after strong objections from Dili.
Australia's first female leader seized power in a party coup
last year but has been dogged by credibility issues after failing to win an
outright majority at the election and reneging on a promise not to introduce a
pollution tax.
Speculation is mounting over yet another coup as Labor
figures grow anxious about Gillard's parlous showing in the polls, likely only
to worsen with the scotching of offshore processing.
Gillard has reacted defiantly, insisting she is the best
person for the job, and Bowen said she retained the party's full support.
"Julia Gillard is very firmly the leader of the Labor
Party and will continue to be," he told ABC television.
He said the High Court ruling threw significant hurdles
before offshore processing and warned there was "no clear or easy
response" to the sensitive issue of boatpeople, hundreds of whom now hang
in legal limbo.
"The government (will) now carefully consider all its
options," he said.
Offshore processing was introduced as a deterrent to
people-smuggling by the former conservative government of John Howard under a
scheme known as the "Pacific Solution" which was condemned by human
rights groups.
PNG's Manus Island and Nauru, both being considered as
destinations by the current government, were central to the plan, which saw
asylum-seekers including children held behind razor wire, sometimes for several
years.
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Source : AFP
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