As poverty, wars and systematic human rights abuses around the world continue to create thousands of new refugees every day, over the last few weeks the Coalition federal government has signalled moves to significantly restrict Australia's refugee intake.
On March 21, Minister for Immigration Philip Ruddock announced that he was considering legislation to prevent asylum seekers from appealing to the Federal Court to win their fight to remain in Australia. Then, on April 16, Ruddock announced the possible abolition of both the Refugee Review Tribunal (RRT) and the Immigration Review Tribunal (IRT).
These tribunals were set up to provide a "fair, just, economical, informal and quick review" of departmental decisions on deportation, refugee status and visas. At present, applicants who believe that this review process has still not delivered a just decision can then appeal to the Federal Court (on legal questions) and the High Court (on human rights questions).
Without recourse to the tribunals and the courts, the fate of people hoping to find refuge in Australia is left totally at the mercy of politically-driven departmental agendas and priorities. Ruddock argues that "The agenda on these matters is not one that ought to be run by the judiciary". But the numerous instances of the tribunals and/or the courts overturning departmental decisions indicate that the safeguards provided by a three-tier process are very necessary.
In a pretence at humanitarian concern, the Coalition is justifying its moves on the grounds that the current decision-making process is too time-consuming, and results in unnecessarily long periods of detention for illegal refugees.
Waiting for up to three years in detention while your application for refuge is processed is inhumane. But the problem is not simply, or even primarily, the length of time involved. It is the fact that the applicants are detained, usually against their will, in the first place.
Australia is the only country in the advanced capitalist world to compulsorily detain illegal refugees — legislation that was introduced by the federal Labor government, with Coalition support, in May 1992. In all other western countries, illegal refugees are released into the care of the community while their case is being processed and are only required to report regularly to the authorities.
Of course, the Coalition's "solution" is not intended to assist the refugees, or their chances of obtaining residency. Rather, it is a straightforward cost-cutting measure. According to the 1995-96 budget, the RRT will cost the federal government $15.8 million and the IRT will cost $8 million. The fact that another vehicle to safeguard democratic rights is dismantled in the cost-cutting process is only par for the course.
These moves by the Coalition come as no surprise. They are simply an extension of the policies of the previous Labor government which legislated twice in the past few years to restrict prospective migrants' and refugees' access to the judicial process. As recently as August 1995, for example, legislation was passed in the Senate which denied legal representation to people who appealed to the IRT.
The official number of refugees in the world now stands at a record 19 million, a jump of 2 million since 1991 and more than double the number a decade ago. The actual figure is believed to be double this. Of these, 99% are technically "illegal".
This human rights disaster is not going to go away under imperialism. In the long run, it will be successful struggles by masses of people for democratic governments and policies in their own countries which will reduce the need for people to seek refuge elsewhere.
In the meantime, however, we must demand that this federal government meet its obligations as a wealthy and relatively democratic country to provide refuge and equal citizenship rights for all people who need it, regardless of their country of origin.