Federal police raided the rooms of asylum seekers in the Christmas Island detention centre in the early morning on July 22. Refugee advocates said some refugees "have been beaten" and "dragged out of the compounds".
Jay Fletcher
The federal government on June 29 it had met its 鈥渃ommitment鈥 to move child refugees out of detention and into community-based accommodation.
In October last year, 738 children were held in detention. Widespread public fears for the mental and physical damage caused by long-term detention forced the government to act.
The immigration department said it would 鈥渂egin moving significant numbers of children and vulnerable family groups out of immigration detention鈥 into community detention.
Plans to give refugees deported from Australia a 鈥渟pecial barcode鈥 when they arrive in Malaysia were revealed by the June 29 Daily Telegraph. A final refugee swap deal between Australia and Malaysia is likely to be announced this month.
More than 340 refugees have arrived since Prime Minister Julia Gillard announced the plan on May 7 to 鈥渟wap鈥 800 asylum seekers in Australia for 4000 鈥減rocessed refugees鈥 in Malaysia. The refugees affected by the deal are being held in various stages of isolation on Christmas Island.
The lawyer who won access for refugees to Australia鈥檚 courts last year has gone to the High Court again to prevent a family being split up by the federal government鈥檚 鈥淢alaysia swap鈥.
The president of the Pacific island nation of Nauru told Australian opposition leader Tony Abbott that it would move to sign the United Nations Convention on the Status of Refugees though it has not taken formal steps to do so.
Young Indonesians aged 15 and 16, alleged to be crewmembers on boats giving passage for refugees to Australia, are being held in Australian adult prisons. They are charged under harsh people smuggling laws that carry minimum mandatory sentences of five years.
At least four young men under 18 are known to be held in maximum security prisons in Western Australia and Queensland. This was revealed after human rights lawyers told media of three young men kidnapped from their village on Roti Island to work for a 鈥減eople smuggling鈥 racket.
New and contradictory details of the Australia-Malaysia refugee exchange have been brought to light, as the federal Labor government grows closer to sealing the fate of up to 800 asylum seekers.
The Australian government has received heavy criticism in recent weeks for its inhumane treatment of refugees, in particular its 鈥渟wap鈥 deal with Malaysia and its mandatory detention policy.
Federal Greens MP Adam Bandt and independent MP Andrew Wilkie moved a parliamentary motion on May 30 condemning the plan to send 800 asylum seekers to Malaysia.
The Western Australia Liberal government recently said its lucrative prisoner transport contract with private security firm G4S would end in July. Another private company, the British-based conglomerate Serco, will take over. The move came after a long campaign against G4S and the WA department of corrective services over the death of Aboriginal man Mr Ward, who died of heat stroke in a G4S van during a 360 kilometre trip in January 2008. The state coroner said G4S was directly responsible for Mr Ward鈥檚 awful death.
The activity of British-based transnational conglomerate Serco in Australia has remained relatively unknown since it began taking government contracts in 1990. That is until the refugees locked up in its detention centres 鈥 under a $756 million government contract 鈥 started speaking out.
Horrific suicides, hunger strikes, self-harm, riotous protests, burning buildings and under-trained staff have finally put Serco in the headlines.
East West 101
Created & produced by Steve Knapman & Kris Wyld
Directed by Peter Andrikidis
Starring Don Hany, Susie Porter & Matt Nable
Wednesdays, 8.30pm, SBSONE
www.sbs.com.au/shows/eastwest101
The makers of critically acclaimed Australian crime series East West 101 say the third season, now airing Wednesday nights on SBS, is about the devastation wars in the Middle East have on Muslim and non-Muslim people in Australia.
It is a bold aim untouched by any other Australian network.
Who were the actual criminals that sparked the refugees鈥 revolt in Villawood detention centre in late April? There is no crime in climbing on top of a building and holding a banner saying 鈥淲e need help鈥, nor asking for a meeting with immigration officials after 15 months in detention, as two Kurdish Iranian refugees did on April 20, sparking protests that lasted for more than a week.
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