Fed: High Court upholds indefinite detention

AAP General News (Australia)
08-06-2004
Fed: High Court upholds indefinite detention

By Paul Osborne

CANBERRA, Aug 6 AAP - The High Court today upheld the government's tough immigration
detention laws in two cases of people refused political asylum in Australia.

The move was welcomed by the government but attacked by the Australian Democrats and
refugee advocates as having serious implications for human rights.

A spokesman for Immigration Minister Amanda Vanstone said the government was analysing
the decisions, which upheld that indefinite detention was lawful.

"It's confirmed that the language of the Act is unambiguous and detention is lawful
until deportation or a visa is granted," the spokesman said.

Democrats Leader Andrew Bartlett said today the government and Labor needed to fix
the loophole exposed by the court decisions.

"This is a sad day for the rule of law in Australia," Senator Bartlett said.

"Our High Court has unfortunately found that our legislation allows the government
to lock up people for the rest of their lives, people who have committed no crime, who
have merely come to Australia seeking protection.

"The potential for this massive increase in government power, without legal protection,
is chilling.

"This means the government has the power to make laws regarding the detention of any
other social group. It can be pointed at any Australian."

Senator Bartlett said the government should work with the other parties to find alternatives
to indefinite detention.

"Now that this basic principle has been established I would hope all Australians would
be extremely uncomfortable with that," he said.

Refugee advocate Jack Smith, from Project SafeCom, said the policy was unjust.

"Today's court decision is an indictment of the appalling human rights legislation
in place in our country, and it needs to be undone," Mr Smit said.

The High Court ruled by a 4-3 majority that unsuccessful asylum seekers who could not
be removed to another country, despite their wish to leave Australia, could continue to
be held in immigration detention indefinitely.

The cases involved Kuwait-born Ahmed Ali Al-Kateb, 28, a stateless Palestinian, and
Abbas Mohammad Hasan Al Khafaji, 31, an Iraqi national who fled with his family to Syria
in 1980, both of whom arrived in 2000.

Both were rejected for Australian protection visas after asking to be returned to the
Middle East.

The federal government had been unable to reach arrangements with other countries to take them.

But it argued that the Migration Act required they be held in immigration detention
in the meantime, regardless of whether repatriation arrangements could ever be reached.

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KEYWORD: ASYLUM LEAD

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