There is a real opportunity for change since the High Court handed down its decision in relation to the Malaysian agreement, writes Caz Coleman, a member of the Council for Immigration Services and Status Resolution.
Asylum seekers
Your Say: Daily Mail readers' feedback: Seeking a solution on asylum seekers
Crikey reads have their say.
Your Say: Daily Mail readers' feedback: Seeking solutions to the Malaysia solution
Crikey readers have their say.
Onshore or offshore? That is the question
Crikey media wrap: Thanks to the High Court, Julia Gillard essentially has only two asylum seeker policy options: reinstate a Pacific Solution 2.0 with Tony Abbott’s help or abandon offshore processing altogether.
High Court skewers Howard, but Labor takes the blame
What the High Court has invalidated is fundamentally the Coalition’s policy: the obsession with offshore processing was entirely a creation of the Howard government … to Labor’s eternal shame, has allowed itself to be dragged along with it.
Asylum seekers … just two long-term options available
Predictably all the media pundits are viewing the High Court decision through the prism of “politics of sport” and not taking pause to consider how the matter of continuing boat arrivals should be handled, writes Jenny Norvick, a former DIAC staffer and voluntary refugee settlement worker.
Political snippets: Chatting about leadership
I’m quite sure that the journalists who wrote the leadership stories that dominate this morning’s papers actually did speak to Labor Party members.
High court battle fuels leadership speculation
Crikey media wrap: When the High Court struck down the government’s hyped Malaysia refugee plan this week, its decision started a media flurry about the government’s ability to rule — and Julia Gillard’s to lead.
podcast Canberra Calling: The Crikey solution to the non-solution podcast
Crikey’s Canberra correspondent Bernard Keane and Crikey deputy editor Jason Whittaker discuss the High Court ruling against the Malaysian solution and what this means for the Gillard government.
Gillard wanted to be judged on asylum seekers
Julia Gillard identified asylum seekers as a key issue for her. Now she deserves to be judged over the debacle.
Political snippets: Kevin can be forgiven a chuckle
As yesterday’s High Court judgment made clear the Department of Foreign Affairs got it right and Immigration (and presumably Attorney Generals) got it wrong.
Malaysia Solution lost at sea
Crikey media wrap: The federal government’s refugee swap deal with Malaysia is in tatters after the High Court yesterday ruled the scheme unlawful.
Menadue: urgent need for a new approach to asylum seekers
We must safeguard Australia’s national interest by ensuring that the claims of refugees and asylum seekers to Australia’s protection are considered rigorously but with compassion, writes The Centre for Policy Development’s John Menadue.
Power Shots: Truckies split on convoy protest … The Don takes willow to cricket heavies …
Bruce McIver is the driving force behind Queensland’s new Liberal National Party and the man who brought about the 2008 merger of the state’s two right-of-center parties. Also, truckies are split on convoy protest, and more…
Asylum seekers … reception or detention? That is the question
Little known to Australians is that more than 8000 asylum seekers already live in the community and the sky hasn’t fallen in, writes Caz Coleman, a member of the Council for Immigration Services and Status Resolution.
Live animal exports: just say no
Some would argue that our concern about the live export trade is unduly selective.
Negotiating Malaysia agreement is one thing, seeing it through is another
The greatest challenge for Australia now lies in the reality that even if the boat arrivals cease, how else will we support our neighbouring countries to deal with a challenge of receiving asylum seekers that is far beyond our own scope, writes Caz Coleman, of the Council for Immigration Services and Status Resolution.
Cost of detention? $113,000 per asylum seeker
Over the last decade we’ve spent over $100,000 detaining each and every boat arrival.
Assaults an inevitable consequence of a failing detention system
Assault charges arising from an incident at Darwin’s Northern Immigration Detention Centre again have highlighted the detrimental consequences of significant delays in the processing of security clearances for refugees, writes freelancer Nigel O’Connor.
Crikey Says: The border protection bottom line
Keane has crunched the numbers across budget and ANAO documents and calculated that our politicians’ fixation with asylum seekers arriving by boat has cost taxpayers nearly $2.4 billion since 2000.
Of boats and votes
Nielsen struck a blow for transparency yesterday by releasing comprehensive data for their polling on asylum seekers, featuring detail on the questions and how they were asked, breakdowns by state, location, gender, age and voting intention, writes William Bowe.
PNG plan takes heat off Malaysia deal
Crikey media wrap: The Malaysian Solution remains gridlocked in the High Court, but Gillard has had a win in the asylum seeker debate with Papua New Guinea agreeing for a detention centre to be re-opened on Manus Island.
Malaysia deal in disarray
The government’s much-hyped Malaysian Solution is in turmoil after the High Court ordered for a full hearing to be heard on the policy in a fortnight after a legal challenge by asylum seekers.
Essential: voters prefer Coalition if there’s another GFC
Voters prefer the Coalition if there’s another GFC, and they’re convinced there’s a surge of asylum seekers coming to Australia.
Crikey Clarifier: Who’s the guardian of unaccompanied minors sent from Oz?
The High Court will today hear a challenge, led by QC David Manne, on the human rights implications of sending asylum seekers who have arrived by boat in Australia to Malaysia as part of the federal government’s hyped Malaysian Solution.
