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Immigration detention centres under scrutiny by UN anti-torture body
Mistreatment in Australia’s immigration detention centres is under international scrutiny from UN anti-torture body.
Jess Feyder
Human rights experts have told the United Nations that Australia must end the practice of locking people in immigration detention for years on end in dire conditions, ahead of its investigation of the Australian government’s compliance with the Convention Against Torture treaty.
The UN Committee Against Torture will investigate Australia’s human rights track record in November.
The review is set to take place in light of evidence revealing that the average length of time for people being detained in immigration detention has reached a record high of over two years (736 days); this is vastly out of step with countries like Canada and the United States, where the average is 30 and 48 days, respectively.
In Australia, over 100 people have been locked up for longer than five years, and at least two people have died in Australian immigration detention centres this year alone.
Arbitrary and indefinite detention is a breach of the prohibition on torture and is regarded as cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment under the convention.
In recent years, independent reports have made damning findings about excessive use of force by detention centre staff against people who are detained, and the use of solitary confinement as punishment.
The Human Rights Law Centre (HRLC), the Refugee Council of Australia and UNSW Sydney’s Andrew & Renata Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law have told the committee that Australia must change the laws that currently allow the government to detain people for unlimited time and potentially their whole lives.
Sanmati Verma, managing lawyer at the HRLC, noted that the number of people detained in Australia increased rather than decreased during the pandemic.
“People are spending longer in immigration detention than ever — sometimes 10 years, because Australia has abdicated all responsibility,” she explained.
“These are the direct human consequences of mandatory immigration detention — the government can lock people up forever without consequences.
“The Albanese government must confront this sorry legacy.”
Madeline Gleeson, senior research fellow at the Kaldor Centre, posited: “Global events are reminding us more than ever of the importance of international norms, respect for basic human rights, and protection for people fleeing persecution, serious harm and conflict.
“Within Australia, there is a lot to be done to bring our treatment of asylum seekers and refugees into line with international standards.
“The Committee Against Torture’s review of Australia provides a timely and welcome opportunity for our country to strengthen its relationship with the international human rights system,” she stated, “and ensure that no person in Australia is subjected to torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment”.
This week, the UN Subcommittee on the Prevention of Torture will also visit Australia to inspect places of detention — they will see firsthand the dire conditions and harsh treatment in immigration detention centres, stated the HRLC.
