A Report on Visits to Immigration Detention Facilities by the Human Rights Commissioner
A report on visits to immigration detention facilities by Human Rights Commissioner Dr Sev Ozdowski was tabled in Federal Parliament today.
The report outlines the results of visits to Australia's mainland detention facilities during 2001 and a visit to Christmas Island and Cocos (Keeling) Islands in January 2002. It focuses on conditions in detention facilities and forms part of the Commission's regular monitoring of detention centres.
Issues relating to children in immigration detention are being dealt with in a comprehensive National Inquiry expected to finish early next year. The report of the National Inquiry will explore in more detail Australia's obligations to children in detention.
In the report on his visits, Dr Ozdowski calls for an urgent and serious review of long term detention. He calls for changes to the Migration Act to set specific time limits on detention and for interim measures to be put in place to alleviate prolonged detention of those awaiting safe return to their countries of origin or a third country.
He also calls for all detainees to be informed promptly and effectively of their legal status and rights and for independent monitoring of standards of detention. Children should be detained for the shortest period of time, for initial security, health and identity purposes and then released with their family into the community or into alternative accommodation arrangements.
Commenting on the release of his report, Dr Ozdowski said: "I do not challenge Australia's right to border protection, but I believe the moral and human rights cost of the current system is too high. The mental health of asylum seekers is an issue of critical importance. In all the facilities I visited a large number of detainees were experiencing major mental stress and trauma, some requiring professional help."
"Previous experience shows that significant numbers of detainees are recognised as refugees and released into the Australian community. These people already traumatised by oppression in their own countries and further traumatised by risky travel to Australia are suffering again from the effects of longterm detention. It is better for them and the wider Australian community if we consider their mental fragility early in the detention process."
The report raised specific concerns about:
- The length of time in detention
- The mental state of detainees held in isolated camps for prolonged periods of time
- The lack of judicial review that would allow detainees to challenge the lawfulness and the length of their detention
- Restricted access to legal assistance and lack of information about the application process
- Limited access to general information and contact with the outside world, including relatives
- Limited education and recreation facilities
- Inadequacy of accommodation for long-term detention - some facilities were inappropriate for anything but the briefest initial periods of detention
- Complaints about lack of adequate general health and dental care
- Generally inadequate mental health services
- The use of isolation detention for behaviour management
The full report is available at: http://www.humanrights.gov.au/human_rights/idc/index.html
Media contacts: Janine MacDonald 02 9284 9880 or 0408 469 347
Dr Ozdowski will be available for interview tomorrow (23 October)
Note: the key observations of the report were based on visits to Australia's immigration detention facilities during 2001 and January 2002 and therefore reflects conditions at the time. However, many of the broad concerns remain.
Last updated 22 October 2002.
