Sarah Hanson-Young (SA, Australian Greens) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That, in the opinion of the Senate, the following is a matter of urgency:

"The Abbott government's continued secrecy over the interception and transfer of asylum seekers on the Indian Ocean, and the fate of the 153 asylum seekers who remain unaccounted for."

I look forward to listening to the debate on the topic over the next hour. I just want to make one clarification because, when this motion was put forward this morning at 8.30 am, the 153 asylum seekers that have been reported in relation to the second boat that we all understand we are debating today were unaccounted for, but, over the course of the day and because the federal government has been hauled in front of the High Court, we now know from confirmation by the federal government to the court that, in fact, 153 asylum seekers remain in custody on the high seas by the government—153 asylum seekers who are frightened, terrified, anxious individuals who wanted to come to Australia to ask for our help and protection, including dozens of children.

The High Court has now confirmed, after hearing the presentations from the federal government, that 153 people are being held in custody, effectively on a prison ship, by the federal government. The people on board this boat have been on the water for over three weeks. Children as young as a few months old and up to 12 years old have been on this boat out in the seas for three weeks and are now being held in custody by the Australian government.

We know that the federal government has not wanted to talk about this matter. We have had weeks of the federal minister, Scott Morrison, saying it was an on-water matter and he was not going to talk about it. We now know the cruel practices this government is up to. Only 48 hours ago the government participated in the illegal transfer of asylum seekers straight into the hands of the Sri Lankan navy, putting those people at very grave risk. Thankfully, because of the court action brought forward today, the fate of 153 people may indeed end up being better than that of the 41 who have already been handed over to the Sri Lankan government, but we do not know and the court will continue that debate over the next hour or two. We await the deliberations of the justice.

It is astounding that for weeks we have been given absolute silence by this government in the face of international condemnation and very serious concern by organisations such as the UNHCR—the lead refugee body in relation to protection matters—saying that this type of treatment of asylum seekers is unlawful and of major concern. The government have not wanted to be up-front with the Australian people about what is going on. Even today during question time the Minister representing the Prime Minister, who is third in line to be the Acting Prime Minister—if Mr Abbott and Mr Truss were out of town, Senator Abetz would be the Acting Prime Minister—stood here and refused to give this chamber of parliament answers to questions in relation to this matter. The government think they are above the law and above the parliament and continue to hold the Australian people in contempt over this issue. The fact is that there are very serious legal and human rights concerns for those people and this government are playing with their lives out on the high seas.

The practice of on-water screening, at-sea assessment, that this government used to send back the 41 asylum seekers—they were handed back to the people they said they were fleeing; that is, the Sri Lankan government—was conducted in under five minutes via teleconference. There is no way that can accord with Australia's international obligations. The government did not want us to know any of this. This is all secret. There is no transparency. If the government were up-front, if they believed that what they were doing was right, then they would not be hiding it, but they continue to hide it. We have heard from family members of those on board the boat of 153 that they are terrified about what is going to happen to their family members if they are indeed sent back to Sri Lanka. Mr Morrison has done nothing but hide from the Australian people and hide the facts from this parliament. He has done nothing but put the fear of God in those who have done nothing more than seek Australia's protection.

What is going on out on the high seas today is Tony Abbott's Tampa. We have a situation where 153 individuals, including children, asylum seekers, say they are in fear of being sent to Sri Lanka and the Australian government are refusing to help them. They are being held on a prison ship out on the high seas and all we get from Mr Abbott as Prime Minister or Mr Morrison as immigration minister is silence, denial and more cruelty. I asked a question during question time today in relation to comments made by the immigration minister during question time some two weeks ago where he told the other place that the government was not just going to stop the boats; they were just warming up—just warming up to trash Australia's international reputation and the lives of individuals who come our way asking for help.

This issue has become so toxic in this country that we are now turning our backs on refugees and handing them back to the people they are running from. That is a clear breach of everything that the refugee convention is meant to stand for. There is a reason that this convention was drafted in the first place. The world hung its head in shame at the end of World War II when countries realised that boatloads of Jews had been turned away at various nation's ports and sent straight back to danger. That is why the world got together and said: 'Never again will we treat people like this. Never again will we allow politics and the lack of decency to overrule basic human rights and respect for human life.' Yet what we have here today is a prison ship being run and overseen by Scott Morrison and Tony Abbott, and the people on board being threatened to be handed straight back to the hands of their persecutors. It is a breach of faith in relation to what Australia does and how it acts in relation to international law, and it undermines the basic standards of decency that Australia has become so proud throughout its history.

What are we so afraid of? Are we afraid to extend a hand of help to those who are asking us just to give them a chance? I am not suggesting for a moment that every person who arrives on a boat is a refugee. What I am asking for is that we stand up for the rule of law and for basic decency and fairness, that we stop playing hide and seek with the lives of children on board these Customs and Navy vessels and that we stop playing with the lives of vulnerable people who have committed no crime, making their way to Australia to ask in desperation for protection. Let us have a process that is transparent, that is open and that is in line with the rule of law. In this place, it is our job as members of parliament to stand up for the basic rule of law to ensure that there is a floor that we will not cross nor go below because people's rights do matter. The protection of refugees is important. (Time expired)