Nigel Scullion (NT, Country Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Senator Evans. How many asylum seekers are currently held within the Australian funded Tanjung Pinang detention facility? Will all of these asylum seekers be guaranteed the same processing and resettling arrangements promised by the Rudd government to those who were on the Oceanic Viking? If not, why not?

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I am not quite sure of the thrust of the senator’s question but I will help him as much as I can. The senator would be aware that the 22 persons who disembarked the Oceanic Viking on the weekend were transported to the detention centre built by the former Howard government which provides detention facilities for use by the Indonesian government for persons they have detained there. I am not aware of how many others are in the detention centre because I understand there are others there from what I have seen in media reports. I have no direct knowledge of how many others are there. What we do know, though, is that we are seeking to disembark the remaining 56 of the 78 passengers and we are seeking to have them transported to the detention centre and processed in accordance with the arrangements with the Indonesian government and the UNHCR. They would be processed by the UNHCR in accordance with the normal processes. I understand the UNHCR has had regular access to that detention centre in the past and they have been assessing claims of those inside the detention centre in accordance with normal practices.

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

What about all the others in detention centres? How many are there?

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Abetz, you can keep saying how many. I have made it clear I do not know how many other people are in the detention centre. I am happy—

John Hogg (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The question came from Senator Scullion. Interjections are completely disorderly. You know that. If Senator Scullion has a supplementary question when we get supplementary questions, he is entitled to ask that question. I would invite Senator Scullion to do so but, Senator Evans, you have to answer the question that has been asked by Senator Scullion, ignore interjections and address your comments to the chair.

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr President. I indicate again that I am not aware of how many persons are in the detention centre. I highlight the fact that it is an Indonesian detention centre run by the Indonesian government. They are responsible for the persons in that detention centre, and that is true of the persons disembarked from the Oceanic Viking as well. (Time expired)

Nigel Scullion (NT, Country Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. Is the government aware that there are currently many UN mandated refugees awaiting resettlement in Indonesia and that these genuine refugees have been waiting for many months and in most cases many years for a resettlement place? Why is the government not offering these UN mandated refugees the same special deals it is giving to the queue jumpers on the Oceanic Viking?

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There are other persons who have been mandated, as I understand it, in Indonesia. I do not have the figures with me, but it is true to say that over the last few years Australia and other resettlement countries have resettled in the order of 1,300 persons who have been found to be refugees inside Indonesia, and we have resettled the largest number of that group. I think we have resettled in the order of 460 to 500, but I will try and find the figure for you. Many of those were, of course, resettled under the previous government. So, yes, we have made a commitment to resettlement out of Indonesia. We have been working with them to improve the time frames—

Nigel Scullion (NT, Country Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I rise on a point of order: relevance. I allowed a wide-ranging answer in the principal answer and I tolerated the minister neither taking the question on notice nor answering the question. I asked a very specific question in regard to the difference between the treatment of the huge demographic of people who have been declared refugees in Indonesia and the current deal that is being done with the small number of people on the Oceanic Viking. I wonder if you would remind the minister of the question and ask him to return to the matter.

Joe Ludwig (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Manager of Government Business in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, on the point of order: what we have now witnessed from the opposition is a reformulation of the original question. In relation to the question that was asked, the minister has been answering the question, has been directly relevant to the question and, in fact, has been going to the specifics of the matter. Rather than the statement of a new question, what we are now witnessing is both the coalition and the Liberals using the opportunity of taking a point of order to either restate the question or disagree with the answer that is being provided. I would ask the President to have a look at the tapes in that regard.

John Hogg (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I believe the question is being answered. I again draw to the attention of the Senate the fact that I cannot instruct the minister or tell the minister how to answer the question. I cannot get a minister to respond to a question that is being asked in the way that might be desired by the questioner. That is something I cannot do. I have said that the minister is addressing the question. The minister has 12 seconds remaining and I draw the minister’s attention to the question. He can add any further remarks he wishes to add in those 12 seconds.

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr President. I think I said about 500 people have been resettled by Australia. It is about 450, but there are some resettlements occurring this year, obviously. We are trying to work with Indonesia to deal quicker with the protracted case load of persons found to be refugees— (Time expired)

Nigel Scullion (NT, Country Liberal Party, Deputy Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a further supplementary question. Given that only asylum seekers on the Oceanic Viking are eligible for the government’s guaranteed assessment and resettlement times, how can the government continue to claim that no special deals have been made?

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I have made the situation very clear to the Senate as to what has occurred. When the government did the right thing and sought to rescue at sea the people who are now on the Oceanic Viking, who were effectively likely to drown as their boat became unseaworthy, we did so at the request of the Indonesian government. As part of our international legal obligations we then transported those people to Indonesia. It is true to say that those people were disappointed that they were not taken to Australia, and they sought to convince us to take them to Australia. We rejected that demand and advised them that they would be disembarked in Indonesia. As part of that process we advised them of how they would be processed when they disembarked. What we have been very open about is how that process, by way of the agreement with the Indonesian government, will occur. That is what will occur. There is no negotiation occurring. (Time expired)