Fatima Payman (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister representing the Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs, Senator Watt. Over the weekend I visited a group of Sri Lankan Tamil refugees protesting in the electorate of Tangney, grieving the death by suicide of 23-year-old Mano Yogalingam and calling for an end to mandatory offshore detention. The recent reports by the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre reveal the suffering of refugees held in offshore detention and subjected to uncertainty, medical neglect and trauma. On page 141 of the 2023 Australian Labor Party platform, there is a mandate to reintroduce the 90-day rule in the Migration Act. Independent MP Kylea Tink has introduced a refreshed private member's bill calling for a 90-day time limit on detention for people seeking asylum. Minister, will the government support Ms Tink's bill?

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Senator Payman. Can I first say what an outstanding member of parliament Sam Lim, the member for Tangney, is. I am aware that there has been a pretty longstanding protest outside his office. The protest and the rally that Senator Payman was referring to has been occurring outside Mr Lim's office for quite some time, and I think it has been obstructing members of the public from obtaining services from that office, but I'm sure that that won't stop Mr Lim from doing the excellent job that he has been doing as a representative member in the electorate of Tangney.

I'm also aware that many of the community members who have been at that protest are members of the Tamil community, and, of course, we respect their right to protest. I know that in at least some cases their protest activity has been motivated by the recent tragic suicide of a Tamil asylum seeker. Of course, it goes without saying that our thoughts are with the family and friends of that man who did take his life on 28 August.

We have provided a visa pathway for thousands of people who were neglected by the former government. We understand that, when we came to office, there were several thousand people who had gone through what was known as the fast-tracking process. Their asylum claims had not been properly dealt with and in many cases were rejected, but then they weren't given any security as to their future situation. They were told they couldn't stay in Australia, but they also weren't sent back to their originating countries, so they have been in limbo for more than a decade. This is one of the many challenges that we inherited from the former government in the immigration portfolio. Of course, it's now a matter of record that, when Mr Dutton oversaw that portfolio as home affairs minister, it was a broken system. That has been the finding of several reviews. The issues that Senator Payman is referring to are some that we're dealing with right now, and I know Minister Burke is giving it his full attention.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Payman, first supplementary?

Fatima Payman (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Minister, the remaining 8,550 people failed by the fast-track process who feel left behind and forgotten are still working, paying taxes, attending school and rebuilding their lives. Will the minister grant permanent residency to all people seeking asylum and failed by the fast track via a mechanism similar to the temporary protection conversion to resolution-of-status visas?

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As I say, the former government did leave thousands of people in limbo for years with no resolution in sight. The number was given by Senator Payman, and, of course, it's a very large number. But, since taking office a couple of years ago, our government has taken a different approach to this matter. We've provided resolution-of-status visas for anyone with a temporary protection or safe haven enterprise visa before 14 February 2023 and who has been found to be owed protection. This has provided a visa pathway for thousands of people neglected by the former government. Of the 6,352 people who were not found to be genuine refugees but are still lawfully in the community, only 167 are without work rights and access to Medicare. As I say, the Minister for Home Affairs, Minister Burke, is working through the failed fast-track cohort on a case-by-case basis. It's a large job to be done as part of our fixing our broken migration system, but it's one that Minister Burke is committed to.

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Payman, second supplementary?

Fatima Payman (WA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We can't keep blaming the opposition for the decade. I speak from the heart on this matter, as my late father was in detention upon arriving in Australia and described the horrors back in 1999. Considering the documented evidence of suffering and human rights violation in offshore detention centres, will the minister finally commit to an independent investigation into these facilities and their operations?

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Payman, I think you yourself acknowledged that there were several thousand people who had gone through the failed fast-track process, and that is a situation that we are dealing with. I think it's entirely appropriate to point out the work that was required to deal with this issue when we came to office and that we inherited from the former government. That's what we're doing. I've already pointed out—

Sue Lines (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order!

Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Shoebridge, if you want to ask a question, feel free to get up on your feet or get a question up, but this is Senator Payman's question, and maybe she's entitled to an answer to the question. Our government has taken a different approach to that of the former coalition government. As I say, we've provided resolution-of-status visas for anyone with a temporary protection visa or safe haven enterprise visa before 14 February 2023 who has been found to be owed protection. That is a very different approach to what was taken by the former government. It does remain an issue for many people in our community, and it's an issue that Minister Burke is working through.