And you thought boats were the problem: 80,000 asylum seekers have arrived in Australia illegally by PLANE in just five years
- 80,000 asylum seekers have arrived to Australian by plane in the last five years
- Kristina Keneally says more than 90% of those were not genuine asylum seekers
- ALP will oppose a bill to stop asylum seekers by boat from ever living in Australia
- Over 3,000 people have come by boat to Australia’s borders since July 2013
Australia has had tens of thousands of asylum seekers arrive by plane in the last five years – and most weren’t genuine refugees.
The Labor Opposition claims Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton’s ‘mismanagement’ of the sensitive area has allowed 81,596 asylum seekers – 90 per cent who are ruled to not have claims for asylum – to arrive in Australia conventionally through Australia’s airports.
Labor will discuss the matter at a senate committee hearing on Monday, where border security and migration experts will consider the economic, personal and security effects of Australia’s migration system.
‘This, along with the number of people in Australia on bridging visas soaring past 200,000 for the first time, should be an alarm bell,’ Opposition home affairs spokeswoman Kristina Keneally told The Guardian.
Kristina Keneally said that while people are withing their rights to claim asylum, over 90 per cent of them are found to not be legitimate refugees
‘Home affairs minister Peter Dutton’s mismanagement and failures have seen Australia’s asylum application process and migration system being used by criminal syndicates and labour hire companies to traffic exploited workers into Australia.’
Labor Senator Kim Carr said the ALP will oppose a bill to stop asylum seekers who arrived by boat from ever living permanently in Australia.
Carr said the Coalition’s bill is unnecessary, arbitrary and discriminatory after it was analysed in a Senate Committee hearing on Thursday evening.
Labor Senator Kim Carr said the ALP will oppose a bill to stop asylum seekers who arrived by boat from ever living permanently in Australia
The outcome of the bill will determine where 3,127 people – who were taken to offshore processing from mid 2013 – will end up.
Australian Human Rights commissioner Ed Santow said the bill goes against human rights.
He said banning asylum seekers from making it to Australia is an unnecessary way to deter people coming by boat.
But home affairs officials say the bill adheres to international law.
Head of Operation Sovereign Borders major general Craig Furini argued that the bill would ‘make it harder for people-smugglers to get people to part with their money’.
Over 3,000 people have come by boat to Australia’s borders since July 2013 before being taken to the notorious Nauru detention centre or Papua New Guinea.
Meanwhile 298 still remain on Nauru and 371 are still in New Guinea.
Just over 1,000 settled in Australia, 619 went to the USA, seven were sent to Cambodia and another seven are now living in other countries.
Over 3,000 people have come by boat to Australia’s borders since July 2013 before being taken to the notorious Nauru detention centre or Papua New Guinea