Asylum-seeking family stuck on Christmas Island will NOT be deported back to Sri Lanka

Asylum-seeking family stuck on Christmas Island will NOT be deported back to Sri Lanka after a court rules their two-year-old daughter was not given fair treatment

By Alisha Rouse For Daily Mail Australia

Published: 01:31 BST, 17 April 2020 | Updated: 01:54 BST, 17 April 2020

The Tamil asylum seeker family detained on Christmas Island have won a legal battle in the Federal Court, and will not face deportation to Sri Lanka.

In a landmark decision, the court ruled their two-year-old daughter had not been treated fairly – with the family’s future depending on the little girl’s visa status.

A series of court orders have barred the Australian government from deporting the parents Priya and Nadesalingam, who came to the country by boat in 2012 and 2013 respectively.

Their two daughters, Kopika, 4, and Tharunicaa, 2, were born in Australia.  

The family were moved to Christmas Island in August, with the couple saying they feared persecution in Sri Lanka, having fled during the civil war.

Priya and Nades Murugappan and their Australian-born daughters Kopika and Tharunicaa are fighting deportation

On Thursday, Federal Court Justice Mark Moshinsky found in favour of the family, with the matter resting on whether Tharunicaa has the right to apply for a protection visa. 

He found that the immigration minister, David Coleman, had taken a step to consider using his ministerial powers to allow Tharunicaa to apply for a visa. 

This does not mean the government is required to issue the toddler with a visa, but marks an important point in their legal battle. 

A court injunction last year prevented their deportation to Sri Lanka until legal proceedings were finalised. 

The family want to return to the Queensland town of Biloela, and have been waiting on Justice Moshinsky’s decision since a two-day hearing in February. 

They have been waiting for Federal Court Justice Mark Moshinsky to hand down his decision since a two-day hearing in February (pictured, a detention centre on Christmas Island)

Toddler Tharunicaa is considered an ‘unauthorised maritime arrival’ by authorities, despite being born in Australia.

Normally, holding this status means a person does not have the right to apply for a visa.

The rest of her family has not been found to be legally due Australia’s protection, and have exhausted any appeals process – meaning the family’s fate rests with their two-year-old daughter. 

Having been moved to Christmas Island last year, the mother said her family had been separated from their home.   

‘My children have been separated from their world,’ she said.

:

Read more at DailyMail.co.uk