The asylum seekers Australia sends to Nauru for processing will have
access to training courses and pastoral care provided by the Salvation
Army, and any children will be sent to school.
The first phase of federal Labor's policy to transfer people
from Christmas Island off Western Australia to centres on Nauru and
Papua New Guinea's Manus Island will be under way by the end of the
week.
Immigration minister Chris Bowen on Monday signed documents
designating Nauru as a regional processing country under the Migration
Act, ahead of introducing special legislation in parliament.
The documents sit alongside an updated memorandum of understanding agreed with PNG on the weekend to reopen Manus Island.
If a special legislative instrument gets past the Senate on
Wednesday as expected, the first asylum seekers will be on their way to
Nauru by Friday.
"The governments of Australia and Nauru have been working
towards a transfer to occur in the latter part of this week," Mr Bowen
told reporters in Canberra.
The federal opposition immediately proposed amendments in the
lower house, calling on Labor to adopt its policy of immediately
reintroducing temporary protection visas for refugees and turning back
asylum seeker boats where it's safe to do so.
The Greens again called on the government to limit processing periods on the islands to a year.
As of 6pm (AEST) on Monday, the amendments were defeated and
the motion supporting the legislative instrument has proceeded to the
Senate.
Meanwhile, details of the arrangements with Nauru show
children and unaccompanied minors will either go to local schools or
receive schooling from education contractors.
Training courses will be offered to adults and Nauruans by
the Salvation Army, which will also have responsibility for asylum
seeker support services, including counselling, pastoral care and
recreation programs.
Mr Bowen said the Christian church group would not be there
to "proselytise" and there would be provisions for worship for asylum
seekers, many of whom are Muslim.
"I have full confidence in the Salvation Army's ability to
provide services without fear or favour to religious background," the
minister said.
While the Salvos remain concerned about the potential impact
of offshore processing on the wellbeing and mental health of asylum
seekers, they said the primary focus was to provide the best care.
The church already offers housing and chaplaincy support services to asylum seekers at detention centres in Australia.
About 2000 potential refugees have arrived in Australia by
boat since Labor announced in mid-August plans to reopen the processing
centres.
The government wants to deter asylum seekers from making
dangerous sea journeys to Australia, following a serious of boat
sinkings and drownings.
It hopes to fly 500 asylum seekers to the Pacific Island nation of Nauru by the end of September.
Under the act, immigration department officials are obliged
to move offshore anyone who arrives by boat unless instructed otherwise
by the minister or his delegate on "public interest grounds".
But Opposition immigration spokesman Scott Morrison said from
today "any person who turns up on a boat must go to Nauru - no
exceptions".
Mr Bowen did not say whether women and children could be included in the first transfers.
Meanwhile, the government is taking a "step-by-step" approach
to reopening Manus Island and 30 defence personnel and two immigration
officials will head there in coming days.
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