Immigration slams 'poor' Manus centre

THE Immigration Department has made a scathing assessment of its own temporary processing facility on Papua New Guinea's Manus Island, calling for it to be urgently replaced with a permanent site, as a second asylum-seeker vessel was detected off the mainland.

In a submission to a parliamentary inquiry established by Special Minister of State Gary Gray to determine what infrastructure upgrades are necessary on the reopened Pacific Solution site, the current facilities on Manus Island were heavily criticised.

"The temporary centre is cramped and recreation facilities are limited and in a poor state," the departmental submission reads.

"There is no reliable power supply, limited potable water to the facility and the buildings and tents have a very short life expectancy."

It was also slammed for being located in a low-lying swampy area that encourages mosquito breeding.

Immigration officials have raised concerns that despite pedestal fans being provided in tents, temperatures are soaring to 38C, triggering behavioural problems among the detainees.

They fear the conditions in the centre will "increase risk of self-harm (and) mental health problems" and have called on Labor to replace the temporary site with "urgency".

The highly critical description of the conditions on Manus came as a second asylum-seeker boat was detected about 28 nautical miles off the West Australian coastline, a week after 66 Sri Lankans sailed into Geraldton harbour on a donated fishing vessel.

Customs and Border Protection yesterday confirmed that a WA police boat helped to intercept the asylum-seeker vessel, which was carrying 72 passengers.

Several of the passengers were transferred to Broome for medical treatment, while the remainder were sent to Christmas Island for health and security checks.

The boat was detected by a Customs and Border Protection surveillance plane on Sunday, and boarded by authorities from HMAS Ararat about 28.5NM -- just over 50km -- northwest of Broome.

Acting opposition immigration spokesman Michael Keenan attacked Labor for delaying legislation to excise the mainland from the migration zone, saying this was the second boat in less than two weeks to make it close to the mainland.

"This is yet another embarrassment for the government in a week that has already seen an asylum boat make it all the way to Geraldton undetected and another vessel arrive in Flying Fish Cove on Christmas Island undetected," he said.

The majority of the 66 asylum-seekers aboard the Deutsche Bank fishing boat which sailed into Geraldton harbour last Tuesday continue to be interviewed at the Christmas Island detention centre.

Source  http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/immigration/immigration-slams-poor-manus-centre/story-fn9hm1gu-1226621094676

Australian employers, visa holders and applicants warned about migration changes

Immigration officials are keen that everyone from employers, visa holders and those considering moving to Australia should be aware of skilled migration options and the new laws and penalties that have been introduced recently.

Be visa aware, that is the message that is being sent out as outreach officers visit a series of locations to explain the significant changes to the employer sponsored skilled visa programme which were introduced in July of last year. The main changes are centred around SkillSelect, an online service that connects Australian employers with potential skilled migrants and streamlines the pathway to permanent residence for people already working in Australia on temporary skilled 457 visas.

Officials from the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) believe it is important to educate businesses about their responsibility for checking to ensure that workers they employ are allowed to work in Australia. It has information on new laws recently passed by Parliament which introduce civil penalties and infringement notices for employers or suppliers of illegal workers.

Officials are vociferous in tracking down offenders and immigration compliance officers have, in the last few says, located 14 illegal workers and visa over stayers in a series of compliance operations in the New South Wales Illawarra and Southern Highlands regions. A total of nine men and five women were discovered to be unlawful. They indicate the range of different countries where immigrants come from with the group comprising of five Malaysians, six from China, and one each from Italy, Thailand and Vietnam. Eight of them were detained and transferred to Villawood Immigration Detention Centre, where they will be removed from Australia at the earliest opportunity and six were granted bridging visas with strict conditions.

A number of the operations were conducted in response to community information provided to the department’s telephone dob-in line. While information was also received through other sources investigations into the circumstances of the employment of the illegal workers are still continuing.

    Quote from AustraliaForum.com : “14-02-2013 – Compliance officers from the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) today located 11 illegal workers at a residential property in the northern Perth suburb of Girrawheen.”

Meanwhile, in a separate operation at private premises in the Sydney suburb of Canley Vale immigration compliance officers located five unlawful non-citizens. Two couples, from Malaysia and China, were detained and transferred to Villawood Immigration Detention Centre pending their removal from Australia while a Malaysian woman was granted a temporary bridging visa. ‘Employers should be aware it is a criminal offence to knowingly or recklessly allow a person to work illegally or to refer an illegal worker for work,’ a DIAC spokesman said.

It wants employers to be aware that the Visa Entitlement Verification Online (VEVO) service is available for them to check the relevant identification details of prospective employees, with their consent, to quickly confirm if they are eligible to work in Australia. Employers convicted under Commonwealth legislation of employing illegal workers face fines of up to $20,400 and two years’ imprisonment while companies face fines of up to $102,000 per illegal worker.

According to DIAC figures in 2011/2012 almost 2000 people were caught working illegally in Australia. ‘This activity continued across the country this financial year with a further 1,029 illegal workers found to December 31,’ the spokesman explained.

Source  http://www.australiaforum.com/information/immigration/australian-employers-visa-holders-and-applicants-warned-about-migration-changes.html

Australia's immigration processes "procedurally flawed"

Refugee activists say they are horrified by the case of a Chinese man, who has sought protection in Australia after allegedly escaping torture in his homeland.

The Falun Gong practitioner's case was backed by the United Nations, but the Australian Government has not accepted the findings.

Correspondent: Karen Barlow

Speakers: Mr Chen, Falungong practitioner and asylum-seeker; Veronica Spasaro, refugee advocate, Balmain for Refugees

BARLOW: (sfx Chinese) The scars are fading, but the man who wishes to be known as Mr Chen can't forget.

CHEN: I was beaten while they handcuffed me by the bars.

BARLOW: Mr Chen practices Falun Gong.. the spiritual discipline outlawed in China since 1999. Its strong following, independence from the state and incitement of so-called disturbances were seen as a threat to the communist party.

CHEN: When I was detained by police I was beaten by the police with an electric stakes and fists and I was also burnt by the cigarettes.

BARLOW: In one case, Mr Chen says he was detained for 16 days.. and tortured every day and told to renounce his beliefs and give up the names of those who practiced Falun Gong with him. He says his home was ransacked, his belongings taken and he was beaten heavily..

CHEN: After I was released it took me about one month to recover. My whole body was really beaten up.

BARLOW: Mr Chen fled China in 2004 and came to Australia for protection (CUT: in 2004), leaving his wife and two sons. There's a grandson he has never seen. Supporters say a negligent migration agent mishandled his case. Mr Chen was ordered to a hearing, but the migration agent never told him to attend.

Veronica Spasaro is from Balmain for Refugees

SPASARO: In fact, that meant by the time he had exhausted all procedures in the domestic processes, he'd never actually been interviewed in person about his claim or his evidence

BARLOW: This led to an eight-year legal limbo and fears of deportation.

SPASARO: We'd exhausted every avenue.. we were convinced there was a grave injustice about to be made.

BARLOW: Mr Chen 's case was taken to the United Nations' Committee Against Torture in New York, which ruled last November that deportation would "Breach article 3 of the UN convention against torture.. " and that Australia's immigration processes were "..procedurally flawed."

The Australian Government response was to.."Not necessarily accept the conclusion" of the UN committee.

Veronica Spasaro spearheaded the UN effort on Mr Chen's behalf. .

SPASARO: When we read that response we were really appalled and horrified, actually.

BARLOW: Mr Chen's supporters say he suffers from trauma not only from torture and persecution in China... but from the eight year process of trying to stay in Australia.

It appears he now has to restart the process for protection."

THE Australian Permanent Mission to the UN wrote that the government was considering whether Mr Chen could "make a further application for a protection visa."

Veronica Spasaro says the response is opened ended.

SPASARO: The horrifying part really is, the possibility that he may in fact be given the opportunity to re-apply for protection, and of course if the last opportunity has taken eight years to play out, the next opportunity could also take eight years potentially.

BARLOW: A spokeswoman for the Immigration Minister Brendan O'Connor says Mr Chen's claims and the findings of the United Nations Committee Against Torture will be given due consideration." Mr Chen just wants to get on with his life, which he says he won't have if he is returned to China.

CHEN: A lot of Falun Gong practitioners are tortured to death so this may happen to me as well.

BARLOW: He is also very concerned about his family back home.. he says he has been informed on by fellow detainees in the Villawood detention Centre in Sydney.

CHEN: Some deported back to China already.. they told the police I was still practising Falun Gong. The police threatened my family that I should go back to China soon, quickly . And last year in November my wife was detained for about 4 to 5 days.

BARLOW: Mr Chen's been diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

CHEN: I have no choice. I am afraid of going back to China.

BARLOW: So it is life in limbo.. for Mr Chen.

Source  http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/international/radio/program/asia-pacific/australias-immigration-processes-procedurally-flawed/1116572

New immigration IT system in New Zealand will speed up visa applications

The New Zealand government is investing $75 million in a new IT system to improve the country’s immigration services.

It wants to make the service more responsive, secure and timely and speed up visa applications, said Immigration minister Jonathan Coleman.

‘We are competing worldwide to recruit skilled and talented people and a new system will help speed up the processing of visa applications and allow applicants to do more online. Providing a fast and modern service is critical in attracting skilled migrants who can help grow the economy,’ he explained.

‘The existing IT system is over 15 years old and is reaching the end of its technological lifespan. The cost of even simple changes is high and cannot be maintained over the long term. It‘s also significantly impairing our ability to provide standards of service and security comparable to other nations,’ Coleman added.

The new Immigration Global Management System (IGMS) will provide an agile system that enables more online processing and automation of simple tasks for clients and employers and the ability for all data to be accessed by INZ offices worldwide.

The system will also provide biometric capability which offers significant improvement in identity management and enhanced security.

People applying for visas will also have their own individual online immigration accounts that will enable them to enter all their details online and track progress on their applications. Implementation of IGMS is scheduled to begin in early 2012.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister John Key has expressed his disappointment at the British Government’s announcement overnight of an increase in passenger duty for air travellers to New Zealand.

The British Government has announced that the UK Air Passenger Duty (APD) will increase next April from £85 pounds to £92 sterling per passenger coming to New Zealand.

‘The APD places a significant burden on New Zealand businesses, on families who travel, and on our tourism industry. With the tax for New Zealand bound passengers set at four or five times the costs of offsetting the carbon emissions produced, this logic is without basis,’ he said.

‘The British Government’s announcement maintains this cost difference, and ignores the fact that environmental concerns about emissions are being addressed through the European Union’s extension of its Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) to aviation emissions. That puts a levy on airlines meaning there is no justification for an additional duty on air passengers which discriminates on the basis of distance,’ he added.

Key said the New Zealand Government had been hopeful that the British Government had been persuaded not to proceed with an increased APD that discriminated unfairly against Australia, New Zealand, the Caribbean, Singapore, South Africa and a few others.

Source http://www.expatforum.com/new-zealand/new-immigration-it-system-in-new-zealand-will-speed-up-visa-applications.html

10 teenagers missing from community detention

TEN Vietnamese teenagers under community detention have gone missing.

A Department of Immigration spokeswoman said the unaccompanied minors are all aged between 15 and 18.

Nine were in community detention in Victoria while the remaining teenager has gone missing from WA.

"The Department of Immigration can confirm 10 children have absconded," the spokeswoman said.

She said the Red Cross was the contracted service provider for community detention.

Seven other unaccompanied minors are in community detention in Victoria and WA.

There are fears that the teenagers may have been trafficked.

Liberal Senate Leader Eric Abetz said the Labor government must explain how this happened.

"Why is their system failing yet again?" Senator Abetz said today in Canberra.

Australian Greens senator Bob Brown said the news was worrying.

"It's very concerning," he said.

Senior Labor left figure senator Doug Cameron said the incident should not be a reflection on the merits of community detention.

"What I've seen of community detention in Australia and around the world is that it works, it's cost-effective and the most humane way to deal with refugees," he said.

A spokeswoman for the Red Cross said the charity was not responsible for the security of asylum seekers but was involved in providing housing, support services and English lessons.

She said the security of asylum seekers in detention was a matter for the Department.

Source http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/teenagers-missing-from-community-detention/story-e6frf7jx-1226169427969