Australian immigration detention facilities
Encyclopedia
Australian immigration detention facilities comprise a number of different facilities throughout Australia
and one on the Australian territory of Christmas Island. They are used to house people who are detained under Australia’s policy of mandatory detention
and previously under the now defunct Pacific Solution
. The facilities are currently operated by Serco, and were previously run under G4S who used to be named Global Solutions Limited(GSL), under contract from the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC)
ALP
government enforced a policy of mandatory detention
of unauthorised arrivals, non-citizens arriving by boat without a valid visa were detained until they were either granted a visa
, or deported.
Towards the end of the 1990s, a large increase in the number of unauthorised arrivals exceeded the capacity of the existing Immigration Reception and Processing Centres at Port Hedland
and Curtin
.
Australia also funded immigration detention centres on:
Both centres were closed during the first week of February 2008.
, the Rudd Government
had relocated a number of asylum seekers to a number of remote area as a temporary solution.
abuses from groups as diverse as refugee advocates, Amnesty International
, the Australian Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission
, Human Rights Watch
, and the United Nations
.
In March 2002, the Secretary General of Amnesty International, Irene Khan
, said:
Former Prime Minister John Howard and successive immigration ministers maintained that their actions were justified in the interests of protecting Australia's borders and ensuring that immigration law
was enforced. A 2004 Liberal Party election policy document stated:
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and one on the Australian territory of Christmas Island. They are used to house people who are detained under Australia’s policy of mandatory detention
Mandatory detention in Australia
Mandatory detention in Australia concerns the Australian federal government's policy and system of mandatory immigration detention active from 1992 to date, pursuant to which all persons entering the country without a valid visa are compulsorily detained and sometimes subject to deportation.In the...
and previously under the now defunct Pacific Solution
Pacific Solution
The Pacific Solution was the name given to the Australian government policy of transporting asylum seekers to detention camps on small island nations in the Pacific Ocean, rather than allowing them to land on the Australian mainland...
. The facilities are currently operated by Serco, and were previously run under G4S who used to be named Global Solutions Limited(GSL), under contract from the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC)
Background
The policy "Migration Act 1958 " was discretionary prior to 1992 but since the 1990s when the Paul KeatingPaul Keating
Paul John Keating was the 24th Prime Minister of Australia, serving from 1991 to 1996. Keating was elected as the federal Labor member for Blaxland in 1969 and came to prominence as the reformist treasurer of the Hawke Labor government, which came to power at the 1983 election...
ALP
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
government enforced a policy of mandatory detention
Mandatory detention in Australia
Mandatory detention in Australia concerns the Australian federal government's policy and system of mandatory immigration detention active from 1992 to date, pursuant to which all persons entering the country without a valid visa are compulsorily detained and sometimes subject to deportation.In the...
of unauthorised arrivals, non-citizens arriving by boat without a valid visa were detained until they were either granted a visa
Visa (document)
A visa is a document showing that a person is authorized to enter the territory for which it was issued, subject to permission of an immigration official at the time of actual entry. The authorization may be a document, but more commonly it is a stamp endorsed in the applicant's passport...
, or deported.
Towards the end of the 1990s, a large increase in the number of unauthorised arrivals exceeded the capacity of the existing Immigration Reception and Processing Centres at Port Hedland
Port Hedland, Western Australia
Port Hedland is the highest tonnage port in Australia and largest town in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, with a population of approximately 14,000 ....
and Curtin
RAAF Curtin
RAAF Base Curtin is a Royal Australian Air Force base located near the town of Derby on the north coast of Western Australia. As it is one of the RAAF's three 'bare bases' no Air Force units are currently based at Curtin and it is maintained by a small caretaker staff during peacetime...
.
Immigration Detention Centres (IDCs)
According to DIAC, on-shore IDC’s “mainly accommodate over-stayers, people in breach of their visa conditions, or people refused entry at Australia's international airports”. Off shore facilities cater for unauthorised boat arrivals however recently many unauthorised boat arrivals are being transferred to mainland detention centres.- Villawood IDCVillawood Immigration Detention CentreVillawood Immigration Detention Centre is an Australian immigration detention facility located in the suburb of Villawood in Sydney, Australia...
- Maribyrnong IDC
- Perth IDCPerth Immigration Detention CentrePerth Immigration Detention Centre was opened in 1981 and is located near the domestic terminal of Perth Airport, Western Australia.-See also:* Australian immigration detention facilities* List of Australian immigration detention facilities...
- Christmas Island IDCChristmas Island Immigration Reception and Processing CentreChristmas Island Immigration Reception and Processing Centre or commonly just Christmas Island Immigration Detention Centre, is an Australian immigration detention facility located on Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean.- History:...
Immigration Reception and Processing Centres (IRPCs)
According to DIAC, IRPCs are “primarily used for unauthorised boat arrivals”- BaxterBaxter Immigration Reception and Processing CentreBaxter Immigration Reception and Processing Centre or commonly just Baxter Detention Centre, was an Australian immigration detention facility near the town of Port Augusta in South Australia. It was the focus of much of the controversy concerning the mandatory detention of asylum seekers in Australia...
- no longer operational (closed August 2007) - Port Hedland – no longer operational
- CurtinCurtin Immigration Reception and Processing CentreCurtin Immigration Reception and Processing Centre is an Australian immigration detention facility in the Kimberley in Western Australia. Curtin was described by former Immigration minister, Philip Ruddock, as the country's "most primitive" processing centre...
- WoomeraWoomera Immigration Reception and Processing CentreThe Woomera Immigration Reception and Processing Centre was an Australian immigration detention facility near the village of Woomera in South Australia. It was opened in November 1999 in response to an increase in unauthorised arrivals, which had exceeded the capacity of other detention facilities...
– no longer operational (closed 2003)
Residential Housing Projects (RHPs)
According to DIAC, RHPs “provided a flexible detention arrangement to enable women and children under 18 to live in family style accommodation while remaining in immigration detention.”- Port Augusta - no longer operational
- Port Hedland – no longer operational
- Woomera – no longer operational
Immigration Residential Housing Centres
According to DIAC, "Immigration residential housing provides an option for accommodating people in independent family-style housing in a community setting while still formally being detained. This type of facility is one of several types of alternative residential accommodation for detained people, subject to them meeting eligibility criteria."- Perth
- Sydney
Immigration Transit Accommodation Centres
According to DIAC, "The Brisbane Immigration Transit Accommodation opened in November 2007 and the Melbourne Immigration Transit Accommodation opened in June 2008. Further immigration transit accommodation will be located in Adelaide. ITCs are for short-term, low-risk detainees."- Brisbane
- Melbourne
Pacific Solution facilities
Since the implementation of the Pacific SolutionPacific Solution
The Pacific Solution was the name given to the Australian government policy of transporting asylum seekers to detention camps on small island nations in the Pacific Ocean, rather than allowing them to land on the Australian mainland...
Australia also funded immigration detention centres on:
- Manus IslandManus IslandManus Island is part of Manus Province in northern Papua New Guinea and is the largest island of the Admiralty Islands. It is the fifth largest island in Papua New Guinea with an area of 2,100 km², measuring around 100 km × 30 km. According to the 2000 census, Manus Island had a...
– no longer operational - NauruNauruNauru , officially the Republic of Nauru and formerly known as Pleasant Island, is an island country in Micronesia in the South Pacific. Its nearest neighbour is Banaba Island in Kiribati, to the east. Nauru is the world's smallest republic, covering just...
– no longer operational
Both centres were closed during the first week of February 2008.
Temporary facilities
Due to increased number of asylum seekers arriving by boat in 2010 and to reduce the overcrowding at the Christmas Island IDCChristmas Island Immigration Reception and Processing Centre
Christmas Island Immigration Reception and Processing Centre or commonly just Christmas Island Immigration Detention Centre, is an Australian immigration detention facility located on Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean.- History:...
, the Rudd Government
Rudd Government
The Rudd Government refers to the federal Executive Government of Australia of the Australian Labor Party from 2007 to 2010, led by Kevin Rudd as Prime Minister. The Rudd Government commenced on 3 December 2007, when Rudd was sworn in along with his ministry...
had relocated a number of asylum seekers to a number of remote area as a temporary solution.
- LeonoraLeonora, Western AustraliaLeonora is a town in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia, located northeast of the state capital, Perth, and north of the city of Kalgoorlie. At the 2006 census, Leonora had a population of 401, about a third of whom are of Aboriginal descent. The area is extremely arid, with a...
in Western AustraliaWestern AustraliaWestern Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
- up to 90 asylum seekers in a disused mining camp from June 2010.
Controversy
The facilities have been a source of much controversy during their time of operation. There have been a number of riots and escapes, as well as accusations of human rightsHuman rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
abuses from groups as diverse as refugee advocates, Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
, the Australian Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission
Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission
The Australian Human Rights Commission is a national human rights institution, a statutory body funded by, but operating independently of, the Australian Government. It has the responsibility for investigating alleged infringements under Australia’s anti-discrimination legislation...
, Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...
, and the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
.
In March 2002, the Secretary General of Amnesty International, Irene Khan
Irene Khan
Irene Zubaida Khan is a Bangladeshi human rights activist. She was the seventh Secretary General of Amnesty International until her resignation on 31 December 2009. She was appointed as a member of the Charity Commission of England and Wales on 1 January 2010 but resigned after a controversy over...
, said:
Former Prime Minister John Howard and successive immigration ministers maintained that their actions were justified in the interests of protecting Australia's borders and ensuring that immigration law
Immigration law
Immigration law refers to national government policies which control the phenomenon of immigration to their country.Immigraton law, regarding foreign citizens, is related to nationality law, which governs the legal status of people, in matters such as citizenship...
was enforced. A 2004 Liberal Party election policy document stated: