Thankfully the high court is putting a stop to this bizarre policy of shipping asylum seekers overseas and swapping them for others. We have to wonder at what legal advice the Gillard government takes when it decided upon this course of action. You also have to wonder about the policy ability of this government.

How long would the policy last when video is broadcast of women and children forced onto aeroplanes and then into Malaysian concentration camps?

This is a no win situation for the government. Its a win situation for the people working in the asylum processing industry. Its a total loss for the people who pay for these government F*ckups.

"This is the "Lucky Country" people. If you're unfortunate **** off." Awesome evlpanda, that has to go onto a bumper sticker.

AquaPlow said...

The Topic - Boat People on xmas island about to be transported to Malaysia
The Issue - Trying to impose standards on the Malaysians which are different than they currently use for their refugees. (Talk about digging a hole!!!)
The Malays are sending police to view our handling.

The stage is set.. Wonder why our pollies like climbing onto self-imposed public bashing stages...

AP

Gillard really blew it this time.

The refugees already in Malaysia are threatening to get on boats to Christmas Island just so they can be sent back to Malaysia under the new deal.

Then in a really smart move the High Court supported a motion that prevents the gubmnt sending the first lot over there.

Australia has to be the laughing stock of S.E. Asia.

Having read this forum and the vast array of comments I couldnt help but join to put another view on this rather hot topic.

Why not let struggling country towns tender for the refugee's. If they want to stay in Australia they would have to agree to stay in towns for say a minimum 5 years.

Rebuilds population in towns, provides investment and income to town and I bet most would end up staying in towns once they had built support base.

I would love to hear what the original australian's say about some of the comments here given most of us descend from boat people !

My Solution... (its cheap too)
Assume there are 2 possibly 3 boat launching centres - Main island Indo' possibly Sri-Lanka and one other.

Provide a no frills commonwealth run ferry service which is priced to undercut the boat providers.

To be able to get on you have to have the $, you have to have sufficient paperwork / identity information for a first cut but basic immigration check - like an airport.

At entry port (mainland) say Perth or Darwin or a labor intensive mining zone(!!) complete the processing (some can be done on the boat trip??) and provide visas with allowances for a level of social support (at the airport U need to prove the ability to support yourself) with conditions attached - but none the less the ability to move into society and earn. If the conditions are not met - i.e. 100% lack of effort to integrate, socialise, train / get employment then up for review.

Any remainder who take the boat smuggler route are then to be handled as hard cases so into detention. The zone of pick-up does not start until landfall on the main-land so Xmas island is out as an easy target.

A publicity campaign to co-inside with the two methods of boat arrival.

Given the current approach grants entry to over 90% of boat people, this would defuse a pathetic minority lead fear campaign (back-up by mindless elements in the Murdoch and the same cut of cloth right wing press).which has had a massive distorting and corrupting influence on our governments for too long.

The issue is for me is not one of a few thousand boat people but the level of overall immigration (100's of thousands) - our ability to assimilate this volume culturally, and our ability to keep up with the infra-structure needs this imposes.

Need to post a joke or funny pik' as penance for posting a rant!!

BFN

AP

choco said...

Got to remember we take in fark all refugees, European countries are being flooded by them compared to the trickle we take.If the government really wants to stop the boats get the navy to start sinking them out at sea, couple of times should deter anymore boats from coming, in saying that we need these immigrants because work is for immigrants

You dead right and look at them.... they are farked too, maybe we should take lot less and look after ourselves first!
We should stop them to leave indo and show some balls with the corrupt gov of bribonesia, fast math: 1 illegal coming here - $1 million coming as foreign aid this year, the influx would stop the same day and a few smugglers' bodies would be found floating at see!

AquaPlow said...
The issue is for me is not one of a few thousand boat people but the level of overall immigration (100's of thousands) - our ability to assimilate this volume culturally, and our ability to keep up with the infra-structure needs this imposes.

Mostly agree AquaPlow, but this bit (quoted above), is the problem, even now. During the '70s the Vietnamese boat people (generally - there were exceptions I realize) brought with them a will to work, integrate and build a new life for themselves and their offspring. I have the privilege of being close friends with 2 "boat people" families from Vietnam, who despite their accent are very proud to be naturalized Ozzies. They're hard working successful people who treasure the opportunities given to them for this new life.

The current crop, from the Middle East/Africa arrive here (generally - there are exceptions I realize) not only with no will to work, integrate and build a new life for themselves and their offspring, but with stated aim of changing Oz into some kind of facsimile of the shyte hole they left behind. They often won't even learn English. Those ones have no place in Oz as far as I'm concerned.

The religion is what makes the difference - it's NOT racism!

Disagree with you there Dinsdale. I used to live up in Coffs Harbour about 8 years ago. Many people from Sudan were settled there. After some time I saw quite a few of them working, doing jobs new migrants normally do coz Aussies are not interested in doing it, they would rather be on the dole. Jobs like cleaning.

The government should not employ people to lie or mislead people. The government should not force people to live where they don't want to live. Governments are the cause of these problems. Government policies lead to war, genocide, hatred and murder. This is the case in Sudan, North East African countries, Middle Eastern countries, all over the world.

If people were allowed to get on with their lives without someone in power telling what to do while taking their money away, perhaps we would have fewer refugees.

Gizmo said...

Mobydisc said...
The government should not employ people to lie or mislead people.

LOL what ????? without the "people to lie or mislead people" half the public service wouldn't be there and be unemployed!!!!!
These are the spin doctors that make up the lies the polies sprout in election mode.

Yeah its crazy talk to expect governments to be honest, not use our wealth to tell us how to live our lives, punish us when we say no, and then tell us awesome they are.