Australia Faces Criticism Over $400m Deal to Deport Foreign-Born Criminals to Nauru
The Australian government has faced widespread criticism over a $400m deal to deport hundreds of foreign-born criminals to Nauru, a move slammed as “discriminatory, disgraceful and dangerous” by human rights lawyers, refugee advocates, and the Greens.
The deal, signed by Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke on Friday, will see around 280 members of the NZYQ cohort, a group of non-citizens living in the Australian community whose visas were cancelled on character grounds, deported to Nauru in return for an upfront payment of $400m and annual payments of $70m for related costs.
Background of the NZYQ Cohort
The NZYQ cohort comprises individuals who previously faced indefinite immigration detention but were released into the community following a November 2023 high court ruling, which found it was unlawful to detain people indefinitely if there was “no real prospect” of them being removed from the country “in the reasonably foreseeable future”.
Reactions to the Deal
Sanmati Verma, legal director of the Human Rights Law Centre, condemned the deal, stating that some members of the NZYQ cohort had “never been convicted of an offence”, while others had spent extended periods in detention and were elderly and sick.
Verma expressed concerns that they might die on Nauru without proper care.
Jana Favero, deputy chief executive of the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre, labelled the deal “discriminatory, disgraceful and dangerous”, arguing that it showed that in Australia, “some people will be punished simply because of where they were born”.
Greens senator David Shoebridge echoed similar sentiments, accusing the government of “forcing our smaller neighbours to become 21st century prison colonies”.
Government’s Stance
In a statement, Burke defended the deal, stating that “anyone who doesn’t have a valid visa should leave the country” and that “this is a fundamental element of a functioning visa system”.
The government claims that the deal will provide for the “proper treatment and long-term residence of people who have no legal right to stay in Australia” in Nauru.
Future Implications
The deal has sparked concerns about the government’s attempt to introduce an amendment that would remove procedural fairness in deportation decisions for foreign-born criminals, including those in the NZYQ cohort.
The amendment has been met with resistance, with critics arguing that it would strip non-citizens of their right to a fair process.