The Albanese Government has today rushed through new laws that strip people of their fundamental legal rights and protections and pave the way for the mass deportation of migrants and refugees.

The Anti-Fairness Bill comes after Minister for Home Affairs Tony Burke signed a $400 million deal to deport people to Nauru last week and means the Australian Government has no obligation to give notice to or hear from the people it intends to deport. The Australian Government will not have to consider the consequences people would face, such as whether a person might die without proper medical care, be permanently separated from their families, or face persecution in Nauru.

The new laws also allow the Australian Government to issue removal directions without notice, which require people to take action to assist with their own deportation under the threat of criminal prosecution and jail time.

The laws also retrospectively validate an unknown number of visa decisions that were made on the basis of incorrect law, meaning those flawed decisions cannot be reviewed.

Sanmati Verma, Legal Director at the Human Rights Law Centre said:  

“The Albanese Government wants to carry out a mass deportation of migrants and refugees of the kind we have never seen, without having to give a second thought to the lifelong consequences.

“These laws mean the Australian Government can permanently exile people to Nauru without having to ask even the most basic questions – such as whether a person will die in Nauru without proper care, be targeted for violence as other refugees have been, or be permanently separated from their family. Clearly, the government does not want to know the answers to these questions.

“It is precisely this kind of action from the Albanese Government which normalises racism and anti-migrant sentiments in our communities, and emboldens acts of hateful violence on our streets.

“The Albanese Government is setting a new low for how migrants and refugees are treated, but our rights should be the same, regardless of visa status. Instead of governments that trade in fear and punishment, we need real solutions that allow people to rebuild their lives in safety and dignity.”