The Human Rights Law Centre is calling on the Albanese Government to end twelve years of mandatory offshore detention inflicted on people who came to Australia seeking safety.

Tomorrow will mark twelve years since former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd announced no person seeking asylum by sea would be allowed to settle in Australia. Since the announcement, thousands of people have been forcibly sent to detention camps in Nauru and Papua New Guinea, suffering violent attacks, medical neglect and widespread discrimination.

There are now over 100 people trapped in Nauru under offshore processing arrangements, and 37 people abandoned by the Australian Government in PNG. Around 900 more who were transferred to Australia after suffering years in offshore detention remain on precarious temporary visas, denied the ability to live in safety and dignity. And earlier this year, the Albanese Government attempted to use its new deportation powers to permanently exile three refugees living in Australia to Nauru for the rest of their lives.

Instead of continuing to entrench cruelty with deportations and anti-migrant laws, the Albanese Government must put an end to offshore processing, and provide permanent and safe resettlement so that every person who has suffered under the policy has a chance to rebuild their lives.

Laura John, Associate Legal Director at the Human Rights Law Centre said: 

“For twelve years, successive governments have inflicted ongoing cruelty and punishment on people who came here seeking safety. It’s time for the Albanese Government to end this cruelty, not entrench it further, and to ensure that every person subjected to offshore processing is guaranteed safety and a chance to rebuild their lives.”

Fatemeh, a mother who survived detention in Nauru with her young family, said: 

“We’ve spent 12 years living in uncertainty – from Christmas Island to Nauru to detention in Australia. My family and I still bear the scars of our time in offshore detention. It hasn’t been easy, but we’ve built a life here with love and hope. Australia is our home. All we want is to belong, and to be treated fairly – permanent residency is a right, not a favour.”

Leila*, a daughter who fled to Australia with her mother and was detained in Nauru, said: 

“My mother and I spent years suffering in Nauru, and even now, I’m still stuck in limbo while half of my family – including my spouse, father and brother – are Australian citizens. I arrived in Australia just days after offshore detention was introduced, while I was already at sea, unaware and unable to change course. I wasn’t safe in my home country and I wasn’t safe in Nauru. I just want the chance to live in safety with my family in Australia.”

*pseudonym used to protect her identity 

Read our timeline of offshore detention.