The Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has called on the Government to appoint an independent reviewer to examine the continued detention of people held in immigration detention for prolonged periods.
In her Report 141 Immigration detention following visa refusal or cancellation under section 501 of the Migration Act, President of the AHRC, Rosalind Croucher said the independent reviewer should also undertake a detailed assessment of any risk people in immigration detention posed to the community.
Professor Croucher said the AHRC investigated complaints made by 11 individuals in immigration detention who had had their visas cancelled and who alleged their human rights were breached by the Department of Home Affairs.
“It makes recommendations for practical outcomes for people subject to visa cancellations on character grounds who are facing prolonged — and in some cases indefinite—immigration detention,” Professor Croucher said.
“The Report recommends an amendment of the Minister’s (Karen Andrews) guidelines to ensure all people in immigration detention are eligible for referral, whether or not they have had their visa cancelled on character grounds,” she said.
“When the Department refers cases to the Minister, it should include detailed descriptions of any specific risk the individual is said to pose, the evidence said to support that assessment and options for mitigating that risk.”
Professor Croucher said the AHRC’s investigation found systemic issues which led to breaches of human rights, including the Department’s failure to refer some cases to the Minister to consider a community detention placement or the grant of a bridging visa; long delays in making referrals in other cases; and a lack of transparency in decisions by the Minister about whether to release a person from detention.
The AHRC President said the Department confirmed that a review of the Ministerial guidelines was proposed and noted the specific recommendations made by the Commission.
She said the AHRC also made a number of recommendations about how risk assessments were carried out, which the Department agreed to in part.
“Over the past three years, the Commission has received an increasing number of complaints from individuals in immigration detention as a result of having their visa cancelled or refused on character grounds,” Professor Croucher said.
“Some of the complainants described in this Report had spent time in prison, but it is concerning that a number of them spent more time in immigration detention than they did in prison serving the criminal sentence that triggered their visa cancellation or refusal.”
She said it was critical that the detention review practices and policies of the Department protected the Australian community while also safeguarding the human rights of detainees, in particular the right to be free from arbitrary detention.
The AHRC’s 110-page Report can be downloaded at this PS News link.
