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Australian Visa Grants To Refugees Scored
- By Bobby Castro
- Published 12/21/2011
- Destinations
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Bobby Castro
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Australian Visa Grants To Refugees Scored
The Australian Federal Government's recent announcement that thousands of asylum-seekers would be granted Australian bridging visas has been scored and criticized by state governments.
With this move, thousands of new immigrants would be moved out of detention centers and into the general population. In response, New South Wales and Victoria state governments have been openly criticizing Immigration Minister Chris Bowen for the recent decision.
In previous years, only 27 visa grants have been granted to asylum seekers but the recent decision would raise the quota to 100 bridging visas a month to refugees whose claims had not been finalized. It is expected that the actual figure would be higher as it will depend on the rate of arrivals of asylum seekers, as there has been no clear policy yet on offshore processing.
Mr. Mike Gallacher, NSW Police Minister, said that the move was made without any consultation with the state governments despite the fact that the states would be the primary service providers to the needs of the asylum-seekers when they assimilate into the country.
He said, "No one picked up the phone. No one wrote to me. Some of these people, just simply by being released here, could find themselves either being the victims of crime or indeed coming to the police attention themselves. There's simply been no discussion between the state government and the federal government in terms of our preparedness to handle these matters."
Another critic is Mr. Nicholas Kotsiras, the Victorian Minister for Multicultural Affairs and Citizenship. He expressed the state's concerns for settling asylum-seekers in the communities without available funding for basic services such as mental health, education and housing. He added "this may greatly disadvantage asylum-seeking by dumping them into communities without adequate support and without any concern for their welfare."
He added, "Without providing additional support, the federal government will be working against the better interests of asylum-seekers themselves, the communities they will be placed in and social cohesion in Victoria."
In an official statement, Immigration Minister Chris Bowen called for the removal of the quota of the national refugee intake and increasing the numbers from the current 13,750 to 20,000 per year. In the same statement, the Minister still is pushing for processing of asylum seekers offshore.
The move was well received by the ruling Labor Party during its national conference in Sydney. Bowen admitted though the proposed targets would still be achieved as plans to send refugees for offshore processing have been disallowed by the Australian High Court.
With this move, thousands of new immigrants would be moved out of detention centers and into the general population. In response, New South Wales and Victoria state governments have been openly criticizing Immigration Minister Chris Bowen for the recent decision.
In previous years, only 27 visa grants have been granted to asylum seekers but the recent decision would raise the quota to 100 bridging visas a month to refugees whose claims had not been finalized. It is expected that the actual figure would be higher as it will depend on the rate of arrivals of asylum seekers, as there has been no clear policy yet on offshore processing.
Mr. Mike Gallacher, NSW Police Minister, said that the move was made without any consultation with the state governments despite the fact that the states would be the primary service providers to the needs of the asylum-seekers when they assimilate into the country.
He said, "No one picked up the phone. No one wrote to me. Some of these people, just simply by being released here, could find themselves either being the victims of crime or indeed coming to the police attention themselves. There's simply been no discussion between the state government and the federal government in terms of our preparedness to handle these matters."
Another critic is Mr. Nicholas Kotsiras, the Victorian Minister for Multicultural Affairs and Citizenship. He expressed the state's concerns for settling asylum-seekers in the communities without available funding for basic services such as mental health, education and housing. He added "this may greatly disadvantage asylum-seeking by dumping them into communities without adequate support and without any concern for their welfare."
He added, "Without providing additional support, the federal government will be working against the better interests of asylum-seekers themselves, the communities they will be placed in and social cohesion in Victoria."
In an official statement, Immigration Minister Chris Bowen called for the removal of the quota of the national refugee intake and increasing the numbers from the current 13,750 to 20,000 per year. In the same statement, the Minister still is pushing for processing of asylum seekers offshore.
The move was well received by the ruling Labor Party during its national conference in Sydney. Bowen admitted though the proposed targets would still be achieved as plans to send refugees for offshore processing have been disallowed by the Australian High Court.