EXPRESS The
Wednesday, July 31, 2013
Locally owned and proudly independent
PNG plan for refugees slammed
PHOTO BY JIM HATCHMAN
By Ryan Groube
T
Bulls close in on premiership Steven Cater goes on the attack for the Bulls in their top of the table clash against Marlin Coast Rangers on Saturday. The Bulls won the game 2-0 and lead the Far North Queensland Football competition heading into the final four rounds. Details, page 23.
he Federal Government’s asylum seeker policy has been branded a welcome mat for refugees to enter Australia illegally through the far north. Federal Member for Leichhardt Warren Entsch and State Member for Cook David Kempton have slammed the new policy which came into effect on July 19. Under the regional settlement arrangements asylum seekers will be sent to Papua New Guinea for assessment and if found to be a refugee will be settled there. Mr Kempton and Mr Entsch said the Australian border on Cape York is largely unmanned and that refugees could easily find their way into the country through the Torres Strait. Travel between PNG and the Torres Strait is fluid with the Torres Strait Treaty allowing traditional inhabitants to travel to certain islands within a protected area without having to carry any identification. In 2012-13, there were 24,513 traditional visits made by PNG inhabitants to the islands allowed for in the treaty. The only requirement of this travel is that an inhabitant gets a “prior advice notice” from a registered signatory (village chairman). A spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said movement within Torres Strait was monitored by 15 officers from the Department of Immigration and Citizenship. “The Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) has 15 movement monitoring officers in the Torres Strait who work closely with island councils and the community to manage the traditional flow of people under the Treaty and report on any other movements in the region,” the spokesperson said. “Non-traditional inhabitants that arrive in the Torres Strait without a visa are unlawful non-citizens who are subject to mandatory immigration detention and may be transferred to a designated regional processing country.” Member for Cook David Kempton said the Federal Government is naive if it thinks that refugees settled in PNG will give up on moving to Australia. Cont. P2
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