topic High Court Rules Detainees On Customs Vessel Legal in Community Spirit

High Court Rules Detainees On Customs Vessel Legal

icyfroth — Wed, 28 Jan 2015 05:27:20 GMT

The Australian government's detainment of 157 Tamil asylum seekers on the high seas for a month last year was lawful, the High Court has ruled.

In a 4-3 majority decision announced on Wednesday afternoon, the court found that the 157 asylum seekers were legally detained by Australian authorities on the Customs vessel Ocean Protector and the asylum seekers, who are now in Nauru, were not entitled to any compensation.

Lawyers for the asylum seekers had argued during a two-day High Court hearing in October that the Australian government could have sent the group straight to Australia or Nauru once they were rescued from their boat which had suffered a pump failure 16 nautical miles off Christmas Island on June 29.

According to the judgment, the Customs vessel then sailed to India - where the asylum seekers were believed to have department from - under the direction of the national security committee of cabinet, which included then immigration minister Scott Morrison.

But there was no agreement that the asylum seekers would be able to disembark in India. The passengers were then detained for a "further period" until Mr Morrison decided that it was "not practicable" to discharge the asylum seekers, instead sending them to Cocos Island.

For four weeks the asylum seekers were detained on the boat where they were given allowed on limited hours of daylight before eventually being transferred to the offshore processing centre in Nauru.

In its ruling High Court said the detainment was lawful under the Migration Powers Act, which enables maritime officers to detain a person outside Australia.

Entire Article Here

Re: High Court Rules Detainees On Customs Vessel Legal

cherry*135 — Wed, 28 Jan 2015 05:37:17 GMT

From the link above:

Lawyers acting on behalf of the asylum seekers said the result was "disappointing" but the case had forced the government to be more transparent in its operations and "on water" matters.

"It took this case for the government to finally break its secrecy and confirm that it was detaining 157 people - including 50 children as young as one – on a boat somewhere on the high seas," said Hugh de Krester from the Human Rights Law Centre.

"If it hadn't been for this case, the Australian public may never have known what happened to those 157 people."

A cost analysis by Fairfax Media showed the Abbott government's failed attempt to return the asylum seekers to India cost taxpayers more than $12 million..

Re: High Court Rules Detainees On Customs Vessel Legal

icyfroth — Wed, 28 Jan 2015 05:40:52 GMT

@am*3 wrote:
A cost analysis by Fairfax Media showed the Abbott government's failed attempt to return the asylum seekers to India cost taxpayers more than $12 million..

We keep them here or we send them to detainment centres either way it costs the taxpayers. That's why we put measures in place to deter them.

Re: High Court Rules Detainees On Customs Vessel Legal

village_person — Wed, 28 Jan 2015 09:39:08 GMT

@icyfroth wrote:

In its ruling High Court said the detainment was lawful under the Migration Powers Act, which enables maritime officers to detain a person outside Australia.

Entire Article Here

If that is the case why did the Australian High Court not disqualify itself on the grounds that it had no jurisdiction to consider such matters?

Re: High Court Rules Detainees On Customs Vessel Legal

icyfroth — Wed, 28 Jan 2015 09:47:14 GMT

@icyfroth wrote:
@am*3 wrote:
A cost analysis by Fairfax Media showed the Abbott government's failed attempt to return the asylum seekers to India cost taxpayers more than $12 million..
We keep them here or we send them to detainment centres either way it costs the taxpayers. That's why we put measures in place to deter them.

the 157 had left Sri Lanka, were living in India and then decided to leave for Aus.

so they were already in a safe country.

Re: High Court Rules Detainees On Customs Vessel Legal

kilroy_is_here — Wed, 28 Jan 2015 09:52:22 GMT

well if they are not genuine refugees i ffel we have a case to bill them for the cost of returning them and for their keep whislt here

Re: High Court Rules Detainees On Customs Vessel Legal

vicr3000 — Thu, 29 Jan 2015 02:32:43 GMT

The Customs boat has already sailed once from Aus to India (almost) but they couldn't get Indian immigration

on board due to weather.

Maybe they should have sunk the customs booat, the 157 would have felt very much at home

with those instructions

Re: High Court Rules Detainees On Customs Vessel Legal

icyfroth — Thu, 29 Jan 2015 03:24:59 GMT

Re: High Court Rules Detainees On Customs Vessel Legal

vicr3000 — Thu, 29 Jan 2015 03:26:32 GMT

Don't know.

Mods look like they are deleting the threads.