Jack Smit | Edith Cowan University (original) (raw)
Papers by Jack Smit
Malcolm Fraser's response to 'commercial' refugee voyages ♣ Under Australia's former neo-conserva... more Malcolm Fraser's response to 'commercial' refugee voyages ♣ Under Australia's former neo-conservative Liberal Prime Minister John Howard 1 , hardline and deterrent policies targeting maritime asylum seekers attempting to reach Australian shores culminated in excessive measures 2. Most of these measures escalated especially during the years 2001-2005 3 , and former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser was one of the many Australians who started speaking out for changes. He yearned for more moderate policies, and on frequent occasions he recalled his own policy initiatives supporting the notion of multiculturalism from the late 1970s and early 1980s. He advocated for a return by Australia to a fuller compliance with its international legal obligations for the treatment of asylum seekers and refugees, while he lamented the loss of political bipartisanship around refugee policy. Fraser maintained his voice throughout the first decade of the century 4 , and many commentators started describing him as an example of how under good leadership Australia could act around refugees and asylum seekers, describing him as an "unacknowledged humanitarian" 5
Affairs (2002-07) DORS Determination of Refugee Status Committee DP, DPs Displaced Person(s) EEZ ... more Affairs (2002-07) DORS Determination of Refugee Status Committee DP, DPs Displaced Person(s) EEZ Exclusive Economic Zone EXCOM Executive Committee of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees FCA Federal Court of Australia G4S Group 4 Securicor GSL Global Solutions Limited As a social worker with a longstanding commitment to the framework of the community development of accountable engagement, I hold firm views on organisations as networks for change: I think it's more often than not the case that some individuals who are not in charge of running an organisation are actually its builders and change catalysts. Thirty-five years ago it meant that I made sure to get on well with the frontdesk secretary, those who look after the stationary supply and the people who make sure that there's coffee and cake. The contemporaries of these central organisers are often the people in administrative roles whose remarkable work is often overlooked when formal directions processes are formulated in NGO's and government organisations. Having conducted the research at a distance of 200 kms from ECU's Joondalup Campus, I acknowledge the consistent efficiency of the fabulous Nicky Kemp who knows how the University works and who always had the answers when I needed them. In the Graduate School Nicky's equivalent is Clare Ashby, who felt just fine when I fielded the myriad of questions of someone who has always shied away from Universities, being all too aware of their conservative culture and concentrations of undue power. My thanks must also go to the Research Students & Scholarships Committee who, trusting the elaborate case I had presented, granted me the ECU Postgraduate Research Scholarship; I hope my resulting product does not disappoint you. My supervisor Peter Hancock's most outstanding feature has always been his fast and efficient turnaround time for my submitted work: I could always count on my chapters being returned to me within 24 hours. Thanks Peter, you've been a great example of accountable engagement in this respect. Finally, this thesis was never going to add to the vast body of knowledge of Australia's "asylum seeker policy" but about unwinding Australia's far right-spun manipulative "asylum seeker politics". More than anyone concerned with these issues, it is my friend and colleague Ian Rintoul who, as my sounding board during this period, understands this with a relaxed and open mind, acknowledging my attempt to tackle this issue. To Ian and some others, I extend my warm thanks for the generous support I have received.
Australia\u27s former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser was not the great humanitarian of Australian ... more Australia\u27s former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser was not the great humanitarian of Australian refugee policy many people have claimed in recent years. Such claims are held especially when painting a contrast with the hardline policies implemented by Prime Minister John Howard from 2001 onwards. Although Fraser achieved many things around the intake of Indo-Chinese refugees following the fall of Saigon, the combination of his “boat-holding policy”, his deterrent international broadcast messages about “queue jumpers” and his refusal to deal with five huge vessels sailing from Vietnam show that in relation to “boat arrivals” Fraser was similar to all Prime Ministers that came after him, hoping that “the boats would stop”. Fraser not only refused to deal with these five huge vessels, even after the UN stated that the passengers should be treated as refugees, he held them up as examples of “trafficking” when his “people smuggling laws” were presented, debated and passed in Parliament ...
Submission to the Houston Expert Panel on Asylum Seekers, 2012
The following pages contain our submission to be considered by your members in line with your bri... more The following pages contain our submission to be considered by your members in line with your brief to provide policy advice on: • how best to prevent asylum seekers risking their lives by travelling to Australia by boat; • source, transit and destination country aspects of irregular migration; • relevant international obligations; • the development of an inter-related set of proposals in support of asylum seeker issues, given Australia’s right to maintain its borders; • short, medium and long term approaches to assist in the development of an effective and sustainable approach to asylum seekers; • the legislative requirements for implementation; and • the order of magnitude of costs of such policy options. We will only address some of the points outlined in your Terms of Reference, but in endorsing three other submissions to your Panel you may regard the points made in those submissions as being relevant to this submission. Nonetheless, we hope our writing will provide salient and ...
TAMARA, Journal for Critical Organization Inquiry, 2009
In an environment where the national government creates deliberate policies to create a blockade ... more In an environment where the national government creates deliberate policies to create a blockade and a silence around the stories of uninvited refugees coming to its shores, human rights advocates have a tough time creating conditions to make the stories heard by the policy makers and the general public alike. However, the Australian experience shows that 'breaking through the sound barrier of silence' is possible, using creative collaborations with reporters, the tactics of subversion, smart strategies aimed at those setting reporting standards, and through an engagement with the wider audience of human rights advocates around the nation. In this article, five government-created barriers are identified and ingeniously countered.
This thesis explores the Australian State response to the voyage facilitators of maritime asylum ... more This thesis explores the Australian State response to the voyage facilitators of maritime asylum seekers, commonly known as ‘people smugglers’. It does so by examining a number of Parliamentary debates and previously confidential Cabinet papers. Negative depictions of asylum seekers and their voyage facilitators as well as the prevailing political discourse is critically explored while Parliamentary debates are analysed using Critical Discourse Analysis. The research questions the ways Australian legislators justified the criminalisation of these voyage facilitators and investigates whether political elites were sufficiently informed about the circumstances of maritime asylum seeker journeys and the unique nature of their travel arrangements. The analysis is conducted within the container of established asylum seeker rights as formulated by the United Nations is its 1951 Refugee Convention. Within the Australian context these are framed as the “rights of unauthorised arrivals”. By e...
Malcolm Fraser's response to 'commercial' refugee voyages ♣ Under Australia's former neo-conserva... more Malcolm Fraser's response to 'commercial' refugee voyages ♣ Under Australia's former neo-conservative Liberal Prime Minister John Howard 1 , hardline and deterrent policies targeting maritime asylum seekers attempting to reach Australian shores culminated in excessive measures 2. Most of these measures escalated especially during the years 2001-2005 3 , and former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser was one of the many Australians who started speaking out for changes. He yearned for more moderate policies, and on frequent occasions he recalled his own policy initiatives supporting the notion of multiculturalism from the late 1970s and early 1980s. He advocated for a return by Australia to a fuller compliance with its international legal obligations for the treatment of asylum seekers and refugees, while he lamented the loss of political bipartisanship around refugee policy. Fraser maintained his voice throughout the first decade of the century 4 , and many commentators started describing him as an example of how under good leadership Australia could act around refugees and asylum seekers, describing him as an "unacknowledged humanitarian" 5
Affairs (2002-07) DORS Determination of Refugee Status Committee DP, DPs Displaced Person(s) EEZ ... more Affairs (2002-07) DORS Determination of Refugee Status Committee DP, DPs Displaced Person(s) EEZ Exclusive Economic Zone EXCOM Executive Committee of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees FCA Federal Court of Australia G4S Group 4 Securicor GSL Global Solutions Limited As a social worker with a longstanding commitment to the framework of the community development of accountable engagement, I hold firm views on organisations as networks for change: I think it's more often than not the case that some individuals who are not in charge of running an organisation are actually its builders and change catalysts. Thirty-five years ago it meant that I made sure to get on well with the frontdesk secretary, those who look after the stationary supply and the people who make sure that there's coffee and cake. The contemporaries of these central organisers are often the people in administrative roles whose remarkable work is often overlooked when formal directions processes are formulated in NGO's and government organisations. Having conducted the research at a distance of 200 kms from ECU's Joondalup Campus, I acknowledge the consistent efficiency of the fabulous Nicky Kemp who knows how the University works and who always had the answers when I needed them. In the Graduate School Nicky's equivalent is Clare Ashby, who felt just fine when I fielded the myriad of questions of someone who has always shied away from Universities, being all too aware of their conservative culture and concentrations of undue power. My thanks must also go to the Research Students & Scholarships Committee who, trusting the elaborate case I had presented, granted me the ECU Postgraduate Research Scholarship; I hope my resulting product does not disappoint you. My supervisor Peter Hancock's most outstanding feature has always been his fast and efficient turnaround time for my submitted work: I could always count on my chapters being returned to me within 24 hours. Thanks Peter, you've been a great example of accountable engagement in this respect. Finally, this thesis was never going to add to the vast body of knowledge of Australia's "asylum seeker policy" but about unwinding Australia's far right-spun manipulative "asylum seeker politics". More than anyone concerned with these issues, it is my friend and colleague Ian Rintoul who, as my sounding board during this period, understands this with a relaxed and open mind, acknowledging my attempt to tackle this issue. To Ian and some others, I extend my warm thanks for the generous support I have received.
This thesis explores the Australian State response to the voyage facilitators of maritime asylum ... more This thesis explores the Australian State response to the voyage facilitators of maritime asylum seekers, commonly known as 'people smugglers'. It does so by examining a number of Parliamentary debates and previously confidential Cabinet papers.
Negative depictions of asylum seekers and their voyage facilitators as well as the prevailing political discourse is critically explored while Parliamentary debates are analysed using Critical Discourse Analysis. The research questions the ways Australian legislators justified the criminalisation of these voyage facilitators and investigates whether political elites were sufficiently informed about the circumstances of maritime asylum seeker journeys and the unique nature of their travel arrangements.
The analysis is conducted within the container of established asylum seeker rights as formulated by the United Nations is its 1951 Refugee Convention. Within the Australian context these are framed as the "rights of unauthorised arrivals".
By examining de-classified Fraser government documents, the thesis presents evidence of the State's intent to criminalise 'people smugglers' as part of a two-fold strategy, aiming to also punish maritime asylum seekers for arriving uninvited. This strategy was first proposed under the Fraser government soon after the first asylum seeker vessels arrived in Australia during the late 1970s.
The research findings indicate that the increasingly harsh measures imposed by successive Australian governments targeting smugglers and passengers represents an increasingly punitive and continuous series of policy proposals and parliamentary discourse, where the voyage facilitators became the recipients of criminal labels such as "traffickers" and "smugglers" while 1980 legislative measures determined them to be serious criminals.
The research also analyses legislative measures aiming to impose criminal sanctions implemented by the Howard government in 1999, and legislation that established a wide range of extended powers to Australian border officials in dealing with 'unauthorised' vessels entering Australian waters.
Both legislative measures were responses to a number of undetected entries by vessels with Chinese migrants in the lead-up to the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games. This section of the research explores the dominant "national security" narrative constructed by Australia's conservative political elites in order to justify the legislation criminalising 'people smugglers'.
The research presents documented evidence that the Howard government withheld details of the Chinese arrivals from Parliament for 'operational reasons' and that the Immigration Department attempted to influence political debates by means of distributing a manipulative briefing document in the Parliament. Post-research participant interviews present evidence that Prime Minister John Howard's Immigration Minister Phillip Ruddock held the view that nobody has the right, neither by air nor by boat, to enter Australia to seek asylum.
The research concludes that the legislative measures criminalising 'people smugglers' were not presented in order to fight transnational people trafficking but that they were instead presented and passed by the Parliament to 'stop the boats' and to further deter assisted asylum voyages into Australia by regarding such ventures as illegal without due regard for the UN Refugee Convention.
Australia's former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser was not the great humanitarian of Australian ref... more Australia's former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser was not the great humanitarian of Australian refugee policy many people have claimed in recent years. Such claims are held especially when painting a contrast with the hardline policies implemented by Prime Minister John Howard from 2001 onwards.
Although Fraser achieved many things around the intake of Indo-Chinese refugees following the fall of Saigon, the combination of his “boat-holding policy”, his deterrent international broadcast messages about “queue jumpers” and his refusal to deal with five huge vessels sailing from Vietnam show that in relation to “boat arrivals” Fraser was similar to all Prime Ministers that came after him, hoping that “the boats would stop”.
Fraser not only refused to deal with these five huge vessels, even after the UN stated that the passengers should be treated as refugees, he held them up as examples of “trafficking” when his “people smuggling laws” were presented, debated and passed in Parliament during 1980.
Moreover, the policy patterns and directions set in place from 1978 to 1980, although they may well have been drafted by Australian immigration officials, confirmed the directions firmly maintained under successive governments from Fraser onwards.
If Fraser would have employed a different response around immigration department initiatives, Australians may now well react very differently every time an asylum seeker boat arrives on their horizon.
In an environment where the national government creates deliberate policies to create a blockade ... more In an environment where the national government creates deliberate policies to create a blockade and a silence around the stories of uninvited refugees coming to its shores, human rights advocates have a tough time creating conditions to make the stories heard by the policy makers and the general public alike, but the Australian experience shows that 'breaking through the sound barrier of silence' is possible, using creative collaborations with reporters, the tactics of subversion, smart strategies aimed at those setting reporting standards, and through an engagement with the wider audience of human rights advocates around the nation. In this article, five government-created barriers are identified and ingeniously countered
Malcolm Fraser's response to 'commercial' refugee voyages ♣ Under Australia's former neo-conserva... more Malcolm Fraser's response to 'commercial' refugee voyages ♣ Under Australia's former neo-conservative Liberal Prime Minister John Howard 1 , hardline and deterrent policies targeting maritime asylum seekers attempting to reach Australian shores culminated in excessive measures 2. Most of these measures escalated especially during the years 2001-2005 3 , and former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser was one of the many Australians who started speaking out for changes. He yearned for more moderate policies, and on frequent occasions he recalled his own policy initiatives supporting the notion of multiculturalism from the late 1970s and early 1980s. He advocated for a return by Australia to a fuller compliance with its international legal obligations for the treatment of asylum seekers and refugees, while he lamented the loss of political bipartisanship around refugee policy. Fraser maintained his voice throughout the first decade of the century 4 , and many commentators started describing him as an example of how under good leadership Australia could act around refugees and asylum seekers, describing him as an "unacknowledged humanitarian" 5
Affairs (2002-07) DORS Determination of Refugee Status Committee DP, DPs Displaced Person(s) EEZ ... more Affairs (2002-07) DORS Determination of Refugee Status Committee DP, DPs Displaced Person(s) EEZ Exclusive Economic Zone EXCOM Executive Committee of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees FCA Federal Court of Australia G4S Group 4 Securicor GSL Global Solutions Limited As a social worker with a longstanding commitment to the framework of the community development of accountable engagement, I hold firm views on organisations as networks for change: I think it's more often than not the case that some individuals who are not in charge of running an organisation are actually its builders and change catalysts. Thirty-five years ago it meant that I made sure to get on well with the frontdesk secretary, those who look after the stationary supply and the people who make sure that there's coffee and cake. The contemporaries of these central organisers are often the people in administrative roles whose remarkable work is often overlooked when formal directions processes are formulated in NGO's and government organisations. Having conducted the research at a distance of 200 kms from ECU's Joondalup Campus, I acknowledge the consistent efficiency of the fabulous Nicky Kemp who knows how the University works and who always had the answers when I needed them. In the Graduate School Nicky's equivalent is Clare Ashby, who felt just fine when I fielded the myriad of questions of someone who has always shied away from Universities, being all too aware of their conservative culture and concentrations of undue power. My thanks must also go to the Research Students & Scholarships Committee who, trusting the elaborate case I had presented, granted me the ECU Postgraduate Research Scholarship; I hope my resulting product does not disappoint you. My supervisor Peter Hancock's most outstanding feature has always been his fast and efficient turnaround time for my submitted work: I could always count on my chapters being returned to me within 24 hours. Thanks Peter, you've been a great example of accountable engagement in this respect. Finally, this thesis was never going to add to the vast body of knowledge of Australia's "asylum seeker policy" but about unwinding Australia's far right-spun manipulative "asylum seeker politics". More than anyone concerned with these issues, it is my friend and colleague Ian Rintoul who, as my sounding board during this period, understands this with a relaxed and open mind, acknowledging my attempt to tackle this issue. To Ian and some others, I extend my warm thanks for the generous support I have received.
Australia\u27s former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser was not the great humanitarian of Australian ... more Australia\u27s former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser was not the great humanitarian of Australian refugee policy many people have claimed in recent years. Such claims are held especially when painting a contrast with the hardline policies implemented by Prime Minister John Howard from 2001 onwards. Although Fraser achieved many things around the intake of Indo-Chinese refugees following the fall of Saigon, the combination of his “boat-holding policy”, his deterrent international broadcast messages about “queue jumpers” and his refusal to deal with five huge vessels sailing from Vietnam show that in relation to “boat arrivals” Fraser was similar to all Prime Ministers that came after him, hoping that “the boats would stop”. Fraser not only refused to deal with these five huge vessels, even after the UN stated that the passengers should be treated as refugees, he held them up as examples of “trafficking” when his “people smuggling laws” were presented, debated and passed in Parliament ...
Submission to the Houston Expert Panel on Asylum Seekers, 2012
The following pages contain our submission to be considered by your members in line with your bri... more The following pages contain our submission to be considered by your members in line with your brief to provide policy advice on: • how best to prevent asylum seekers risking their lives by travelling to Australia by boat; • source, transit and destination country aspects of irregular migration; • relevant international obligations; • the development of an inter-related set of proposals in support of asylum seeker issues, given Australia’s right to maintain its borders; • short, medium and long term approaches to assist in the development of an effective and sustainable approach to asylum seekers; • the legislative requirements for implementation; and • the order of magnitude of costs of such policy options. We will only address some of the points outlined in your Terms of Reference, but in endorsing three other submissions to your Panel you may regard the points made in those submissions as being relevant to this submission. Nonetheless, we hope our writing will provide salient and ...
TAMARA, Journal for Critical Organization Inquiry, 2009
In an environment where the national government creates deliberate policies to create a blockade ... more In an environment where the national government creates deliberate policies to create a blockade and a silence around the stories of uninvited refugees coming to its shores, human rights advocates have a tough time creating conditions to make the stories heard by the policy makers and the general public alike. However, the Australian experience shows that 'breaking through the sound barrier of silence' is possible, using creative collaborations with reporters, the tactics of subversion, smart strategies aimed at those setting reporting standards, and through an engagement with the wider audience of human rights advocates around the nation. In this article, five government-created barriers are identified and ingeniously countered.
This thesis explores the Australian State response to the voyage facilitators of maritime asylum ... more This thesis explores the Australian State response to the voyage facilitators of maritime asylum seekers, commonly known as ‘people smugglers’. It does so by examining a number of Parliamentary debates and previously confidential Cabinet papers. Negative depictions of asylum seekers and their voyage facilitators as well as the prevailing political discourse is critically explored while Parliamentary debates are analysed using Critical Discourse Analysis. The research questions the ways Australian legislators justified the criminalisation of these voyage facilitators and investigates whether political elites were sufficiently informed about the circumstances of maritime asylum seeker journeys and the unique nature of their travel arrangements. The analysis is conducted within the container of established asylum seeker rights as formulated by the United Nations is its 1951 Refugee Convention. Within the Australian context these are framed as the “rights of unauthorised arrivals”. By e...
Malcolm Fraser's response to 'commercial' refugee voyages ♣ Under Australia's former neo-conserva... more Malcolm Fraser's response to 'commercial' refugee voyages ♣ Under Australia's former neo-conservative Liberal Prime Minister John Howard 1 , hardline and deterrent policies targeting maritime asylum seekers attempting to reach Australian shores culminated in excessive measures 2. Most of these measures escalated especially during the years 2001-2005 3 , and former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser was one of the many Australians who started speaking out for changes. He yearned for more moderate policies, and on frequent occasions he recalled his own policy initiatives supporting the notion of multiculturalism from the late 1970s and early 1980s. He advocated for a return by Australia to a fuller compliance with its international legal obligations for the treatment of asylum seekers and refugees, while he lamented the loss of political bipartisanship around refugee policy. Fraser maintained his voice throughout the first decade of the century 4 , and many commentators started describing him as an example of how under good leadership Australia could act around refugees and asylum seekers, describing him as an "unacknowledged humanitarian" 5
Affairs (2002-07) DORS Determination of Refugee Status Committee DP, DPs Displaced Person(s) EEZ ... more Affairs (2002-07) DORS Determination of Refugee Status Committee DP, DPs Displaced Person(s) EEZ Exclusive Economic Zone EXCOM Executive Committee of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees FCA Federal Court of Australia G4S Group 4 Securicor GSL Global Solutions Limited As a social worker with a longstanding commitment to the framework of the community development of accountable engagement, I hold firm views on organisations as networks for change: I think it's more often than not the case that some individuals who are not in charge of running an organisation are actually its builders and change catalysts. Thirty-five years ago it meant that I made sure to get on well with the frontdesk secretary, those who look after the stationary supply and the people who make sure that there's coffee and cake. The contemporaries of these central organisers are often the people in administrative roles whose remarkable work is often overlooked when formal directions processes are formulated in NGO's and government organisations. Having conducted the research at a distance of 200 kms from ECU's Joondalup Campus, I acknowledge the consistent efficiency of the fabulous Nicky Kemp who knows how the University works and who always had the answers when I needed them. In the Graduate School Nicky's equivalent is Clare Ashby, who felt just fine when I fielded the myriad of questions of someone who has always shied away from Universities, being all too aware of their conservative culture and concentrations of undue power. My thanks must also go to the Research Students & Scholarships Committee who, trusting the elaborate case I had presented, granted me the ECU Postgraduate Research Scholarship; I hope my resulting product does not disappoint you. My supervisor Peter Hancock's most outstanding feature has always been his fast and efficient turnaround time for my submitted work: I could always count on my chapters being returned to me within 24 hours. Thanks Peter, you've been a great example of accountable engagement in this respect. Finally, this thesis was never going to add to the vast body of knowledge of Australia's "asylum seeker policy" but about unwinding Australia's far right-spun manipulative "asylum seeker politics". More than anyone concerned with these issues, it is my friend and colleague Ian Rintoul who, as my sounding board during this period, understands this with a relaxed and open mind, acknowledging my attempt to tackle this issue. To Ian and some others, I extend my warm thanks for the generous support I have received.
This thesis explores the Australian State response to the voyage facilitators of maritime asylum ... more This thesis explores the Australian State response to the voyage facilitators of maritime asylum seekers, commonly known as 'people smugglers'. It does so by examining a number of Parliamentary debates and previously confidential Cabinet papers.
Negative depictions of asylum seekers and their voyage facilitators as well as the prevailing political discourse is critically explored while Parliamentary debates are analysed using Critical Discourse Analysis. The research questions the ways Australian legislators justified the criminalisation of these voyage facilitators and investigates whether political elites were sufficiently informed about the circumstances of maritime asylum seeker journeys and the unique nature of their travel arrangements.
The analysis is conducted within the container of established asylum seeker rights as formulated by the United Nations is its 1951 Refugee Convention. Within the Australian context these are framed as the "rights of unauthorised arrivals".
By examining de-classified Fraser government documents, the thesis presents evidence of the State's intent to criminalise 'people smugglers' as part of a two-fold strategy, aiming to also punish maritime asylum seekers for arriving uninvited. This strategy was first proposed under the Fraser government soon after the first asylum seeker vessels arrived in Australia during the late 1970s.
The research findings indicate that the increasingly harsh measures imposed by successive Australian governments targeting smugglers and passengers represents an increasingly punitive and continuous series of policy proposals and parliamentary discourse, where the voyage facilitators became the recipients of criminal labels such as "traffickers" and "smugglers" while 1980 legislative measures determined them to be serious criminals.
The research also analyses legislative measures aiming to impose criminal sanctions implemented by the Howard government in 1999, and legislation that established a wide range of extended powers to Australian border officials in dealing with 'unauthorised' vessels entering Australian waters.
Both legislative measures were responses to a number of undetected entries by vessels with Chinese migrants in the lead-up to the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games. This section of the research explores the dominant "national security" narrative constructed by Australia's conservative political elites in order to justify the legislation criminalising 'people smugglers'.
The research presents documented evidence that the Howard government withheld details of the Chinese arrivals from Parliament for 'operational reasons' and that the Immigration Department attempted to influence political debates by means of distributing a manipulative briefing document in the Parliament. Post-research participant interviews present evidence that Prime Minister John Howard's Immigration Minister Phillip Ruddock held the view that nobody has the right, neither by air nor by boat, to enter Australia to seek asylum.
The research concludes that the legislative measures criminalising 'people smugglers' were not presented in order to fight transnational people trafficking but that they were instead presented and passed by the Parliament to 'stop the boats' and to further deter assisted asylum voyages into Australia by regarding such ventures as illegal without due regard for the UN Refugee Convention.
Australia's former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser was not the great humanitarian of Australian ref... more Australia's former Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser was not the great humanitarian of Australian refugee policy many people have claimed in recent years. Such claims are held especially when painting a contrast with the hardline policies implemented by Prime Minister John Howard from 2001 onwards.
Although Fraser achieved many things around the intake of Indo-Chinese refugees following the fall of Saigon, the combination of his “boat-holding policy”, his deterrent international broadcast messages about “queue jumpers” and his refusal to deal with five huge vessels sailing from Vietnam show that in relation to “boat arrivals” Fraser was similar to all Prime Ministers that came after him, hoping that “the boats would stop”.
Fraser not only refused to deal with these five huge vessels, even after the UN stated that the passengers should be treated as refugees, he held them up as examples of “trafficking” when his “people smuggling laws” were presented, debated and passed in Parliament during 1980.
Moreover, the policy patterns and directions set in place from 1978 to 1980, although they may well have been drafted by Australian immigration officials, confirmed the directions firmly maintained under successive governments from Fraser onwards.
If Fraser would have employed a different response around immigration department initiatives, Australians may now well react very differently every time an asylum seeker boat arrives on their horizon.
In an environment where the national government creates deliberate policies to create a blockade ... more In an environment where the national government creates deliberate policies to create a blockade and a silence around the stories of uninvited refugees coming to its shores, human rights advocates have a tough time creating conditions to make the stories heard by the policy makers and the general public alike, but the Australian experience shows that 'breaking through the sound barrier of silence' is possible, using creative collaborations with reporters, the tactics of subversion, smart strategies aimed at those setting reporting standards, and through an engagement with the wider audience of human rights advocates around the nation. In this article, five government-created barriers are identified and ingeniously countered