Inquest into Sydney detention centre suicides raises questions over missed medication and care routines. By Jordyn Beazley, The Guardian

Three people who killed themselves in a Sydney immigration detention centre all received appropriate mental health care, an inquest has found.

But it was unclear why detainees at Villawood detention centre routinely did not take their medication or attend medical appointments, the inquest said.

Villawood, in western Sydney, was operated by the private operator Serco at the time of each of the suicides, and health services in the centre were managed by International Health and Medical Service.

The health services are now run by another provider, and Secure Journeys, a local subsidiary of Management & Training Corporation (MTC), will soon take over operation of Villawood from Serco.

The inquest recommended the federal government commission an independent study to examine why detainees routinely do not take their medication, or attend appointments.

Inquest into Sydney detention centre suicides raises questions over missed medication and care routines. By Jordyn Beazley, The Guardian

Evacuations Research Hub, Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law, UNSW

Evacuations can be a lifesaving tool. But as recent global conflicts and unprecedented disasters have shown, without careful planning and oversight, evacuations can also displace people – often for prolonged periods and at great social, economic and personal cost.

The emergency nature of evacuations means that governments tend to focus on immediate assistance and may overlook longer-term needs, potentially leaving people in legal, physical and emotional limbo, without homes, livelihoods or support networks. 

Evacuations Research Hub, Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law, UNSW

Misinformation on refugees and migrants is rife during elections. We found 6 ways it spreads – and how to stop it. By Daniel Gezelbash & Saul Wodak (UNSW), The Conversation

…Australia is not immune to such deception. While refugees and migrants make significant positive economic, social and cultural contributions to their host societies, politicians across the spectrum have falsely blamed them for issues ranging from rising house prices to crime……

…Building on these principles and an extensive review of research literature, we developed an evidence-based framework for countering misinformation about refugees and migrants.

It provides a step-by-step guide on what to do when faced with falsehoods, starting with recognising whether the misinformation is anticipated or already circulating.

Misinformation on refugees and migrants is rife during elections. We found 6 ways it spreads – and how to stop it. By Daniel Gezelbash & Saul Wodak (UNSW), The Conversation

Securing Australia's new Pacific Engagement Visa costly, slow and 'stressful', applicants say. By Lucy Cooper, ABC News

The Australian government launched the Permanent Engagement Visa last year saying it would "strengthen" the nation's links with the Pacific.

The PEV will grant permanent residency to citizens from the Pacific and Timor-Leste chosen through a random ballot, similar to the "Green Card Lottery" seen in the US.

Those selected can apply for a visa, and up to 3,000 visas are available each round.

It's opened a major new migration pathway for Australia's closest neighbours and generated huge interest in the region, with more than 56,000 people applying. 

But more than five months after applications closed, the federal government has allocated less than 5 per cent of the total visas available this round.

Securing Australia's new Pacific Engagement Visa costly, slow and 'stressful', applicants say. By Lucy Cooper, ABC News

Increased cruelty fears for refugees amid harsh new migration laws. By Lesa Sholl, The Melbourne Anglican

Brigidine Asylum Seeker Project co-founder Sister Brigid Arthur said the effects of the migration amendments haven’t been seen, yet, but detainees were scared.

“It scares everybody that people could be deported. They can be sent to any other country,” she said. “It could be used in really awful ways, very cruel ways, and it’s against international law.”

Sister Arthur said it was sheer cruelty to have people locked up indefinitely, not knowing if they would ever be let out.

Increased cruelty fears for refugees amid harsh new migration laws. By Lesa Sholl, The Melbourne Anglican

The Harmful Rhetoric and Political Game Against Refugees and People Seeking Asylum Must Stop, By Zaki Haidari, Refugee Rights Campaigner, Amnesty International Australia

I was forced to flee my home in Afghanistan back in 2011 after the Taliban threatened my family’s lives. I made it to Australia, but for years, I lived in limbo, trapped on temporary visas, unable to reunite with my family. After a decade of relentless campaigning, I helped abolish temporary visas, finally securing permanent residency and the right to bring my family to safety. But many refugees in Australia are still waiting, many remaining indefinitely separated from their loved ones.

In my 13 years in Australia, I have been embraced by everyday Australians —a kindness I will cherish forever. Yet, for just as long, politicians have weaponised our lives, demonising us with dangerous rhetoric and cruel policies. Seeking votes, they introduce laws designed to break us, keep families apart, and make it near impossible for people in danger to find safety. These policies are not just cruel and inhumane, they violate Australia’s international legal obligations.

The Harmful Rhetoric and Political Game Against Refugees and People Seeking Asylum Must Stop, By Zaki Haidari, Refugee Rights Campaigner, Amnesty International Australia

Australia to play Afghanistan at ICC Champions Trophy despite boycotting other matches with nation. By James Vyver, ABC News

The cricketing world is caught in a vicious cycle when it comes to balancing sport and human rights.

Shafiqa Khan, a bowler with the exiled Afghanistan women's team, now lives as a refugee in Australia.

"If I compare my life to Afghan women they do not have anything, this feeling like breaks my heart all the time," Khan said.

Australia to play Afghanistan at ICC Champions Trophy despite boycotting other matches with nation. By James Vyver, ABC News

Musab longs for a call from his family overseas. But every time it rings, he's filled with dread. By Sam Dover, SBS News

Communication with loved ones in Sudan is rare and fleeting for Musab Hassan.
A member of the Zaghawa ethnic group, Hassan survived what in the early 2000s the International Criminal Court labelled as genocide in Darfur.
Now, from the safety of Sydney, he's spent every day waiting on word from the family he left behind.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade says in a statement that: "The Australian Government is extremely concerned by the conflict" and they "unequivocally condemn the appalling violence directed at civilians."

For Musab, such condemnation and concern is welcome, but provides little comfort while he despairs for the safety of his family.

 Musab longs for a call from his family overseas. But every time it rings, he's filled with dread. By Sam Dover, SBS News

It would take 100 years to resolve claims of 7,000 asylum seekers stuck on bridging visas Greens claim. By Krishani Dhanji, The Guardian

Before the 2022 election, Labor promised to abolish the the TPV and SHEV visas and allow them to apply for a permanent Resolution of Status (RoS) visa.

However, about 7,000 asylum seekers got rejected through the fast track process.

Their only pathway to permanent status in Australia is through ministerial intervention by the home affairs minister, assistant immigration minister, and assistant minister for citizenship and immigration.

The intervention would allow those people to apply for permanent visas.

Figures released to the Guardian show that between July and 24 November, just 24 people have had their cases considered; 19 whose cases were intervened, and five were not.

At this pace, Shoebridge said it would take about a century to process the cohort, calling it a “farce”. “That’s not a process, it’s a cruel hoax,” he said.

It would take 100 years to resolve claims of 7,000 asylum seekers stuck on bridging visas Greens claim. By Krishani Dhanji, The Guardian

Legal challenge launched to Australia's paid deportation to Nauru. By Tom Crowley, Jake Evans and Maani Truu, ABC News

The Human Rights Law Centre is representing a man who will challenge his deportation to Nauru in the High Court, in the first test of laws passed last year that allow the Australian government to pay other countries to accept deportees.

HRLC's associate legal director Laura John said the deportations: "Could set a dangerous precedent for the kind of treatment refugees and migrants are subjected to, both in Australia and around the world.

Legal challenge launched to Australia's paid deportation to Nauru. By Tom Crowley, Jake Evans and Maani Truu, ABC News

'Train wreck': What could a peace deal mean for Ukrainians who fled to Australia? By Cameron Carr, SBS News

Around 5,000 refugees and displaced Ukrainians in Australia may face limited options in post-war Ukraine….

…"We also have Ukrainians that are currently in Australia seeking refuge that are from occupied territories in Ukraine.

"So should a peace deal be made the way that [US] President [Donald] Trump is currently articulating and the occupied territories be handed over to Russia, which is an unfathomable outcome, the Ukrainians here wouldn't have a home to go back to."

'Train wreck': What could a peace deal mean for Ukrainians who fled to Australia? By Cameron Carr, SBS News

Dutton wrongly says Labor is fast-tracking citizenship for Gazans to win votes. By Natassia Chrysanthos, SMH

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke labelled Dutton’s comments “outrageous” while Rasha Abbas, who directs the agency assisting Palestinians fleeing the war, said just one family from Gaza had been given permanent visas on serious humanitarian grounds, but not offered citizenship. The rest are on temporary visas.

“This is not true. It’s all untruth,” Abbas said of Dutton’s claims. “There are laws around these things. There has been no citizenship granted to any of the Palestinians. There has been no change to the citizenship process. There is no bypassing of any security checks, they are done multiple times. Why are we singling out Palestinians?”

Dutton wrongly says Labor is fast-tracking citizenship for Gazans to win votes. By Natassia Chrysanthos, SMH

Juan arrived in Australia to a stocked pantry and kind faces. The government pilot that allowed it is here to stay, too. By Ben Doherty, The Guardian

The federal government will announce Thursday morning that the pilot program which brought the Santamarias to Australia – the Community Refugee Integration and Settlement Pilot (Crisp) – will now be made a permanent part of Australia’s humanitarian migration program.

The assistant minister for citizenship and multicultural affairs, Julian Hill, says that through the pilot program more than 500 refugees had been supported by church, community and sporting groups to settle in cities and towns across Australia.

Juan arrived in Australia to a stocked pantry and kind faces. The government pilot that allowed it is here to stay, too. By Ben Doherty, The Guardian

Australia is deporting 3 non-citizens from the ‘NZYQ’ group to Nauru. What could it do instead? By Mary Anne Kenny & Lisa van Toor, The Conversation

Other countries have established systems for managing non-citizens who are not entitled to protection or whose visas have been revoked due to criminal offences, ensuring they are not detained indefinitely.

After completing their prison sentences, these individuals are typically released into the community, where domestic law enforcement handles any further offending.

Neglecting to address offending behaviour or rehabilitation within the Australian system – whether during imprisonment, detention, or in the community – and then deporting individuals to developing countries doesn’t really solve the problem.

It simply means we are externalising the problem to a poorer country.

Australia is deporting 3 non-citizens from the ‘NZYQ’ group to Nauru. What could it do instead? By Mary Anne Kenny & Lisa van Toor, The Conversation

Majority of Australian voters expect fair and humane approach to refugees, poll shows. By Sarah Basford Canales, The Guardian


Political leaders are being urged to embrace refugee policies “grounded in humanity, not cruelty” as new research has found a majority of Australians polled believe the federal government has a responsibility to accept people seeking asylum.

Majority of Australian voters expect fair and humane approach to refugees, poll shows. By Sarah Basford Canales, The Guardian

A mixed bag: views on immigration in Australia. By Alyssa Leng, Ryan Edwards & Terence Wood, Dev Policy Blog

We used a large public opinion survey to study the attitudes of people in Australia to migration. Our aim was to determine whether respondents’ beliefs about migration were accurate and whether attitudes could be changed with additional information.

The full findings are in our new Development Policy Centre Discussion Paper.

A mixed bag: views on immigration in Australia. By Alyssa Leng, Ryan Edwards & Terence Wood, Dev Policy Blog

Burke expects legal challenge to Nauru deal deporting three violent NZYQ members. By Jessica Bahr, SBSr

Burke said the three men being removed from Australia had failed a character test, and their bridging visas were cancelled after Nauru issued long-term resettlement visas on Saturday.

He said they would not be deported within the next seven days, but it would occur "as soon as possible" once arrangements are made.

"When somebody has come and treated Australians in a way that shows an appalling character, their visas do get cancelled and when their visas are cancelled, they should leave," he told reporters on Sunday.

He signalled Nauru could take others from the cohort, saying the government there "had described these three visas as the first three".

Burke expects legal challenge to Nauru deal deporting three violent NZYQ members. By Jessica Bahr, SBS