Asylum Seekers — Against 'on water' screening and transfer practices

The majority voted against a motion introduced by Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young. The motion was:

"_That the Senate calls on the Government to cease the current 'on water' screening and transfers of asylum seekers which the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has said fall well short of Australia's international obligations and could mean that asylum seekers were returned, or refouled, to persecution._"

Background to the motion

By "'on water' screening and transfers", Senator Hanson-Young is referring to two recent incidents involving asylum seeker boats intercepted by Australian Customs.

The first involved an asylum seeker boat that carried 41 asylum seekers from Sri Lanka, including four Tamils. The boat was intercepted by Australian Customs and their claims for asylum were assessed via teleconference at sea. Only one was found to have a case for seeking asylum, but the Government says they chose to return to Sri Lanka with the others after being told they would be sent to Manus Island or Nauru. All 41 people were transferred to the Sri Lankan navy and are now facing charges in a Sri Lankan Court.(Read more about the 41 people returned to Sri Lanka by Australian Customs here.)

The second incident involved a boat that carried 153 asylum seekers, including young children. The boat was also intercepted by Australian Customs but a High Court interim injunction blocked them from transferring the asylum seekers to Sri Lanka.(Read more about the High Court interim injunction here. ) The Government has undertaken to give three days' notice before returning the asylum seekers. Currently, the 153 asylum seekers are aboard a Customs vessel in an unknown location and it is unclear whether they will stay there until their case can proceed through the High Court.(Read more about the standoff in the High Court here.)

Australia's international protection obligations include the principle of non-refoulement, which ABC News explained as "UN-speak for not turning away a refugee without a fair hearing, a key tenet of the 1951 Refugee Convention".(Read the whole ABC News article here.)