அவுஸ்திரேலியாவில் புகலிடக் கோரிக்கையாளர்கள் நடத்தப்படும் விதம் குறித்து ஐக்கிய நாடுகள் அமைப்பு அதிருப்தி வெளியிட்டுள்ளது.

 

http://tamilworldtoday.com/?p=17200

Humanitarian response to asylum-seekers needed: UNHCR

 

17 June 2013, Canberra - Speaking today ahead of World Refugee Day on 20 June, UNHCR Regional Representative Richard Towle said that the arrival of asylum-seekers to Australia by boat, involving the tragic loss of many innocent lives at sea, “is a humanitarian challenge that requires, fundamentally, a principled and humanitarian response in line with Australia’s proud record of assisting those in need.”

This year alone, this includes contributions of more than $60 million from the Australian Government and ordinary Australians that help UNHCR support refugees and others directly affected by war and conflict far from these shores.  Australia also has a generous resettlement program that, with a doubling of the quota to 12,000 refugees this year, is regarded as one of the world’s most effective programs. 

“And yet, at the same time, this generosity and solidarity for refugees globally has been accompanied by a sharp deterioration in the quality of protection for asylum-seekers and refugees coming by boat and a worrying erosion of public support for asylum in Australia,” Mr Towle said.  “UNHCR is concerned by a domestic asylum environment that involves an increasingly negative and, at times, mean spirited public debate on how to treat people arriving in this way,” he said.

“UNHCR understands the widespread concerns in Australia about border security, and the costs of managing the higher number of people arriving by boats, but it is imperative that these do not eclipse the fundamental legal and ethical principles on which the global system of asylum is founded.” 

In particular, UNHCR is concerned that there appears to be an ever-widening suite of deterrent measures being proposed or already in place: the forced transfer of asylum-seekers to less than adequate processing facilities in Nauru and Papua New Guinea; the use of unfair and unreliable enhanced screening arrangements; the suspension of processing of more than 20,000 asylum claims since 13 August last year; the use of mandatory detention; and limited levels of support for asylum-seekers in the community that are likely to inflict long term harm and suffering if refugee claims remain unresolved for prolonged periods.    

“Seen as a whole, UNHCR is concerned that asylum in Australia is very much at a cross roads – whether to continue down the path of ever more restrictive and deterrence-based policies and practices - or, to redouble efforts that engage other countries in the region through meaningful cooperation and collaboration,” Mr Towle said.

The key, in UNHCR’s view, is to use the Bali Process’ Regional Cooperation Framework (RCF) as a framework by which all states in the region can address their legitimate concerns over irregular maritime movements but, at the same time, ensure the humanitarian and protection needs of those affected are also addressed.     

     

“Genuine cooperative approaches, that promote burden-sharing, not burden-shifting,  could help lead to asylum-seekers and refugees being able to find viable protection options other than through dangerous and exploitative boat journeys to Australia and other parts of the region,” Mr Towle said.  

For UNHCR, it is also important that regional cooperation builds on and complements effective national asylum procedures.  “In the case of Australia,” Mr Towle said, “that means fair, efficient and robust asylum procedures that would enable protection to be found for those who need it and return home in safety and dignity for those who do not.”

“UNHCR acknowledges that the movement of refugees and asylum-seekers will always raise many challenges for States and host communities, Mr Towle said.  “That’s why we are encouraging governments - all around the world where these issues are faced - to look at the broader picture; to avoid simplistic explanations and populist reactions to what are complex and multi-dimensional issues.”

As a founding signatory to the 1951 Refugee Convention, Australia has shown its 60 year commitment to the values and principles of protection. Today, along with 147 other state parties, Australia’s leadership in protecting the rights of refugees, both at home and abroad, including upholding the institution of asylum, has never been so important.

 

http://unhcr.org.au/unhcr/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=322:humanitarian-response-to-asylum-seekers-needed-unhcr&catid=35:news-a-media&Itemid=63