Asylum seeker rights
Media and commentary related to our work on asylum seeker rights and ensuring access to health care in Australian immigration detention.
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A Legislative Vacuum: The Healthcare Crisis in Onshore Immigration Detention
Healthcare in Australian immigration detention is in crisis. People in immigration detention continue to be arbitrarily refused medical treatment, leading to the exacerbation and non-diagnosis of many serious conditions. The Australian government is failing to provide access to medical care and treatment despite the fact that it owes a clear common law duty of care to…
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2SER interview: Why UN torture inspectors suspended their Australian visit
A UN Subcommittee responsible for the prevention of torture and cruel and degrading treatment recently visited Australia to carry out inspections of places of detention, which include prisons, youth detention centres and immigration detention. Shockingly, the Subcommittee ended its visit early, saying there was lack of cooperation from Australian authorities. The delegation released a statement, saying…
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UN oversight body asked to rule on cruelty of Australian immigration detention
Leading Australian human rights advocates have asked a UN oversight body visiting Australia to rule on whether treatment of asylum seekers in Australian immigration detention amounts to cruel and degrading treatment, or even torture. The UN Subcommittee on the Prevention of Torture arrived on Sunday 16 October to investigate whether Australia is meeting its obligations…
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2SER interview: Handcuffing in Australian immigration detention
PIAC’s work with people in immigration detention shows the overuse of handcuffs is preventing people in onshore immigration detention from getting medical treatment. Senior Solicitor Jonathan Hall-Spence told 2SER about our concerns and why we are raising them with the UN Subcommittee on the Prevention of Torture ahead of a visit to Australia by committee…
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Activists Want The UN To Look Into Inhumane Use Of Handcuffs On Asylum Seekers
The Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) is urging the United Nations torture watchdog to investigate Australia’s treatment of asylum seekers seeking medical treatment. Asylum seekers in immigration are handcuffed when seeking transfers for medical care, a practice that has been widely condemned and accused of being in breach of human rights laws. PIAC is urging…
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Being handcuffed for medical appointments left asylum seeker Yasir shaken. Why is it happening?
Asylum seekers are being given the choice of being handcuffed on their way to medical appointments or missing out on healthcare, and an Australian rights group is calling for the United Nations to look into it. On his way to see a doctor, Yasir* says he would be routinely handcuffed while he was in immigration…
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Call for UN torture watchdog to investigate Australia’s handcuffing of asylum seekers en route to medical care
The United Nations’ torture prevention watchdog has been urged to investigate Australia’s use of handcuffs on asylum seekers when seeking medical care – a practice advocates condemn as inhumane and unlawful. In 2020, the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) launched a landmark test case in the federal court alleging the practice of handcuffing immigration detainees…
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Handcuffing in Australian immigration detention needs urgent review ahead of UN visit
The Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC) says a comprehensive review of handcuffing in Australia’s onshore immigration detention system is urgently needed. Handcuffing asylum seekers for offsite medical appointments and transfers between facilities has become routine practice, without individualised and appropriate assessment of risk. PIAC’s work with people in immigration detention shows the overuse of handcuffs…
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“Tough on borders”: how Australia’s immigration detention system fails refugee and asylum seeker health
Public Interest Advocacy Centre reports have found that adequate health care had not been delivered to Medevac refugees, particularly regarding mental health care services and mitigating transmission risks during the COVID‐19 pandemic.
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Medevac’d refugee finally receives treatment after 870 days detained in hotels
Following advocacy by PIAC, a refugee with a painful health condition has finally received treatment after an almost three-year ordeal. Their case highlights the Government’s failure to provide essential healthcare for people in Australian immigration detention. Zahid Hussain, who was held in the Australian immigration detention system for eight years after fleeing Pakistan, has a…