Papua New Guinea to close Australia’s asylum seeker camp

The move to close the centre on Manus island follows a supreme court ruling on Tuesday that holding people there was unconstitutional and illegal.

A man walks between tents at Australia’s regional processing centre on Manus Island in Papua New Guinea, in February 2014. Agence France-Presse / Refugee Action Coalition

SYDNEY // Australia’s hardline immigration policy was thrown into turmoil Wednesday after Papua New Guinea ordered a processing camp to close, leaving the fate of hundreds of asylum seekers in the balance.

The move to shutter the Australian-funded centre on Manus island followed a supreme court ruling on Tuesday that holding people there was unconstitutional and illegal.

Putting further pressure on the Australian government, which is weeks from an expected election campaign, an Iranian refugee set himself on fire during a visit by United Nations officials to Nauru, the other Pacific nation where Australia sends boat people.

Four others on the outpost reportedly attempted suicide by drinking washing powder on Tuesday.

“Respecting this [court] ruling, Papua New Guinea will immediately ask the Australian government to make alternative arrangements for the asylum seekers currently held at the regional processing centre,” prime minister Peter O’Neill said of the Manus camp.

Papua New Guinea’s former opposition leader Belden Namah had challenged the Manus arrangement in court, and claimed it breached the rights of asylum seekers.

In a 34-page finding on Tuesday, the supreme court found that detaining them on the island was “contrary to their constitutional right of personal liberty”.

Despite this, Australian immigration minister Peter Dutton remained adamant that none of the 850 or so men held there would come to his country and that the government’s policy — designed to deter others wanting to make the risky journey by boat — would not change.

“As I have said, and as the Australian government has consistently acted, we will work with our PNG partners to address the issues raised by the supreme court of PNG,” he said after Mr O’Neill’s decision. “We will continue discussions with the PNG government to resolve these matters.”

Canberra has an arrangement with Cambodia, along with Papua New Guinea, to resettle those found to be refugees, although only a handful have taken up the option.

Australian media have reported that it is also trying to negotiate deals with Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines.

The court ruled that Australia and Papua New Guinea must “take all steps necessary to cease and prevent” the continued detention of asylum seekers and transferees on Manus.

Mr O’Neill did not set a time frame for the closure.

He said he did not anticipate asylum seekers being kept for so long at the Manus camp, which was reopened in 2012 by Australia after being closed five years earlier, when the then Labour government abandoned offshore processing.

Offshore processing, and the use of Manus, was first introduced in 2001 as a deterrent to people-smuggling by Australia’s former conservative government of John Howard in a punitive scheme known as the “Pacific solution”.

“For those that have been deemed to be legitimate refugees, we invite them to live in Papua New Guinea only if they want to be a part of our society and make a contribution to our community,” Mr O’Neill said. “It is clear that several of these refugees do not want to settle in Papua New Guinea and that is their decision.”

* Agence France-Presse