INTERVIEW - ABC NEWS RADIO WITH ANNA HIPSLEY
14 October 2009
Subject: 200 extra beds at Christmas Island
HIPSLEY: As we've been hearing in the news this morning, the Federal Government's put an extra 200 bunk beds at the Christmas Island detention centre to meet a growing demand for accommodation and to prevent transferring asylum seekers to the mainland.
Over the past six weeks, more than a dozen boats carrying nearly 700 asylum seekers has been intercepted in Australian waters and that has push the Christmas Island Detention close to capacity. The Federal Government's responded over the past week by adding 200 bunk beds to rooms that have been previously set aside for recreation.
The opposition though says this shows it's in danger of becoming overcrowded and the Federal Home Affairs Minister Brendon O'Connor joins us now to talk about this issue more.
Minister thanks for being with us this morning.
O’CONNOR: Happy to be with you Anna.
HIPSLEY: What is the situation on Christmas Island? Are we at capacity?
O’CONNOR: No. As the Minister of Immigration has made clear we're looking at ensuring we can continue to process the irregular arrivals properly and do so on Christmas Island and therefore making sure that the detention centre can house detainees and at the same time look at other options on the island and as the Minister's also made clear we've also a contingency plan, if required, to consider the Darwin Detention Centre.
HIPSLEY: So it that the next port of call if those 200 beds are occupied?
O’CONNOR:The Government's focus is on disrupting people smugglers and preventing organised syndicates from exploiting people, taking their life savings and putting them in danger by putting them on vessels. That's our focus and we will continue to work very closely with the Indonesians and other countries in the region to dismantle these syndicates and prevent people being placed in danger and therefore the issue of processes won't arise.
HIPSLEY: I don't know if you've heard the comments this morning by the former Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer who said that this Government's softer policy is actually making people want to make those dangerous boat journeys. It's inhumane I think he's called it.
O’CONNOR: Well look it's interesting to hear from former ministers both former minister Ruddock and Downer but the fact is that we're always happy to have a policy debate with the opposition but it's impossible while they're in complete chaos. They are split down the middle and don't have a policy.
The fact is Anna, we're targeting the kingpins. Turnbull's proposed inquiry is a naval gazing exercise and it will do nothing to arrest and prosecute these criminals who seek to profit from the global tragedy that is people being displaced around the world.
HIPSLEY: So you think though the Government's stance is at all encouraging more people to try their luck and come to Australia?
O’CONNOR: No I think that it's clear that all first world countries - all developed nations are places that people seek haven. The one core factor around the world is that if you're a first world country people will seek to come and overwhelmingly the evidence is that these are push factors.
Afghanistan's most violent year since the war began was last year and that's resulted in more people seeking to find a haven in first world countries. And I'll just remind people that overwhelmingly, 97 per cent of Afghanistan people seeking a home elsewhere are going to Europe.
The case in Sri Lanka's - again, clear to anyone who wants to look, that there's been a bloody, long conflict and that's resulted in people looking to find elsewhere to live. Now these are things that are occurring. As a result there's been a surge in people seeking to get to this country I'm happy to say as a result of the resources we've dedicated to surveillance that we've prevented vessels arriving on the mainland but we'll continue to process people on Christmas Island and more importantly I think we'll focus our energies in collaboration with countries in the region to dismantle those syndicates that seek to exploit people, that seek to take their life savings and endanger their lives on an empty promise.
HIPSLEY: Whatever the motives we are seeing increasing numbers of asylum seekers. What is the solution here? OR maybe solution is not the best word to use, but what do you do I mean is moving them to the mainland another options? I mean what happens when facilities at all of the places that you flagged, are fall?
O’CONNOR: Well as I've said what we're seeking to do is to focus on preventing people getting on boats in the first place. So what's happened in recent times is - in fact in the last budget - the Government dedicated more resources to ensure we've got our law enforcement agencies and other agencies in places like Jakarta, like Colombo in Sri Lanka, and Malaysia to work with their law enforcement agencies to prevent these organised criminal syndicates exploiting...
HIPSLEY: [Interrupts] Yet the numbers are still increasing.
O’CONNOR: Well can I just say I've explained I think why efforts are being made as a result of people being displaced in certain areas where there's conflict. But it's really important that we focus our energies in source countries and transit countries and can I saw to you we've had more prosecutions of people smugglers this year than in many years.
But we are dealing with a surge. Now the surge is nowhere near the numbers that the Howard Government dealt with in the late 1990s but the fact is we've accepted that there is an increase in people seeking to come here. Our efforts will be firstly, to protect the integritity of our borders and secondly to dismantle those syndicates that attempt to exploit others. That has to be our focus.
HIPSLEY: Okay. We'll leave it there. I appreciate your time this morning Minister, thank you.
HIPSLEY: Thank you very much Anna.
HIPSLEY: Brendan O'Connor there, the Federal Home Affairs Minister.
