AUSTRALIA: The Australian government was facing a backbench revolt yesterday over plans to introduce draconian new immigration laws. The bill would force migrants who apply for asylum to be processed offshore, most probably on the remote Pacific island of Nauru. The most likely to be affected are the boat people who attempt the treacherous voyage from southeast Asia to northern Australia.
The immigration crackdown is the latest measure introduced by John Howard's conservative government as part of a controversial border protection policy.
One of the biggest concerns is a plan to lock up the children of refugees who try to enter Australia illegally. Last year, under pressure from members of his own party, the prime minister agreed to drop this idea, but has since changed his mind.
Under the new laws, asylum seekers will also be refused access to Australia's legal appeals process and could face indefinite detention if no other country agrees to take them.
The strong stand has proved popular with voters and has helped to keep the coalition in power. But the implications of yesterday's proposed changes have proved so distasteful that some of the ruling Liberal Party's own MPs have flinched.
Liberal MP Petro Georgiou branded the new legislation as "profoundly disturbing". "The whole of Australia . . . would be excised from the refugee protection regime afforded by the migration act for people seeking asylum who arrive by boat," he said. "The consequences would be . . . severely regressive." At least two other conservative backbenchers said they intended to cross the floor of parliament with him.
One of them, Judi Moylan, said the harshness of the new bill flew in the face of Australia's reputation for fairness.
Ms Moylan said most Australians did not want their laws dictated by Indonesia - a reference to Jakarta's condemnation of Canberra's decision to grant temporary protection visas to more than 40 West Papuan boat people earlier this year.