More than ten thousand migrants and refugee families are being ordered to leave the country as part of a crackdown on the influx of asylum seekers.
The decision to deport the families comes as the Immigration Department announced it had issued around 2,000 deportations on Thursday, the same day as Prime Minister Tony Abbott was in Brisbane to announce a new $12 billion package of funding for the Northern Territory.
Key points:The number of asylum seeker families being ordered out of the country is expected to increase as the number of deportations increasesMore than 10 million migrants and asylum seekers have arrived in Australia since the start of the yearThe move follows the government’s announcement last week it would expand the number eligible for asylum in the country to include more refugeesThe Department of Immigration and Border Protection said it was doing so in order to help the community get information about the family members that would otherwise be subject to detention and removal.
The families, including a three-month-old baby, were given a notice to vacate the detention centre in Hobart at 7.30am on Thursday.
They would then be returned to their home country of origin.
“The families will be released from detention in the Northern Territories and be eligible for a one-year bridging visa,” Immigration Minister Peter Dutton said in a statement.
“As soon as the bridging process is complete, they will be transferred to a detention centre and returned to Australia for resettlement.”
The decision was made after receiving reports of the families having been involved in “fearful and violent incidents” while in detention.
“At the same time, the Department is committed to helping communities across the country access information about family members who are being detained,” he said.
“It is important to note that these families are not the first to be targeted by the Government in this way, and we continue to work closely with the Australian Government to ensure families are supported throughout their transition to community life.”
The Department also said it would also provide information to the families about how to find alternative pathways to permanent residency.
“If there are no other options available to the family, it is important that the family remain in Australia for at least one year,” it said.
Topics:immigration,government-and-politics,community-and%E2%80%93-politics ,northern-territory,border-force,hobart-7000,nsw,australiaFirst posted November 17, 2019 09:51:33Contact Anna TaylorMore stories from New South Wales