‘I refuse to believe our only choice is between people dying at sea and child abuse.’
Greens MP Adam Bandt summed up the feelings of many Australians in a passionate address on ABC’s Q&A last night.
Mr Bandt said the legacy of Labor’s policies on detention centres have led to the nation’s current appalling situation, where doctors are refusing to send children back to detention centres because it goes against their duty to not cause harm.
“No one wants to see people dying at sea, but I refuse to believe that our only choice is between people dying at sea and child abuse. I refuse to believe that,” he said.
“As Australians, I believe that we are a generous people and we can find a better way that allows people to come here through safer pathways so that they don’t die at sea, and so that we don’t lock them up and destroy lives.
Related: Asylum seeker children are not “blocking up beds” in the Royal Children’s Hospital.
“And I think in a generation or two – probably even sooner than that – kids are going to be saying to their parents, ‘Well, what did you do while children were being locked up and lives destroyed?'”
Cue applause.
Well said, Mr Bandt.
Watch the segment here:
Top Comments
What is your suggestion?
Remove the kids for their betterment (that worked well in Australia's past)
Allow any "family" with kids to Australia? There's no way that would be exploited is there.
Maybe process people quickly and not lock them up indefinitely as a deterrent to other desperate people seeking asylum?
While his words were emotive, they were lacking in solutions. I do agree with him that there has to be a better way though. I am hopeful that the Turnbull Government has now made this a priority. I heard today of someone being granted a visa after 3yrs in detention. The best thing Turnbull could do politically would be to empty these centres.
I agree they should be processed a lot faster but his view is over simplistic.
Whoah, suspicious much? The immediate assumption that asylum seekers are seeking to 'exploit' and other such nonsense is half the problem with how we approach this issue in our country. How about we stop treating people seeking asylum like criminals and locking them up indefinitely? Seeking asylum is not a crime. How about allowing them to come to this country, present their claim for asylum, and have it promptly assessed, as is their right? How about allowing genuine asylum seekers to resettle here if their claim is proven to be legitimate, regardless of how they arrive? Lots of countries don't have 'queues' that asylum seekers can join. And if a claim for asylum is found to be not legit, provide a fair and respectful process to have people repatriated. I think these steps would be a good start to solving the problem. There might be some 'exploitation' of the system, but I'd rather that than the current system which inflicts trauma, abuse and unnecessary distress on so many innocent people. This is not a new issue, we've dealt with it (much better) in the past. Look at what Malcolm Fraser did. Adam Bandt is spot on. Oh, and PS, a one minute grab on Q & A is hardly an opportunity to lay out the Greens' policy and plans for dealing with asylum seekers. And frankly, I doubt he was asked to do so, he was asked to respond to the current situation in which medical staff are doing a better job of protecting vulnerable children than our own government. Go Adam Bandt!