Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Asylum, Right of – Government policy – Australia'

This thesis evaluates the policy of mandatory detention for asylum seekers maintained by successive Australian governments against several core liberal principles. These principles are derived from various accounts of liberal political thought and the major themes and criticisms inherent in the public debate over the policy. The justifications of the policy given by the Australian government and the criticisms enunciated by scholars, refugee advocates and non-government organisations with respect to the policy strongly correspond with the core liberal principles of fairness, protecting the rights of the individual, accountability and proportionality. The claims of the critics converge on a central point of contention: that the mandatory detention of asylum seekers violates core liberal principles. To ascertain the extent to which the claims of the critics can be supported, the thesis selectively draws on liberal political theory to provide a framework for the analysis of the policy against these liberal principles, a basis for inquiry largely neglected by contributors to the literature. This thesis argues that, on balance, the mandatory detention policy employed by successive Australian governments violates core liberal principles. The claims of the critics are weakened, but by no means discredited, by the importance of the government's maintenance of strong border control. In the main, however, criticisms made by opponents of the policy can be supported. This thesis contributes to the substantial body of literature on the mandatory detention policy by shedding light on how liberal principles may be applicable to the mandatory detention policy. Further, it aims to contribute to an enriched understanding of the Australian government's competence to detain asylum seekers.

This thesis is based on a particular domain of anthropological inquiry, the anthropology of policy, which proposes that policy be contemplated as an ethnographic object itself. The policy I consider is Australia's refugee policy, which advocates the mandatory detention of

Most scholars claim that international human rights norms embodied in formal international declarations and treaties have an important impact on domestic political interests and governmental practices. This reasoning about the impact of global human rights is often applied to the post-apartheid South African immigration and refugee policies. While I acknowledge that the ratification of United Nations Conventions on refugees has altered the traditional sovereignty considerations of South Africa towards asylum seekers, I take issue with the claims that South African refugee and asylum policies are primarily motivated and based on humanitarian considerations. Instead, I argue that these policies are based on sovereign considerations and strategic foreign policy interests. As a result this sovereign interests of South Africa to study has sought to demonstrate that largely explain decisions on the part accept or reject refugees. Although norms diffusion, international advocacy networks, and prestige factors have made a big impact, in practice the refugee policy has continued to reflect South Africa's strategic interests and domestic considerations at all levels. However, I have not argued that South Africa should overlook its national and foreign interests and abide by international human rights norms regardless of the cost of doing so. I have only sought to demonstrate that refugee protection is more when powerful national interests find it conducive to manage the destabilizing refugee flows.

This thesis investigated the power of framing practices in the context of Australian refugee policies between 1999 and 2003. The analysis identified legal rationalism as an ideological projection by which the Howard government justified its refugee policies to the electorate. That is, legal rationalism manifested itself as an overriding concern with the rules and procedures of the law, without necessarily having concern for consistency or continuity. In its first form, legal rationalism emerged as a

This thesis maps the values that have guided the asylum policy decisions of Australia's political leaders over the past half-century, drawing on archival records and interviews with former immigration ministers and senior public servants. For comparative purposes, it also maps the values shaping the views of asylum among leaders of a supra-national organization (the European Commission) and of a major non-government organization (the Jesuit Refugee Service). The findings support the view that a culture of control permeates Australian asylum policy decisions, and that the quest for control stems from perceptions of national interest as articulated in immigration and foreign policy. However, beneath this it shows the primary values shaping policy to be nation building and good governance in the case of the Australian leaders, and (European) community building in the case of European Commission leaders. Building on a 'caring for us, caring for them' conundrum found running through the values of all three groups of leaders, and seeking a secular equivalent to the faith-inspired relational approach of the Jesuit Refugee Service leaders, the thesis explores the contribution an ethics of care might make to asylum policy design, delivery and evaluation. It argues that such an approach, in which care is conceived as a value, process and practice rather than a sentiment or theory, is well suited to the area, especially when refined to provide for the work of empathy and imagination. It concludes by considering the potential implications for Australian asylum policy if an ethics of care were adopted. The primary goals of the thesis are a better understanding of the issues involved in asylum policy, and the articulation of an ethical approach potentially as engaging of policy insiders as of policy spectators.

This doctoral dissertation examines the production and function of representations of asylum in writing and performance in Australia since 2001. It encompasses creative work that portrays asylum seekers (people whose protection claim has not been assessed) and refugees (people whose status has been determined within the terms of the United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees) as well as work that engages with the issue of asylum more broadly. My selection of performative work includes theatrical production, performative art installation, protest action and film, and my selection of written work includes novels, poetry, memoirs, short stories and letters. The timeframe of the analysis acknowledges 2001 as a decisive period in the development of punitive national policy (and ideology) on unauthorised asylum seekers, concurrent with the escalation of sovereign security discourse worldwide after 11 September, that continue to inflect Australia's engagement with non-belonging non-citizens. If the upheavals of 2001 and concomitant proliferation of creative arts response mark the starting point of this study, the last two years have presented a renewed intensification of the challenges faced by the world's displaced. Recent global economic crises have heightened the vulnerability of people living in economically and politically unstable parts of the world, prompting an increase in refugee numbers; the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guterres, stated in a press conference with the Australian Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Chris Evans, in February 2009 that recent economic deterioration is an "accelerating factor" upon the existing pressures that force people movements, and moreover, a "generator of xenophobia" directed at refugees in many parts of the world. In its emphasis on creative and cultural work in writing and performance, approached to a significant extent in terms of counter-representations to (usually) pejorative government and news media discourse, this project speaks to crucial questions posed by Suvendrini Perera, writing in response to the Tampa incident of 2001: "The terrain of representation, of language, imagery and narrative ... emerges as a crucial site for contesting the disconnection and separation of refugees and asylum seekers from wider society. What representations of refugees, other than official ones, are available in the public sphere? What are the forms and modalities by which refugee stories are told and made visible?" ("A Line" 32-3). Despite its broad analytical umbrella, encompassing writing and performance - both forms that themselves contain a number of representational modalities - created by Australians and by refugees, this study can only begin to provide an answer to Perera's questions. In doing so, it develops an overarching (though by no means exclusive) theoretical concern with affective cross-cultural engagement. I endeavour to illustrate some of the ways in which selected creative representations construct spaces of affective contact and connection between human lives separated-in-proximity by sovereign demarcations of national community.

The notion of refugee was born immediately after World War I, so as to protect and promote human rights. After the adoption of the Convention Relating to the Status of the Refugees, however, much has changed in the world. Although the number of signatories is increasing, the Convention remains the same. Each country now appears to have erected barriers to prevent refugees from entering their territory and one of the much debated substantiations for so doing is the “safe third country” approach. This thesis will focus on the “safe third country” and “effective protection” principle which some see as a breach of Article 33 of the Convention known as “refoulment” and closely examines the law and policy in Australia, and makes some international comparisons. It also examines the doctrine of effective protection as interpreted by the Australian Courts and considers whether it breaches Australia's Refugee Convention obligations, and analyzes two major cases, that of Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs v Thiyagarajah and NAGV and NAGW of 2002 v Minister for Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs. This thesis examines statutory effective protection as comprised in ss 36(3)-(7) of the Migration Act and discusses Australia's attempted justification of “safe third country” provisions. This thesis argues that the criteria for returning refugees to 'safe third countries' should not be determined solely by one Country without having proper agreement with the proposed “safe third country”. In constructing these criteria, this thesis argues that Australia cannot send any refugee to another country in the name of the “safe third country” principle if there is a risk, whether knowingly or inadvertently, that the latter will violate rights which Australia itself is obligated to respect. This thesis also recommends requirements for the return of refugees to third countries, a list of minimum requirements of international law and a list of recommended best practice criteria. The underlying theoretical framework of this thesis has thus become a bilateral agreement with the “safe third country”, with monitoring arrangements by the International Humanitarian Organizations, such as, UNHCR, for co-operation. It is a strong argument of this thesis that without any existing agreement, the safe third country principle cannot guarantee non-refoulment. This thesis attempts to provide the solution to breach of the non-refoulment principle by promoting the “agreement” concept through which Australia can assist refugees and comply with Article 33 of 1951 Refugee Convention and Protocol. The theory would also play a role to establish and promote cooperation between people on a government level and on a non-governmental level so that there will be a reasonably appropriate understanding within Australia of the plight of refugees. Further, “agreements” are essential for governments to maintain the reputation of Australia as a nation within the international community that respects refugees and human rights.

Through an examination of Australian Government responses to Irregular Maritime Arrivals from 1901 to 2001, this thesis will provide an assessment of the roles of race and racism in contemporary Australian Government policy regarding the treatment of asylum seekers who arrive in Australia by boat. In particular, it attempts to build on contemporary scholarship regarding Irregular Maritime Arrivals in Australia by focusing on the conjuncture of race, refugees and Australian immigration policy. While it is well known that race and racism have played important roles in Australian immigration history, contemporary Australia is principally portrayed as a diverse, egalitarian and multicultural society. With the official abandonment of the policies of White Australia in 1973, successive Australian governments have endeavoured to foster, both domestically and internationally, an image of a cohesive, egalitarian and multicultural nation. The aim of the thesis is therefore to explore whether (and how) a continuous racial thread is used politically within Australian refugee immigration discourse to maintain a covert race agenda. Centred on the principle that racism is inherently political, this thesis seeks to investigate contemporary xenophobia in order to understand the persistent support for discriminatory and exclusionist political policy. It argues that despite the rhetoric of harmonious multicultural cohesion, Australian immigration policy—specifically in regards to Irregular Maritime Arrivals—is still significantly influenced by racist ideology. While they have conceptually abandoned ideas of a White Australia, contemporary governments have strayed little from historical convictions of ‘race’ difference. In this way, the thesis suggests that successive Australian governments have successfully coalesced an overt multiculturalism with a covert racism that effectively conceals the political nature of race itself. The fundamental argument of the thesis is therefore that in the Australian context, race is often mistakenly viewed in isolated terms or attributed to its White Australia Past. Ideas of race however, are not simply a part of Australian history and rather are structural, thereby continuing to resound in Australia’s contemporary refugee policies. The thesis therefore contends that the arrival of asylum seekers and refugees on leaky boats provided (and continues to provide) a perfect opportunity for successive Australian governments to enact race ideology without appearing racist. In assessing Australia’s outward claim of multiculturalism alongside the continued maintenance of deeply exclusionist political policy, this thesis traces the development of Australian immigration policy—specifically in regards to the treatment of asylum seekers who arrive by boat—to show that ideas of race not only form an integral part of Australian history, but that they continue to resound and manifest in Australia’s contemporary refugee and immigration policies.

The end of the war between the armed forces of the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of the Tamil Elam in 2009 led more and more Sri Lankan asylum seekers, mainly Tamils, to flee Sri Lanka by boat, and to seek protection in Australia. I examine the experiences of Sri Lankan asylum seekers who came by boat living in the Western Suburbs of Sydney on temporary Bridging Visa E. The asylum seekers included in this study are those who came by boat on or after 13 August 2012 and who are thus affected by “fast track” processing system. In developing this analysis, I examine the effects of asylum policies on the lives of asylum seekers within the exclusionary politics of asylum in Australia. This research emphasizes the need to situate asylum seeker stories in broader questions of race, language, belonging, ethnicity, border, identity, temporariness, and alienation, all of which shape the experience of refugee migration in Australia. Multiple research methods — semi-structured interviews, life histories, autobiographical method and participant observation were used to collect data from three main participant groups: asylum seekers, community, and legal service providers. Instead of reading asylum seeker issues from a conventional perspective, which is often confined to bureaucratic and legal insights, I adopt a narrative-based approach to investigate the problems associated with Sri Lankan asylum seekers in Australia.

Defence date: 11 October 1999
Examining board: Prof. Didier Bigo (IEP, Paris) ; Prof. Klaus Eder (Humboldt University, Berlin - Co-supervisor) ; Prof. Adrienne Héritier (EUI-Florence - Supervisor) ; Prof. Thomas Risse (EUI, Florence)
PDF of thesis uploaded from the Library digitised archive of EUI PhD theses completed between 2013 and 2017
From the beginnings of intergovernmental co-operation in the 1980s to the Amsterdam Treaty and the Charter of Fundamental Rights, the developing EU refugee policies have oscillated between the conflicting policy frames of internal security on the one hand and human rights on the other. Taking a multilevel perspective on the process of Europeanisation, this work highlights the entanglement between domestic as In m reforms in Germany and France and European co-operation and investigates the scope for a common refugee policy in the EU. Enlightening and innovative, this much-needed analysis of the Europeanisat ion of asylum policies is essential reading for scholars of European integration. asylum and refugee policy, and all those interested in the prospect of political unification in Europe.

Recent policy changes have created a new era of refugee resettlement in Australia. As a result of the introduction of the onshore refugee program, a two-tier resettlement assistance system has developed. This system differentiates between refugees who have been issued protection visas offshore and onshore, and provides considerably less resettlement assistance to onshore-visaed refugees with Temporary Protection Visa (TPVs). The exclusion of TPV holders from resettlement assistance programs and the temporary nature of the visa has prompted this comparative study of the resettlement experiences of two groups of recently arrived refugees. This thesis considers the experiences of recently arrived refugees within the economic, social, cultural and political spheres of resettlement, in order to develop a deeper understanding of the inter-related nature of the resettlement process and the impact of visa category on the integration of refugees in contemporary Australia. Kuhlman’s (1991) model of refugee resettlement, and definition of integration form the basis of the theoretical framework of the thesis. A multiple method approach has been applied to the study and data from the second cohort of the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Australia (LSIA) was analysed to present a macro level understanding of the resettlement experiences of recent arrivals in Australia. In Adelaide, interviews with key informants and service providers were undertaken in conjunction with a series of in-depth interviews with 10 Sudanese offshore-visaed Humanitarian entrants and 9 Iraqi onshore-visaed refugees, to provide detailed descriptions of the resettlement experience. While the resettlement process is found to be difficult for all refugees, the TPV policy acts to compound the problems and disadvantages refugees face in resettlement. Under these circumstances it is found that TPV holders experience social exclusion during their early resettlement in Australia. The importance of host-related factors on the resettlement experience are therefore found to be extremely relevant in contemporary Australian refugee resettlement. Policies regarding visa conditions, and refugees’ eligibility for resettlement assistance have a significant impact in all spheres of the resettlement process. These findings suggest that the influence of host society policies must be accorded more weight in theories of resettlement, given their ability to extensively influence the resettlement process. Further this thesis presents substantial evidence against the TPV policy and recommends that temporary protection in Australia be reviewed, in order to ensure the social inclusion and successful integration of future refugee arrivals.
Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, School of Social Sciences, 2007

Recent policy changes have created a new era of refugee resettlement in Australia. As a result of the introduction of the onshore refugee program, a two-tier resettlement assistance system has developed. This system differentiates between refugees who have been issued protection visas offshore and onshore, and provides considerably less resettlement assistance to onshore-visaed refugees with Temporary Protection Visa (TPVs). The exclusion of TPV holders from resettlement assistance programs and the temporary nature of the visa has prompted this comparative study of the resettlement experiences of two groups of recently arrived refugees. This thesis considers the experiences of recently arrived refugees within the economic, social, cultural and political spheres of resettlement, in order to develop a deeper understanding of the inter-related nature of the resettlement process and the impact of visa category on the integration of refugees in contemporary Australia. Kuhlman’s (1991) model of refugee resettlement, and definition of integration form the basis of the theoretical framework of the thesis. A multiple method approach has been applied to the study and data from the second cohort of the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Australia (LSIA) was analysed to present a macro level understanding of the resettlement experiences of recent arrivals in Australia. In Adelaide, interviews with key informants and service providers were undertaken in conjunction with a series of in-depth interviews with 10 Sudanese offshore-visaed Humanitarian entrants and 9 Iraqi onshore-visaed refugees, to provide detailed descriptions of the resettlement experience. While the resettlement process is found to be difficult for all refugees, the TPV policy acts to compound the problems and disadvantages refugees face in resettlement. Under these circumstances it is found that TPV holders experience social exclusion during their early resettlement in Australia. The importance of host-related factors on the resettlement experience are therefore found to be extremely relevant in contemporary Australian refugee resettlement. Policies regarding visa conditions, and refugees’ eligibility for resettlement assistance have a significant impact in all spheres of the resettlement process. These findings suggest that the influence of host society policies must be accorded more weight in theories of resettlement, given their ability to extensively influence the resettlement process. Further this thesis presents substantial evidence against the TPV policy and recommends that temporary protection in Australia be reviewed, in order to ensure the social inclusion and successful integration of future refugee arrivals.
http://proxy.library.adelaide.edu.au/login?url= http://library.adelaide.edu.au/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?BBID=1277761
Thesis (Ph.D.) -- University of Adelaide, School of Social Sciences, 2007

The aim of this research was to determine how the New Right agenda has impacted on the perceptions about the Health Promoting School (HPS) model and its practice. The case study school – a Catholic secondary school, provided opportunity to reflect upon the daily experience of those in a HPS and how these experiences can be constructed. The methods used included running focus groups - students, teachers, administrators, parents and health agencies, and the generation of narratives and commentaries from key stake holders within the school community. This thesis draws on the work of Dewey, Bourdieu and Apple to position its critical deconstruction of one school community’s experience of activity that can be described as about HPS’s. There were four assumptions that underpinned the thesis. The first two arose from the literature that claimed the universality of the HPS model and the second two were derived from the capacity of the school to develop and evolve a setting for health promotion. The potential for this school as a HPS community to deliver on health-related social justice outcomes is yet to be achieved. The commandeering of health promotion terms and concepts by the New Right generates a metaphysical focus that delivers a view of the HPS that is in variance to the original intent.

The dissertation investigates South Africa’s legal aspects pertaining to voluntary repatriation of refugees. The repatriation of Mozambican and Angolan refugees was referred to in order to examine the loopholes in the process of repatriating them. This study moreover examines whether the application of the cessation clause is in contravention of the principle of non-refoulement, which is intrinsically the cornerstone for voluntariness of repatriation. The analysis of international, regional and South Africa’s refugee protection framework demonstrates that South Africa affords refugees the protection required by international law. This has been compared with states’ practice and case law with regards to refugee protection in countries including Canada and the United Kingdom. Although South Africa, Canada and the United Kingdom have comprehensive legal framework governing refugees’ protection, refugees’ rights have been violated on numerous occasions. The dissertation consequently concludes that notwithstanding the presence of international, regional and domestic legislations, the rights of refugees are violated due to their vulnerability and the repatriation process ignores the principle of voluntariness on several occasions.
Public, Constitutional, and International Law
LLM

This study explores the international obligations of the European Union to the unaccompanied asylum-seeking and refugee child. In doing so, it involves an investigation into the concept and content of durable solutions for the refugee child. As such, it analyses the effect of the temporary European relocation scheme in the search for durable solutions. To that end, it engages a comprehensive explanation of the relevant refugee law, the law of the rights of the child and the European legislative framework governing the reception and protection of refugees. Cumulatively, an assessment is made as to the effectiveness of the durable solutions that currently exist. This study seeks to establish whether, in an attempt to relieve the pressure from the frontline member states by creating a system for effective integration, Europe encourages the development of a children’s rights perspective and ultimately, provides a path for the unaccompanied child’s development and self-fulfilment.
Public, Constitutional and International Law
LL. M.