Racism in Australian Immigration Detention

It has become clear tonight that the Australian Federal Government is in serious damage control over the treatment of an Australian citizen with psychological problems.

Last night Lateline an ABC (Australian Broadcasting Authority) Currant Affairs program made a report called Deported Australian found in Manilatelling us about the discovery of Vivian Alverez in a Phillipino Catholic Facility of the Sisters of Charity, where, it transpires the Australian authorities had put her. She had never gone missing. How lax are the bureaucrats to fail to tell the minister of the time (Immigration Minister Phillip Ruddock), and are we to believe they didn't tell the currant Immigration Minister Amanda Vanstone when she released a statement on the 11th May, 2005, 10:15 pm.

The Australian Priest at the location tells us of her arrival, and later we learn the Sisters of Charity report the arrival of the media well ahead of the Australian Consul to the hospice where he gave an official apology from the Prime Minister John Howard MP to Mrs Alvarez. It turns out it was an expression of regret, not an apology, the government, in managing the spin on this issue is careful not to admit liability.

In this evenings edition of The 7:30 Report had an interview with her step-brother in Queensland, where he was asked whther or not there were any issues that concerned him. He told us about the obvious ignorance of the officials, and how it was that an asian woman with a psychosis is deported after just six months when a caucasian woman with a psychosis is still in detention, both couldn't identify themselves, or made a claim without any evidence. Coming from a rational person one could accept their testimony with reasonable confidence, but a psychotic person must be treated with reservations when it comes to their testimony. He was asked if that bothered him and he said yes, and stated he felt it looked like racism. It looks like that from here as well.

I am embarrassed to be associated with a government that:

• Incarcerates undocumented aliens, refugees, etc whilst processing them.
• Deliberately erects legal road blocks to the possibility of getting a visa granted,when we as a nation managed in past boat people periods without that sort of thing, yet we share this draconian behaviour with some of the worlds dictatorships.
• Lies or misrepresents the truth to gain a populist approach in elections, thus encouraging the worst of the Australian culture.
• Locks these people up as if they are suspect terrorists behind razor wire. These are families and professionals, workers and farmers trying to find a better life for their children. We then lock them up, in remote locations. Australia, by its very nature has plenty of remote places, but to add insult to injury they sent some of these people to Nauru, that had to be economically enhanced to take them, not having the infrastructure to deal with them.

What happens next is anyones guess, will the government be able to spin a better picture than we have? Since The Australian national newspaper broke the story, (the Murdoch press is behind this as well). I wonder where Packer stands? I'll have to check ninemsn