Removal Pending Visa's will not help Refugees

The Howard Government's announcement of the new Removal Pending Visa today is a heavy handed attempt to bully genuine refugees into agreeing to be deported from Australia.

The Removal Pending Visa category has a number of conditions which include:

The Government intends that access will be determined on an individual basis and limited to those immigration detainees who
• do not have any visa applications or litigation outstanding;
• the Minister believes it is not reasonably practicable to remove for the time being;
• the Minister believes have done everything possible to facilitate their removal from Australia; and
• have agreed in writing to abide by all prescribed conditions, and cooperate fully with arrangements for their removal from Australia, including leaving Australia when advised to do so.

This is not good enough. It is an unsubtle attempt to bully detainees into giving up their human rights and rights of administrative review.

Fortunately people are seeing through this uncharitable Gesture. Amnesty International has already criticised the decision.