More than 20 refugees approved for relocation in the US have instead been flown to Australia under the medivac regime, fuelling concern that the laws are undermining third-country resettlement efforts.Source: Joe Kelly, News Corp
Medivac law refugees sidestep US transfer
The Australian can also reveal that an Iranian man, found not to be a refugee and who had been charged with property damage after deliberately setting alight an accommodation block in Manus, will be transferred to Australia on health grounds under the Labor-backed medical transfer system.
The man, who has a military background, has been involved in nearly 70 incidents during his time in Manus, which include assault and abusive conduct.
He had also liked content on Facebook showing women being executed.
The government hopes to pass legislation to repeal the medivac laws this week but faces the threat of a second major defeat at the hands of a hostile Senate after Pauline Hanson and Jacqui Lambie teamed up to crush its bid to impose tougher rules on unions.
While the government will move to revive its union-busting bill, it is still weighing up whether to put its medivac repeal to a vote, with the fate of the legislation resting with Senator Lambie, whose support has not yet been secured.
Scott Morrison has also opted to delay the introduction of his bill to crack down on religious discrimination amid concern from faith groups that there are problems with key sections of the draft legislation.
The medivac repeal is the government’s main priority going into the final sitting week of the year, but other key bills before the parliament include changes to the Farm Household Allowance in response to the drought and new counter-terrorism laws to enforce a presumption against bail and parole for terrorists.
Defence Minister Linda Reynolds said on Sunday the government was “very happy” to continue negotiating with Senator Lambie over the repeal of the medivac laws but lashed Senator Hanson for her last-minute decision to oppose the government’s industrial relations shake-up.
“Integrity and honesty in negotiations on legislation in the parliament is critically important. It matters a great deal. And I note that Senator Hanson has a lot to answer for to the Australian people for the way she behaved last week,” she said.
“We are negotiating in good faith with Senator Hanson. Her amendments were adopted and in fact were passed in the Senate before — at the very last second — she changed her mind and crossed the chamber.”
Since the medivac laws were passed in February, more than 179 people have been transferred to Australia from Nauru and PNG, including 50 rejected for resettlement by the US under the terms of the 2016 deal struck by Malcolm Turnbull and Barack Obama.
A failure to ram through the repeal this week will clear the way for the transfer of more refugees and asylum-seekers to Australia on health grounds over summer, with the Federal Court finding there is no requirement for them to first speak to doctors.
As of Sunday, there were 213 refugees and asylum-seekers left on PNG and 258 remaining on Nauru. A total of 654 have been resettled in the US.
The laws were passed before the May 18 election by Labor and Greens MPs in defiance of the then minority Coalition government, with Anthony Albanese on Sunday describing as “hysterical” suggestions national security was being put at risk.
“The truth is that the government, when these laws were passed, said that it would be the end to secure borders — made all sorts of claims that simply haven’t been true,” the Opposition Leader said.
Mr Albanese said the government should make greater efforts to finalise third-country resettlement options for those left on PNG and Nauru.
“Yes, some people have been brought to Australia to get healthcare, but the real question is: Why is it that there are still people in offshore detention?
“They should have been settled by now in third countries. And the government seems determined to just not provide a real solution to this issue.”
Senator Lambie has remained tight lipped on negotiations with the government over its repeal legislation, citing “national security” concerns.
She has also issued a secret “condition” to the government that she says must be met before she offers her backing.
“I have given the government a choice — it can either pick A or B. And that is where we’re at,” she told the ABC’s Insiders. “What I am discussing with the Prime Minister and (Home Affairs) Minister (Peter) Dutton is all in good faith. And I do not want to say or do anything … that may jeopardise those talks.”
Senator Lambie said she remained open to supporting the Ensuring Integrity Bill if the government considered her amendment to clean up the Construction Forestry Maritime Mining and Energy Union.
Religious groups welcomed the decision by the government to postpone the introduction of its bill to defend religious freedom, with the Catholic Archbishop of Sydney, Anthony Fisher, indicating he was “pleased that the government has listened to the concerns of people of faith”.
Australian Christian Lobby managing director Martyn Iles said the delay would give the government time to finetune some of the key protections it was proposing.
Nauseating woman.
MM please stop putting up pictures of this hideous alien creature who is not from this planet. It is enough to turn hetero men to the gay side, or even to commit suicide. Imagine a sick man going into her office. be enough to drive one to suicide. This creature is ugly at its preposterous best.
I agree with you on your description of that thing?.
But I was glad to get an image again as I had lost the last one.
You see, overlay the image with circles, print out a lot and hey presto
TARGETS!! use them for whatever floats your boat and where ever it safe. It sure does make one feel a whole lot more satisfied and the day goes a little better.
I have a daughter who proudly informed me she voted for Karen Phelps on the by-election.
Needless to say, for family peace, there are some topics I am told by my wife, the peacemaker, that I should steer well clear of when my daughter comes to visit. I have badly bruised shins, suffered while they are under the table, should I ever stray.
Cliff, you are being intimidated by the lefty faction of your family.
Censorship & physical intimidation are exactly what the left swear they are against whilst being the the most willing perpetrators
You should point out their tactics & shame them.
Cliff, I feel for you mate. I do not have that problem as all my youngsters were born and bred in the rural world and never had the leftie theories to put up with and also they grew up in another era where common sense was a little more common than now.
Hey if you are game here is a few cartoons to show her.
https://hannitycommunity.s3.dualstack.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/original/3X/0/b/0b14a8f5d9b51adf617ebb23c9375628ac747a41.jpeg
https://www.studentnewsdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/socialism-illustrated_mike-lester.jpg
https://www.politicsweb.co.za/politicsweb/media_stream/politicsweb/1/1688852/images/jerm-socialism-explained.jpg
https://politicalgraffiti.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/freeenterprise_family_web.jpg
Cliff, have fun and keep safe!!
Thanks mate, will show them to my granddaughter who has turned vegan and ratbag all of a sudden without any warning and making me think about the last five years of worrying about boys and constructing graphs of various sizes on velocities and the spread of number three shot was a waste of time. Boys would have been easier to handle.
I believe the government should reopen at least one of the mental asylums, Gladesville in Sydney is still available.
There is plenty of land available in Antarctica. No housing needed.
She is a walking prolapse, and a traitor to this country. She has allowed all sorts of flotsam into this country and should be condemned forever. A disgraceful “woman”.
Hard to believe that such a hideous creature can inflict so much damage, when she was only in parliament for 5 minutes.
Blimey, Defence Minister Linda Reynolds comments is curious eh. She is sucking up big time to Lambie while enthusiastically sinking the wellie into Hanson big time. Really giving her a bollocking. This does really point out their great fear of her come next election and they are at great pains to con the sucker into believing she is an evil person to be shunned at all costs.
Think about it, Lambi is good!! only one person, no party, no threat and only one of the senate members while Hanson is a real threat for them so she has to be made out to be BAD and evil. This sticks out like dog dangles eh?