DIMA Annual Report 1998-99
Sub-program 2.2: Detention
Performance outcomes
(i) Timely removal
The Migration Act 1958 requires that all unlawful non-citizens are detained, and unless they are granted permission to remain in Australia, their removal is effected as soon as practicable.
Where people arrive in Australia without authorisation, their detention ensures that they have no access to work or services, and should they have no claims to remain in Australia, they are immediately available for removal.
During 1998-99, 3574 people were admitted to Immigration Detention Centres (IDCs) in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and Port Hedland.
Of those, 2468 were unlawful non-citizens, including people who arrived at airports without authorisation, and people who breached visa conditions. This constituted a 3 per cent increase on the 1997-98 figure.
Of the total, 926 people arrived in Australia by boat without authorisation, an increase of 83 per cent on the 1997-98 figure.
Removal of unauthorised boat arrivals is covered under Sub-program 2.3.
Applications by detainees who make claims which, prima facie, may engage Australia's protection obligations are processed as quickly as practicable to minimise their time in detention.
The number of detainees and the total number of detainee days, by place of detention, are reflected in the table below.
Of the 1059 people in detention on 30 June 1999, 549 were unauthorised boat arrivals and 510 were other unlawful non-citizens who had arrived without documentation at airports, had overstayed the period of their visa, or breached their visa conditions.
This compares with 375 people in detention at 30 June 1998, of whom 13 were unauthorised boat arrivals, and 362 were other unlawful non-citizens.
Overall detainee days increased by almost 50 000 in 1998-99, mainly due to increasing boat arrivals in the latter part of the year, increased compliance activities, and unauthorised air arrivals. Overall detainee days for boat arrivals increased by 48 per cent compared with the 1997-98 figure, and for non-boats increased by 28 per cent.
In the second half of the financial year, the number of detainees at Port Hedland Reception and Processing Centre rose sharply. This was attributed to a number of factors, including increased boat arrivals and transfers from other detention centres.
Villawood Immigration Detention Centre (IDC) was close to capacity throughout the year due to a continuing increase in people arriving at airports without authority to enter Australia, particularly through Sydney Kingsford Smith International Airport. Another reason was successful compliance field work.
People subject to removal from Australia must have valid travel documents, or the Department must obtain permission from the relevant receiving country to accept them, before they can leave.
While every effort is made to expedite this process, the Department has limited control over the time taken by foreign countries to issue travel documents, or for a decision to permit return. Removal can be delayed where detainees do not cooperate, or provide false or misleading information about their identities.
Table - Detention Centres Table
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Performance outcomes
(ii) Cost-effectiveness
Accrued detention costs were estimated at $22.6 million in 1998-99 – comprising boat arrivals, $5.3 million, and non-boat detainees $17.3 million. This is an overall increase in accrued costs of almost 5.2 per cent compared with 1997-98. There was an increase in detainee days of 33.3 per cent.
Australasian Correctional Services (ACS) is contracted to deliver a range of services required at IDCs, including guarding, catering and providing health, welfare and educational services.
Actual service delivery has been subcontracted to Australasian Correctional Management Pty Ltd (ACM), the operational arm of ACS. A rigorous performance-monitoring regime has been built into the detention contract to ensure compliance with a set of service standards.
Contractual arrangements with ACM provide more comprehensive service at IDCs than provided previously by the Australian Protective Service.
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(iii) Detention arrangements
Australia's detention policies have received criticism on the grounds of human rights and other abuses from parties such as the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC), and Amnesty International.
In May 1998 the HREOC report on Australia's detention arrangements, Those who've come across the seas, was published. The Government recently released its response, which addressed each of the report's recommendations.
Amnesty International's 1998-99 Annual Report provides a brief summary of issues raised by them with the Department over the previous year, including many contained in its previous report on the detention of asylum seekers (Australia, A Continuing Shame: The Mandatory Detention of Asylum Seekers). The main issue raised related to what was referred to as "the mandatory detention of asylum seekers."
Australia does not have a policy of detaining asylum seekers, but detain people who arrive in Australia without valid travel documentation or with documents that are fraudulent or improperly obtained.
Some people who arrive in Australia this way subsequently apply for asylum. Only a small proportion of asylum seekers is detained, mainly those people without valid travel documentation. Most in detention are only held for a short time – in some cases, as little as a few hours.
A majority, or 64 per cent of all detainees in detention at 30 June 1999, are held for less than three months. About 1.8 per cent of people currently in detention have been held longer than 24 months.
The Government seeks to minimise the time people take to progress through the refugee determination process and hence the period of detention. Measures have been introduced to improve the speed and effectiveness of the decision-making process.
Care and control of detainees is the responsibility of the Department. The provision of detention services by the detention service provider ACM is governed by a set of immigration detention standards developed in consultation with the Commonwealth Ombudsman.
The standards ensure Australia's compliance with international treaty obligations. They underpin the provision of the detention function and the standard of care to be provided.
As well, they ensure that the individual needs of all detainees are met. While in detention detainees are provided with health, welfare, educational, religious, recreational and interpreting services.
Advisory committees have been established at each IDC to discuss matters relating to providing detention services. They are an avenue for detainees, community representatives and members of ACM and DIMA to resolve day-to-day management issues and address detainee concerns.
During the year representatives of the Commonwealth Ombudsman's Office and HREOC visited detention facilities to observe the standard of service being provided to detainees.
They indicated satisfaction with service improvements which have taken place at all IDCs since ACM took over managing the centres.
In August 1998 the Joint Standing Committee on Migration Immigration Detention Centres Inspection Report was released. The Committee was positive regarding service improvements, since outsourcing the detention services, and recommended that its monitoring of the centres should continue.
During the year there were 16 escapes involving 58 detainees – 31 were recaptured and 27 are still at large. Detainees undertook a number of hunger strikes, of short duration and without serious harm, during the year. The ACM and the Department continue to work together to reduce the possibility of escapes, and improve operating procedures.
Villawood Immigration Detention Centre
In the 1998-99 Budget, the Government announced its intention to redevelop the Villawood IDC.
Delay has occurred in moving the project forward. Agreement had been reached between the Commonwealth and the New South Wales Government for the Sydney Olympic Committee for the Olympic Games (SOCOG) to use part of the Villawood IDC for accommodation for Olympic officials. SOCOG has recently reduced its accommodation requirements at Villawood, and no longer needs access to the Villawood IDC site.
Discussions continue with the Department of Finance and Administration on a range of issues relating to the project, but time taken to resolve the matters has delayed the start to redeveloping the Villawood IDC.