Australia in talks to send refugees to Philippines

Australia already has a multi-million greenback deal to resettle refugees from an Australia-run detention camp on the Pacific nation of Nauru to Cambodia. But so far, only four refugees have taken up the offer of cash, free health insurance and accommodation to move from Nauru to the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh.

Everyone who arrives by boat is now detained and processed in Nauru and Papua New Guinea.

“This has gone on too long”, he told The Age.

An independent United Nations investigator postponed an official visit to Australia last month, citing a lack of government cooperation and “unacceptable” legal restrictions. “I think this policy is like modern slave trade”.

On September 8 he said that although the Philippines is open to taking in refugees, the resources of the country need to be considered.

Firstly, there is an understandable worry that the deal will put the Philippines squarely on the map for people smugglers in the region.

“The culture is there, but we want to make sure that we manage it properly, that we don’t take more than we can handle”, Aquino said during a public forum, according to Philippine media. “If we can strike other arrangements with other countries, we will do that”, he added.

Dutton emphasised that the proposed deal would not compel people to travel to the Philippines, and reiterated they would never be settled in Australia.

While rights groups welcomed the move, they also questioned whether its timing was meant to pre-empt criticism at the court hearing – a suggestion rejected by the Australian government.

Immigration minister Peter Dutton said the Australian government had been in talks with several countries, including the Philippines, about possibly resettling its refugees. Her daughter is now 10 months old and supporters say the mother is “terrified” of returning to Nauru.

“Labor supports, in principle, constructive negotiations with the Philippines, but we’re just anxious the Liberals tend to announce their achievements before they’ve actually occurred”, he said.

However, it added that while Bishop “confirmed that she had held talks on refugee issues with Mr. Del Rosario in New York (she) declined to reveal details of any agreements”.

Marles said the government must provide a meaningful resettlement plan for the people on Manus and Nauru because it could not “let people languish indefinitely within processing facilities”.

Sarah Hanson-Young, a senator with the minor Greens party, said Australia was once again passing its responsibility to care for refugees on to another poor country.

That prompted critics to dub the deal an expensive flop and sent Australia’s government looking for another solution. He doubts many refugees would be eager to relocate to the Philippines.