There are reports from Nauru that refugees who had got work on the island have left the jobs after a threatening letter was distributed a week ago.
Nauru houses more than 1000 of Australia's asylum seekers and more than 100 have been declared refugees and allowed to live and work in the community.
The letter says the refugees should leave their jobs, stop wandering around the island and stop fraternising with Nauruan women.
It says they should go away or bad things will happen.
There have already been a number of serious assaults on refugees.
Photo: RNZ / Walter Zweifel
The Nauru government suggests the refugees themselves may have written the letter but Clint Deidenang, who works as a photo-journalist there, says he is certain it was penned by a Nauruan.
He says there is a significant minority on the island supporting some of the sentiments in the letter, including him.
"Nauruans are not used to living with people from different cultures - this multi-cultural thing is not working in Nauru."
Clint Deidenang.
