Asylum seeker locked in solitary unit on Manus

Transcript

An Australia-based refugee advocate says an Iranian asylum seeker on Papua New Guinea's Manus Island whose refugee application has been rejected twice has been locked in a solitary confinement unit.

The Refugee Action Coalition's Ian Rintoul says up to six PNG police officers walked into a compound at the Australia-run detention centre on Thursday and took the 27-year-old to the newly-built unit.

Mr Rintoul says the man could be held in the unit indefinitely, as he refuses to leave and because Papua New Guinea has no agreement with Iran to accept the forced removal of asylum seekers.

He told Jamie Tahana that he believes the raid and the use of solitary confinement is a show of force by PNG authorities to try and get people to agree to return voluntarily.

IAN RINTOUL: It's a new high-security detention compound that has been built inside the Manus Island Detention Centre. As far as we know it's an area that hasn't been used, it's an area next to the medical centre so it's actually completely newly-built. But from what we've heard, is that inside it can take up to 36 people but effectively they are 36 individual solitary confinement cells.

JAMIE TAHANA: Your report suggests that a 27-year-old Iranian has been placed in this solitary confinement area. For what reason do you understand?

IR: Well he is what's called 'double negative', that is he's actually failed an has been rejected twice for his refugee determination. So he is now a rejected asylum seeker -- he's been found not to be a refugee. There have been notices that have gone up in the last couple of weeks indicating a certain procedure that's going to be followed for people who are 'double negatives', so they're called. Yesterday afternoon half-a-dozen PNG police simply went into Oscar compound and took him and his belongings out of Oscar compound and as we understand he is now in that F-Block, which is that new solitary confiment area.

JT: He's in this new block for how long? He's a 'double negative', what's their plan from here?

IR: Well potentially he could be there indefinitely, although the fine print of the memorandum between Australia and Papua New Guinea does say that people who are failed asylum seekers and can't be returned to their countries of origin will ultimately be Australia's responsibility. But for the moment what PNG immigration are saying is that people who cannot be returned to their country of origin will be held in the Manus Island detention facility or another custodial facility in Papua New Guinea. But, like the Iranian asylum seekers in Australia, I think the likelihood is that there is no arrangement between Papua New Guinea and Iran to return failed asylum seekers, this man is going to end up in indefinite detention, and for now is in indefinite detention in Manus Island.

JT: Is this the first 'double negative' person? What's happened previously?

IR: Until now the only people who have returned are people who have voluntarily signed to be returned. So the PNG immigration are now facing the first possibilities of forcibly removing 'double negatives'. So this is really the first instance where the PNG immigration had attempted to remove, or is attempting to remove, a failed asylum seeker.

JT: And if they can't send him to Iran, and he's refusing to leave Manus, are they trying to induce to him to go voluntarily?

IR: Ultimately that's what happens in Australia as well. My interpretation of the whole of the situation is that his very public arrest and his very public removal from Oscar compound is designed to coerce and to intimidate other failed asylum seekers to voluntarily sign to be removed.