An advocate for the hundreds of asylum seekers incarcerated in three Australian run camps on Nauru says their situation is becoming increasingly dire and there is an urgent need for independent human rights oversight.
The Australian government is no longer divulging numbers in the camps but the spokesperson for the Refugee Action Coalition, Ian Rintoul, estimates that about 700 people are spread over the three camps with about 200 in the family camp.
He says they are all living under canvas, have inadequate medical and sanitation facilities, there is no running water and no recreation area for the children.
Mr Rintoul says human rights groups must be allowed in.
"We have now got an Australian government that is systematically trying to deny information to the media and to the public. It was always difficult off Nauru, it is that much more difficult now. There is no internet connection, the phone connections are extremely restricted for the people who are in detention. There is very little information coming off [the island], while the information that does come off it remains alarming."
Ian Rintoul of the Refugee Action Coalition
