Amnesty International says Australia has drastically reduced healthcare for refugees it detains in Papua New Guinea.
In a report titled Health Care Cuts, the human rights watchdog outlines the reduction in health services available to refugees since being moved from the Manus Island detention centre to three smaller facilities on the island in November.
A refugee carries well water in the Manus Island detention centre. Photo: Behrouz Boochani
A new company was contracted to provide the services this month, and Amnesty researcher Kate Schuetze said its not yet clear what the company was offering.
"Pacific International Hospital has been contracted to provide health services," she said.
"They have in fact confirmed that but because of the way the Australian government operates with a lot of secrecy around their arrangements with Manus and Nauru we don't know the full scope of that contract."
Ms Schuetze said one of the most worrying cuts on Manus Island was the retraction of torture and trauma counseling.
For five years, about 750 men have been detained in Papua New Guinea where they were exiled by Australia for seeking asylum.
Neither Manus Island's basic health clinic nor Pacific International Hospital in Port Moresby were staffed or equipped to care for the men, Ms Schuetze said.
"What we are seeing is a very drastic wind back over the last six months in the level of healthcare that the Australian government is willing to provide to the refugees and asylum seekers in its care."
Kate Schuetze Photo: Amnesty International
