Senator BARTLETT (6:56 PM) —I move:

Report No. 12 of the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission goes specifically to practices in an immigration detention centre, in this case the Port Hedland Detention Centre. It is an important report because it highlights a fundamental problem with our overall approach to detention of asylum seekers in Australia and with the mandatory detention approach that is undertaken by this coalition government and that was introduced by the ALP when they were in government and, I understand, is still supported by the ALP. Yet what this report shows is that mandatory detention almost inevitably will lead to breaches of obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and breaches of human rights under Australia's Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission Act.

This report details some specific complaints from two asylum seekers from China. It relates to occurrences that happened in 1996 and 1997. There are comments I could make about how long it takes for the process to go all the way through to being tabled in the Senate. Indeed, the date at the front of the report suggests that it was finalised on 28 November last year and, according to the dates on the red, it was not presented to the minister until 5 February. I do not know why it took two months between the letter being signed and it being presented to the minister. And, even if the 5 February date is right, I do not know why it then took another two months for it to be presented to the Senate. The delays seem quite unnecessary and inexplicable. If that were the only concern, it would barely be worth noticing.

The real concern the Democrats have is that, once again, this report shows that administrative practices of the department, based on legislation and on government policy, are almost inevitably inconsistent with human rights, whether you are talking about our international obligations or our own obligations under Australian law. The finding of this report in relation to both these asylum seekers and their concerns is that the department did not adequately inform them of their right to legal advice. Unfortunately, that ability of the department not to inform people of their right to legal advice is now enshrined in law, supported by the ALP and the coalition. People are not required to be notified of their right to legal advice; they have to know the magic set of words and ask for it. The report also found that their requests for legal advice and for application forms were not handled in a timely fashion, which is important for anybody; but if you are an asylum seeker fleeing persecution, locked up in a detention centre under this country's automatic mandatory detention regime, then not being timely in assisting with processing is much more important because you are denying people's freedom the whole time that is occurring.

The detention was found to be arbitrary and without due cause or adequate reason. The fact that they were kept in separation detention in conditions which, in many respects, are identical to incommunicado detention for over three months is a clear breach of human rights. In many ways these instances are not as dramatic as some of the allegations in recent times about mistreatment, solitary confinement and sedation of asylum seekers. But they show the fundamental problem that occurs inevitably with the approach that Australia, in isolation, insists on taking with asylum seekers of compulsorily locking up every single one of them for the entire time that their claims are being assessed.

These are not just individual adult males but also women and children. I draw attention to the most recent newsletter from the Australian section of Defence for Children International, Australian Childrens Rights News, which highlighted the number of children in detention in Australia at the moment and the comments from people internationally. The international president of Defence for Children International expressed shock and dismay at the number of minors that are deprived of their liberty automatically under Australia's immigration detention regime and says this has to be the last resort. The conditions are such that:

That is clearly the case. This report is a challenge to the government and the ALP to rethink their position on mandatory detention, to take a more humane approach such as has applied in virtually every other industrialised nation in the world and not to compulsorily lock up men, women and children automatically when there are other options that can be applied. (Time expired)