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Your letters: The Australian asylum-seeker policy
I am referring to an article titled âRI to monitor impact of new Australian asylum-seeker policy,â (The Jakarta Post, Nov
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I
am referring to an article titled 'RI to monitor impact of new Australian asylum-seeker policy,' (The Jakarta Post, Nov. 19).
The new policy from the Australian government will mean there will be no advantage for anyone applying for refugee status in Indonesia.
This means Indonesia has ceased to be a transit location for those seeking a better life in Australia.
As a signatory to the International Refugee Convention, Australia provides permanent settlement with substantial benefits for a fixed quota of refugees each year. Those chosen will be the most deserving cases from refugee camps. Australia is also a major contributor to these camps. From a cost-effectiveness point of view, money spent on support of the camps benefits far more people than permanent resettlement.
Debate continues in Australia about the number of refugees that can be settled. Ultimately the Australian public at the next election in 2016 will get to decide if they want a large increase in refugees and what price they will have to pay.
Settling refugees comes at substantial cost because most cannot be employed and many suffer from medical problems. Unfortunately it is an ongoing cost so the expenditure simply increases substantially each year.
Australia actually ranks two-thirds globally in its resettlement of refugees.
The new policy should benefit Indonesia in so far as there should not be anyone coming to Indonesia hoping for resettlement in Australia. So if you are from Afghanistan, your chances will be better if you apply from a refugee camp in Pakistan, not Indonesia.
Criticism by Indonesian officials about this policy is misplaced. Refugees in Indonesia are Indonesia's responsibility, not Australia's. If Indonesia didn't want them then they should not have been allowed in.
A claim that Indonesia can only accommodate 2,000 is nonsense.
How can a country like Australia with a small population take in tens of thousands when Indonesia with a population of around 200 million take in only a few thousand?
Indonesia just has to accept its own responsibilities and not expect others to solve its mistakes.
Jagera
Jakarta
