The Australian Government is preparing to send the first batch of Asylum Seekers out of the detention centre at Nauru to be re-settled in Cambodia, in accordance with a $40million agreement struck between the Governments of Australia and Cambodia last year.
The Guardian reports that a charter plane has been sourced and letters have been distributed to the asylum seekers on the island impelling them to voluntarily opt for Cambodian settlement.
The letters paint a fairly rosy picture for new lives in the embattled country, which remains one of the world’s most deeply corrupt.
“The opportunity to settle in Cambodia is now available to you. The first flight from Nauru to Cambodia for refugees will be as soon as 20 April 2015. Moving to Cambodia provides an opportunity for you and your family to start a new life in a safe country, free from persecution and violence, and build your future.”
“Cambodia is a diverse country with multiple nationalities, cultures and religions. They enjoy all the freedoms of a democratic society including freedom of religion and freedom of speech.”
“Cambodia is a safe country, where police maintain law and order. It does not have problems with violent crime or stray dogs.”
The letters also claim that asylum seekers will be able to send their children to school in Cambodia, will be given cash and a bank account, and will receive unspecified support in fields such as income support, language training and health insurance.
It also claims that people taking up the offer will be placed into temporary accommodation in Phnom Penh for six to eight weeks, with additional assistance provided to find subsequent accommodation after that period ends. People who do re-settle in Cambodia will be eligible for citizenship in seven years.
However asylum seekers have expressed worry and confusion about the letters, stating that the offers for support are non-specific and vague, and contain no other information beyond what is merely stated in the letter itself.
Critics of the deal – which include Human Rights groups within Cambodia – have admonished the proposal, stating Cambodia is not equipped to adequately handle an influx of asylum seekers, and have historically had a terrible record for protecting refugees, which includes documented human rights abuses.
It’s unknown how many asylum seekers being held on Nauru have taken up the offer. The Guardian reports that at least one family has volunteered and is listed on the charter flight manifest.
The query remains – where is all the money for these support systems coming from? And if the Government is so willing to bend over backwards in this manner, what on Earth has been stopping them for enacting a similar scheme within Australia?
The Abbott Government‘s attitude to all of this, sadly, remains that those people are simply not their problem.
Photo: Tang Chhin Sothy via Getty Images.
