Explosive new allegations regarding the treatment of refugees at the Australian detention centre on Nauru have emerged today, during a Senate Inquiry into the conditions and treatment of refugees at the island facility.
According to The Guardian today, Charlottle Wilson, a former case manager at Nauru, has claimed “bartering and trading, including of sexual favours, within the camp” was “common knowledge” among staff.
Wilson’s submission also claimed that guards at the detention facility regularly “abused their positions of power” over refugees.
Regrettably, the allegations by Wilson go deeper, claiming that sex acts paid for by guards on Nauru were also taped and distributed among staff.
“I was told that this was acknowledged in management meetings between service providers and that it was also established that these acts had been filmed and circulated around Wilson’s staff. I was also told that because prostitution is legal on Nauru that no action was being taken against the staff members involved.”
Wilson’s submission to the Senate inquiry follows a string of submissions calling out alleged corruption and severe mistreatment on Nauru, most recently including reports of Senator Sarah Hanson-Young being spied on during her visit to the island in 2013. Charlotte Wilson’s claims are hard to swallow, when she writes:
“I firmly believe that the level of trauma that asylum seekers have been subjected to has caused profound damage to nearly every single man, woman and child who has been arbitrarily interned in Nauru.”
In a cruel twist of irony, today’s news lands on the United Nations‘-established World Refugee Day, no less. A day that should be one of reflection and support – not one of stomach-churning, fresh allegations such as these.
Imagine being brave enough to do whatever it takes to get your family out of a war zone or escape torture against all odds. #WorldRefugeeDay
— Sarah Hanson-Young (@sarahinthesen8) June 19, 2015
World Refugee Day also marks the end of activist Peter Drew‘s powerful campaign, ‘Real Australians Say Welcome’ – a project that saw Drew’s posters plastered over Australian cities in the past few months.
Fittingly, Drew’s final poster found the most appropriate home – right in the face of Immigration Minister Peter Dutton‘s office.
My 1000th poster found a fitting home #realaustralianssaywelcome
Posted by Peter Drew Arts on Friday, 19 June 2015
Much like the fight to close detention centres on Manus Island and Nauru, and campaigns to create more meaningful action into curbing the mistreatment of children in detention centres, the senate Inquiry into the conditions on Nauru is ongoing.
via The Guardian.
Lead image by Scott Fisher via Getty.
