Rosie Batty Calls On PM To Close Detention Centres Following Rape Allegations

A week after welcoming a boost to domestic violence funding alongside Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, Australian of the Year and staunch anti-domestic violence campaigner Rosie Batty has called on the PM to act on closing down offshore Australian detention centres, the Sydney Morning Herald reports

letter addressed to Malcolm Turnbull yesterday by Research Against Pacific Black Sites drew the support of Rosie Batty, who described Australian offshore detention centres: “The centres are, by their very design, unsafe and dangerous places.”

Batty also criticised the “out of sight, out of mind” rhetoric that often conceals the reality of offshore detention centres from the Australian public. 

“These centres cannot be patched up. They must be shut down. The people forcibly held there are those who sought protection in this country. 


They deserve care, not punishment. Out of sight is not out of mind!”

Yesterday, Malcolm Turnbull addressed allegations of rape taking place on Nauru, saying the reported incidents were “very alarming“. 

A report on ABC’s 7:30 sparked the comments by Turnbull. 

“The story on 7.30 on Monday night did reveal, as you said, a very alarming issue of safety for women there and we take that very seriously. 


We’re taking a number of steps to work closely with the Nauru government to ensure the safety and the security of all the refugees living in that community.”

Yesterday, an open letter to Malcolm Turnbull advocating for the closure of offshore detention centres was signed by over 450 university academics.

“The government acts in our name and on our behalf; it must remain accountable for both the treatment of its citizens and of all others who come to our shores,” the letter reads. 


Letter via Fairfax. 

via SMH.
Lead image by Stefan Postles via Getty. 

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