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No clarity on fate of Saudi teen, Bahraini footballer after visit by Australian minister


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No clarity on fate of Saudi teen, Bahraini footballer after visit by Australian minister

By THE NATION

 

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Human rights groups and the Australian football community hold a protest in front of the Opera House for the release of refugee footballer Hakeem Alaraibi in Sydney on January 10, 2019. // AFP PHOTO

 

THE FATE of two Australia-bound asylum seekers from the Middle East, who were stopped in Thailand, remained unclear as visiting Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne discussed the two cases with her Thai counterpart yesterday.

 

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Saudi teenager Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun, who had run away from alleged family threats, has been under the care of the United Nations refugee agency (UNHRC) in a safe house in Bangkok since Monday, when Thai authorities gave up their plan to deport her after the case made global headlines.

 

Payne told reporters that Canberra was “engaged in the steps of the assessment process of al-Qunun as required”. 

 

There was “no possibility” that al-Qunun would return to Australia with her yesterday, said Payne, who declined to speculate on a timeframe for giving the Saudi teen asylum if she were granted refugee status. 

 

Immigration chief Surachate Hakparn said al-Qunun’s father and brother, who have arrived in Thailand, could not object to the UN process as she has already been granted refugee status.

 

The Immigration police chief said the father and brother had told him that the case was a family matter and not related to relations between Thailand and Saudi Arabia. Thailand is ready to facilitate her travel to a country where she could be resettled, he added. 

 

Unusual speed

 

Australian authorities are weighing the young Saudi woman’s asylum claim at unusual speed, several lawyers and legal experts told AFP, contrasting her high-profile plight with a normally excruciatingly slow system.

 

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Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Marise Payne talks to members of the press during a press conference at the Australian Embassy in Bangkok, Thailand, 10 January 2019. // EPA-EFE PHOTO

 

Canberra has insisted it will treat the case of 18-year-old al-Qunun “in the usual way, as it does with all” refugee cases referred by the UN.

 

But just days after fleeing a powerful and allegedly abusive family in Saudi Arabia, al-Qunun has already been judged a legitimate refugee by the UN and been in contact with Australian officials in Bangkok about resettlement.

 

Her plight is not that of refugees who languish for years in sprawling city camps like Dadaab, Kenya or Zaatari, Jordan.

 

“Usually it’s really very slow,” said Mary Anne Kenny, a veteran legal practitioner and expert in Australian migration at Perth’s Murdoch University. 

 

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HA protestor holds a placard during a protest in front of the Opera House for the release of refugee footballer Hakeem Alaraibi in Sydney on January 10, 2019. // AFP PHOTO

 

Payne said during her visit to Thailand yesterday, she had also advocated the safe return to Australia of footballer Hakeem al-Araibi, who has been detained in Thailand since November while trying to go on vacation. 

 

Al-Araibi was granted permanent residency by the Australian government in recognition of his status as a refugee, she said. Al-Araibi, however, faces a court trial in Thailand for extradition as requested by Bahrain for his role in anti-government protests. 

 

Payne reiterated Australia’s call to Thailand not to send al-Araibi back to Bahrain.

 

Graham Thom, refugee coordinator at Amnesty International Australia, called upon the |football community to help support the return of al-Araibi to Australia.

 

“Hakeem will not be safe until he is back home in Australia. As a recognised refugee with approved travel documents, he should never have been detained. He faces torture and possible death if he is sent back to Bahrain,” he said. 

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30362028

 
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-- © Copyright The Nation 2019-01-11
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Apparently there's ore that meet the eyes in this story..Her escape had been reportedly planned for months and was aided by three overseas friends, one of whom was in Australia who kept in touch via social media with Ms Alqunun throughout her trip.

she chose to enter Thailand fro a quick visit after arriving at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi airport, she reportedly mistakenly thought there was no Saudi embassy in Bangkok, she had already successfully applied for a tourist visa for Australia, The trio had urged her to swiftly transfer through the airport in Bangkok so she could arrive in Australia and apply for asylum as quickly as possible.

However, the young lady was keen to savour her first experience of freedom away from her family and country, even if just for a few days, so she tried to pass through the border and enter Thailand.

She felt safe to do so because she believed there was no Saudi embassy in Bangkok, which is not the case.

“We friends said ‘no, you cannot stay. It’s too dangerous’,” Shahad, a 19-year-old Saudi woman now based in Sweden after escaping her own family two years ago, told The Australian,

“We bought her a ticket to Australia from Thailand but she didn’t listen to us.”... interesting to see how this will end...

 

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Don't be fooled.

There is an election looming in Australia and Peter Dutton will be doing his all to garner public opinion beforehand.

This is a fact finding mission on his behalf, to find the best course of action that will make him look best in the press.  This guy needs watching just so closely. An extraordinary scab.

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As an Australian, I do not trust their immigration system nor granting of refugee status one bit....even though the UN has granted this girl refugee status, is certainly no guarantee Australia will accept her.

The Bahraini, al Araibi, IMO, is in great danger of being sent back to Bahrain....the investments they have here could well dictate the outcome to keep them onside.

The question is whether the Thais are serious about this guys freedom and sending him back to Australia, given their atrocious decisions of past?

As for the joke and Prawit, they're well out of their depth here

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Can't help but wonder what all the afghan and syrian (whatever nationality of the many refugees passing through thailand) families with young kids running around bangkok from place to place avoiding the authorities desperately waiting for their settlement to a 3rd safe country for years think of this.

 

 

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I guess this young 18 year old thought that she knew everything, and did not listen to those who bought her ticket. I do hope she is a bit wiser now and at least she was smart enough to not

let her father or brother get near enough to hug her to death in Thailand. Hope she lives to see Australia, and goes into hiding for a while. Maybe she can get a movie part and become

wealthy enough to defend herself from her family.

Geezer

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In that other paper they reported that yesterday 4 women dressed in jeans calling themselves the 'The Secret Sisterhood' held a topless protest in front of the Saudi Consulate calling for Miss Qunun's residency.

 

Makes ya proud to be an Aussie!!!!!!

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