Australia admits returning migrants

[chooka]

Australia doesn't want to end up like the UK. Migrants are welcome in Oz, so long as they have something to offer.

Good for the Aussies I say.

Agree these people are welcomed as migrants and go through the due process like everyone else. Sri Lanka is not a conflict zone and the Australian has been informed by the Sri Lankan Government that citizens of Sri Lanka will not be harmed by their own government.

These people are absolutely no different to a boat load of Americans arriving on Australian shores seeking asylum.

Geez my wife had to go through 18 months of investigation and pay 1,000's to accompany her 6 yr old Australian son to Australia. She was patient and went through the process and was never a free loader trying to sneak in the back door.

These people are bloody free loaders who have nothing to give to Australia

[Chao Lao Beach]

[chooka]

Now just how brilliant does numbnut make Yingluk and any thai politician who has gone before her look.

Import your Prime Ministers from England and this is what you get.

[Phuketboy]

Why people keep wanting to go there is beyond me. A lot of the people I speak to and friends as well want to get the hell out. If only they were told the truth about how expensive it is to live there and how much the government rip you off, they may quickly change their minds. At least corruption here is out in the open and you know what you're getting before you arrive.

These views, whole heartedly, I did share almost 10 years ago but not entirely now because Thailand has not moved forward in the last 10 years and still remains uncertain and unstable.

In particular, Thailand has not improved in the areas of health, education, public transport, trade & labor, law and order just to name a few.

Most of these problems can be blamed on the previous government but not entirely.

Sure the cost of energy in Australia maybe horrendous however the projected models of people moving into total solar power due to the now short term benefit return on your investment leaves Thailand behind in the dark ages still.

In comparison to Australia, any capital investment in Thailand is at 100% risk where as you're almost assured of capital growth in OZ. Also another measure is not too many people seeking economic asylum to Thailand. Most Burmese and Cambodians are heading back to their own countries because of the real prospect of economic change and development. Thailand now has a real problem filing the void of the labor shortage gap.

I agree with you in many ways, however forget about the solar scheme, Australia is way to expensive period. Australia is a beautiful country and has a lot to see and do but try running a business and making profit like you could years ago, health and safety has gone stupid, taxes are ridiculous (not just income tax but the the indirect tax you pay on everything). Freedom has gone, you can't even go down the park for a bbq or picnic with friends and open a bottle of wine cause it's illegal. Can't go for a ride with more than 3 people on a weekend cause that is illegal now as well. Way too many rules and and regulations plus everything is geared to suit the rip off government. Yes I made some good money, but I lost a lot of money as well (in property). People are going there looking for a better life only to find out it is not what they were told or what they thought it would be and turning around and heading back home to their own countries cause they are better off there. There is no way in hell I would ever live there again.

[Phuketboy]

Why people keep wanting to go there is beyond me. A lot of the people I speak to and friends as well want to get the hell out. If only they were told the truth about how expensive it is to live there and how much the government rip you off, they may quickly change their minds. At least corruption here is out in the open and you know what you're getting before you arrive.

Geez, for a minute there phuketboy I thought you were talking about Phuket. Or are you?

No Clutch, I wasn't referring to any one place. I was just saying at least you know about the corruption here. There are far more places to go than Australia. Yes is nice, but look deeper. I'm here cause I like it and have a family here, but if I was to move I would go somewhere else. It's so hard for my thai wife and daughter to stay in Australia, the application was incredible and the way they try and treat them almost like a prisoner is not fair at all. But that is a different story and maybe others may have experienced something better.

[simple1]

A U turn from Abbott; Tony Abbott has no plan to send boatpeople to Sri Lanka

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/policy/tony-abbott-has-no-plan-to-send-boatpeople-to-sri-lanka/story-fn9hm1gu-1226982334346

It has now emerged that with the first boat load returned, nearly all were Sinhalese Buddhists, they were not subject to mistreatment, just fines for illegally departing Sri Lanka. It has also been claimed many of the people claiming asylum are also Sinhalese and most assessed as economic refugees. In media interviews the majority of asylum seekers have been in detention for more than a year, with the assessment process not even commenced.

Whilst the Civil War is over, so not designated a conflict zone, Buddhist nationalists are attacking Muslim businesses and individuals. There is a propaganda war over the treatment of Tamils - mostly Hindus - it's not clear on the level of ongoing supression of the Tamil Hindus and treatment in detention, although there are numerous reports of torture and so on.

[chooka]

We organised it all. We put all our money and everything together and we got the other passengers together, and we believed that we could get to New Zealand,” Mrs Saparamadu said. “We never wanted to go to Australia.”

Mrs Saparamadu said that after she gave an interview to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in 2012 or 2013, she said she was harassed by Sri Lankan authorities and that her family had decided that their best option was to go to another country like New Zealand that offered better economic circumstances.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/elite-officer-suspected-of-key-role-in-smuggling-bid-20140708-3blbe.html#ixzz36vFH5bU8

[chooka]

Tony Abbott says government will not give in to 'moral blackmail' over asylum seeker suicide attempts

Fairfax Media reports on Wednesday that a dozen mothers have tried to kill themselves on Christmas Island after deciding their children would have more chance of making it to Australia without them.

Mr Abbott said the reports of suicide attempts were "harrowing" but that the government would not change its policy of offshore processing and no permanent residency for asylum seekers who arrive by boat.

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"No Australian government should be subjected to the spectacle of people saying 'unless you accept us, I am going to commit self harm','' Mr Abbott told Channel Nine on Wednesday.

''I don't believe any thinking Australian would want us to capitulate to moral blackmail

''This is not going to be a government which has our policy driven by people who are attempting to hold us over a moral barrel – we won't be driven by that.''

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/tony-abbott-says-government-will-not-give-in-to-moral-blackmail-over-asylum-seeker-suicide-attempts-20140709-3blh3.html#ixzz36vJLwjxz

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/tony-abbott-says-government-will-not-give-in-to-moral-blackmail-over-asylum-seeker-suicide-attempts-20140709-3blh3.html#ixzz36vJ2klpb

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/tony-abbott-says-government-will-not-give-in-to-moral-blackmail-over-asylum-seeker-suicide-attempts-20140709-3blh3.html#ixzz36vIjzwYi

[simple1]

We organised it all. We put all our money and everything together and we got the other passengers together, and we believed that we could get to New Zealand,” Mrs Saparamadu said. “We never wanted to go to Australia.”

Mrs Saparamadu said that after she gave an interview to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in 2012 or 2013, she said she was harassed by Sri Lankan authorities and that her family had decided that their best option was to go to another country like New Zealand that offered better economic circumstances.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/elite-officer-suspected-of-key-role-in-smuggling-bid-20140708-3blbe.html#ixzz36vFH5bU8

Yep, in some media report regards the current situation one of the boats contacted NZ authorities (I believe the one carrying the Sinhalese), as claimed it was their destination, However NZ then contacted Oz who carried out the interception / rescue at sea.

[neverdie]

High court adjourned for late lunch due to resume in an hour. Not over yet Neverdie, Chooka was probably referring to Murdoch network news feeds who we know are in bed with the very people who instigated this cloud of secrecy on the high seas.

ABC News.

I was going to suggest Chooka might be an ABC man. Good man, smart man

[neverdie]

Now just how brilliant does numbnut make Yingluk and any thai politician who has gone before her look.

Import your Prime Ministers from England and this is what you get.

Yes Abbott is a goose, but so was Rudd, Gillard and the hide of that moron keating to talk about "God help us", I mean this is a man who almost single handedly drove Australia to the wall. Would love to bring back Keating now and his near 20% interest rates.....talk about a bloody goose.

Australia has allowed d*ckhead politicians to screw things up for years. God help us alright.

I should add, whilst Abbott's policies and strategic method leave a lot to be desired, its a far better situation than what that IDIOT kevin douchebag Rudd had going. Fair dinkum, that guy couldnt organise a 'naughty' in a brothel with a fist full of fifties. DOUCHEBAG ! all capitals for him.

Edited July 9, 2014 by neverdie

[Chris Lawrence]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-07-08/high-court-hearing-on-asylum-seekers/5581766

The above news article was posted today. In contrast to what people think not residing in Sri Lanka, Tamals are still being persecuted?

"Jesuit priest Father Yogeswaran, who represents the Tamil Civil Society of Trincomalee, has written to the Australian High Commissioner in Sri Lanka to say Prime Minister Tony Abbott is wrong to suggest Sri Lanka is now a peaceful country.

"The conflicts are not over for the minorities in this country as the recent events have unfolded," he wrote

Tamil national alliance leader and Northern Province chief minister, Canagasabapathy Visuvalingam Vigneswaran, says Tamils are forced to leave because they face discrimination and violence.

"It is because life is intolerable in Sri Lanka," he said in a statement to the ABC's PM program.

"The very same army which fought the war and are now subject to International War Crimes' investigations are still in large numbers positioned in the north and east. They have taken over every aspect of civilian life."

41 people sent back went to court in Sri Lanka, and resulted as follows:

'The court granted bail to 27 of the 41 people who were returned to Sri Lanka on Monday after the controversial mid-sea transfer.

As relatives waited outside the colonial-era court building in the southern city, a magistrate remanded five others in the group in custody, and discharged nine children.

The five people who were remanded in custody have been accused of organising the trip, and face penalties of up to five years in prison.

Their next court hearing is scheduled for July 14.

The court heard those on board the boat paid between $1,000 and $5,000 for a place on the vessel, which was intercepted near the Cocos Islands late last month.'

If I was paid between $1000 and $5000, I wouldn't have gone by boat; I would have got a seat on a plane. Quicker and safer?

Then again what idiot would hop on a leaking boat and travel from Sri Lanka to Oz with their wife and children, with the prospects of drowning, or attacks by pirates with your wife raped and your throat cut? Or how desperate must a human being be to do such a trip?

Met a women who came to Oz from Vietnam. Her boat was attacked by pirates, the women were all raped and the men were killed and thrown overboard, with the boat left to drift. She made it, started a business in OZ, and was making about $15,000 a week from her shops; that was back in 2003.

Sometimes it works?

.

Edited July 9, 2014 by Chris Lawrence

[Thanet]

Australia doesn't want to end up like the UK. Migrants are welcome in Oz, so long as they have something to offer.

Good for the Aussies I say.

Agree these people are welcomed as migrants and go through the due process like everyone else. Sri Lanka is not a conflict zone and the Australian has been informed by the Sri Lankan Government that citizens of Sri Lanka will not be harmed by their own government.

These people are absolutely no different to a boat load of Americans arriving on Australian shores seeking asylum.

Geez my wife had to go through 18 months of investigation and pay 1,000's to accompany her 6 yr old Australian son to Australia. She was patient and went through the process and was never a free loader trying to sneak in the back door.

These people are bloody free loaders who have nothing to give to Australia

I went through the process of getting Oz PR as a skilled migrant, then later on sponsored my wife via the fiancee / partner visa route. As you know, it is an expensive and time consuming process, to say the least! Migrants who come in the front door are made very welcome, but we do have to show that we can contribute something, and then spend years in the country to qualify for social security and pension benefits. Australia is a sovereign sate, so careful selection of who is allowed to live there is just and reasonable.

The news in Australia is full of stories of all these people coming over illegally, many of them from countries like Iran and Sri Lanka, then getting immediate rights, financial help from the taxpayer (me), and instant eligibility for pensions and a raft of other benefits. All I can say is that I don't blame the Aussies for finally trying to draw the line on these economic migrants.

At least the Aussies can still draw the line. They probably look to the UK as a sad lesson in what unrestricted immigration of low grade migrants can do to a country. I just came back from a visit to England, and even a small city like Norwich is flooded with eastern Europeans, many of whom do nothing except draw welfare benefits.

[simple1]

If you can be bothered, have a read of the content at an Australian Federal Government website, "Assistance to refugees: fact v fiction" that in its introduction states:

"In recent years a series of emails have been widely circulated throughout Australia claiming to describe the social security entitlements of refugees compared with those of other Australian residents. A common claim in these emails is that refugees in Australia receive higher social security benefits than age pensioners. Some also suggest that refugees receive free gifts such as houses. Claims of this kind are erroneous and appear to have caused some confusion in the community. They are often brought to the attention of senators and members by their constituents"

Australian Government

http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/BN/2012-2013/AustGovAssistRefugees

[Thanet]

If you can be bothered, have a read of the content at an Australian Federal Government website, "Assistance to refugees: fact v fiction" that in its introduction states:

"In recent years a series of emails have been widely circulated throughout Australia claiming to describe the social security entitlements of refugees compared with those of other Australian residents. A common claim in these emails is that refugees in Australia receive higher social security benefits than age pensioners. Some also suggest that refugees receive free gifts such as houses. Claims of this kind are erroneous and appear to have caused some confusion in the community. They are often brought to the attention of senators and members by their constituents"

Australian Government

http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/BN/2012-2013/AustGovAssistRefugees

I did look at that link - thanks for posting it, even though the information it provides is incomplete. In my original post, I didn't say that rates of welfare or pension were any different - only the waiting period to qualify.

The information in your link backs up my claim, in the following statements:

Most social security payments or concession cards have either a waiting period or qualifying residence criteria that apply to new arrivals in Australia. A two year newly arrived resident's waiting period applies to payments such as Austudy, Carer Payment, Commonwealth Seniors Health Card, Newstart Allowance, Sickness Allowance and Youth Allowance.[25]

Other payments do not have a newly arrived resident’s waiting period, but have their own ‘qualifying residence’ requirements. For example, Age Pension and Disability Support Pension have qualifying residence requirements of ten years.[26]

The newly arrived resident’s waiting period and qualifying residence requirements are not applied in the case of refugees or humanitarian visa holders. This is in recognition of the special circumstances under which people in these categories have come to have permanent residency in Australia—that is, as refugees with no other means of financial support.

And, for the Aged Pension http://www.humanservices.gov.au/customer/services/centrelink/age-pension

To be eligible for Age Pension you must satisfy residence requirements. You must be:

• an Australian resident on the day you lodge your claim, and
• be physically present in Australia on the day you lodge your claim

You also need to have been an Australian resident for a continuous period of at least 10 years, or for a number of periods that total more than ten years, with one of the periods being at least five years, unless you:

• are a refugee or former refugee, or
• were getting Partner Allowance, Widow Allowance or Widow B Pension immediately before turning Age Pension age, or
• are a woman whose partner died while you were both Australian residents, and you have been an Australian resident for two years immediately before claiming Age Pension

[Thanet]

If you can be bothered, have a read of the content at an Australian Federal Government website, "Assistance to refugees: fact v fiction" that in its introduction states:

"In recent years a series of emails have been widely circulated throughout Australia claiming to describe the social security entitlements of refugees compared with those of other Australian residents. A common claim in these emails is that refugees in Australia receive higher social security benefits than age pensioners. Some also suggest that refugees receive free gifts such as houses. Claims of this kind are erroneous and appear to have caused some confusion in the community. They are often brought to the attention of senators and members by their constituents"

Australian Government

http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/BN/2012-2013/AustGovAssistRefugees

I did look at that link - thanks for posting it, even though the information it provides is incomplete. In my original post, I didn't say that rates of welfare or pension were any different - only the waiting period to qualify.

The information in your link backs up my claim, in the following statements:

Most social security payments or concession cards have either a waiting period or qualifying residence criteria that apply to new arrivals in Australia. A two year newly arrived resident's waiting period applies to payments such as Austudy, Carer Payment, Commonwealth Seniors Health Card, Newstart Allowance, Sickness Allowance and Youth Allowance.[25]

Other payments do not have a newly arrived resident’s waiting period, but have their own ‘qualifying residence’ requirements. For example, Age Pension and Disability Support Pension have qualifying residence requirements of ten years.[26]

The newly arrived resident’s waiting period and qualifying residence requirements are not applied in the case of refugees or humanitarian visa holders. This is in recognition of the special circumstances under which people in these categories have come to have permanent residency in Australia—that is, as refugees with no other means of financial support.

And, for the Aged Pension http://www.humanservices.gov.au/customer/services/centrelink/age-pension

To be eligible for Age Pension you must satisfy residence requirements. You must be:

• an Australian resident on the day you lodge your claim, and
• be physically present in Australia on the day you lodge your claim

You also need to have been an Australian resident for a continuous period of at least 10 years, or for a number of periods that total more than ten years, with one of the periods being at least five years, unless you:

• are a refugee or former refugee, or
• were getting Partner Allowance, Widow Allowance or Widow B Pension immediately before turning Age Pension age, or
• are a woman whose partner died while you were both Australian residents, and you have been an Australian resident for two years immediately before claiming Age Pension

And don't forget those crisis payments that the refugees claim:

http://www.humanservices.gov.au/customer/services/centrelink/crisis-payment

Exposees by the media showed that economic migrants use them to buy the latest flat panel TV.

Needless, to say, honest migrants need not apply.

[simple1]

If you can be bothered, have a read of the content at an Australian Federal Government website, "Assistance to refugees: fact v fiction" that in its introduction states:

"In recent years a series of emails have been widely circulated throughout Australia claiming to describe the social security entitlements of refugees compared with those of other Australian residents. A common claim in these emails is that refugees in Australia receive higher social security benefits than age pensioners. Some also suggest that refugees receive free gifts such as houses. Claims of this kind are erroneous and appear to have caused some confusion in the community. They are often brought to the attention of senators and members by their constituents"

Australian Government

http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Library/pubs/BN/2012-2013/AustGovAssistRefugees

I did look at that link - thanks for posting it, even though the information it provides is incomplete. In my original post, I didn't say that rates of welfare or pension were any different - only the waiting period to qualify.

The information in your link backs up my claim, in the following statements:

Most social security payments or concession cards have either a waiting period or qualifying residence criteria that apply to new arrivals in Australia. A two year newly arrived resident's waiting period applies to payments such as Austudy, Carer Payment, Commonwealth Seniors Health Card, Newstart Allowance, Sickness Allowance and Youth Allowance.[25]

Other payments do not have a newly arrived resident’s waiting period, but have their own ‘qualifying residence’ requirements. For example, Age Pension and Disability Support Pension have qualifying residence requirements of ten years.[26]

The newly arrived resident’s waiting period and qualifying residence requirements are not applied in the case of refugees or humanitarian visa holders. This is in recognition of the special circumstances under which people in these categories have come to have permanent residency in Australia—that is, as refugees with no other means of financial support.

And, for the Aged Pension http://www.humanservices.gov.au/customer/services/centrelink/age-pension

To be eligible for Age Pension you must satisfy residence requirements. You must be:

• an Australian resident on the day you lodge your claim, and
• be physically present in Australia on the day you lodge your claim

You also need to have been an Australian resident for a continuous period of at least 10 years, or for a number of periods that total more than ten years, with one of the periods being at least five years, unless you:

• are a refugee or former refugee, or
• were getting Partner Allowance, Widow Allowance or Widow B Pension immediately before turning Age Pension age, or
• are a woman whose partner died while you were both Australian residents, and you have been an Australian resident for two years immediately before claiming Age Pension

Yes, for those who have been positively assessed as genuine asylum seekers / refugees, not whilst waiting completion of assessment process and so on. Of course no longer available to those arriving by sea as permently denied access to Australian territory i.e. PNG Solution

Edited July 9, 2014 by simple1