Oz Asylum Seeker Policy a Political, Diplomatic Minefield

via Canberra Times

From Radio New Zealand's Dateline Pacific, Johnny Blades talks with Damien Kingsbury from Deakin University about the Manus agreement with Papua New Guinea:

JB: Do you think the Australian government should have, could have, thought it out differently? 

DK: Well, certainly. But look the Australian government's been very keen to develop this offshore processing programme for domestic political reasons. And in a sense: out of sight, out of mind is good enough. If you can dump asylum seekers in offshore detention centres, then that is enough for the government. That's all they really want to care about. We have a similar problem now with Cambodia, which hasn't quite developed yet to the extent that is has in PNG, but has every potential to do so. It is again, a case of a government trying to offload an issue that is Australia's. And I wouldn't say "a problem" because I'm not sure that asylum seekers who come by boat do constitute a genuine problem. I think rather it's a political issue, a political football that's been kicked around. And it's been kicked around in a way... in a field, if you like, that's perhaps not ready to have that particular game played out. 

JB: So is it still as politically explosive for the Australian public now that (Australian Immigration Minister) Scott Morrison indicates that policy has kind of worked to stem the tide of the boats coming in, but also now that it's also festering in terms of these legal uncertainties, the violence up at Manus and the other problems around it? 

DK: There's no question that this continues to be a politically divisive policy, and one that has the potential for very great political embarrassment. Scott Morrison's claims about the problem having been resolved are very much political rhetoric. Putting a cork in a bottle doesn't change the contents. The asylum seekers are still there. It's just that they're being stopped either from travelling or if they have travelled, they are now being processed in ways which have created or led to the types or problems that we're now seeing unfold.

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