Unfair to force us out, says Manus detainee

By Charles Moi
Behrouz Boochania, the Kurdish Iran journalist currently detained at the regional processing center on Manus islands, says it is unfair for detainees to be forced out of the center.
Boochani’s comments come after Australian Cabinet minister Michaelia Cash told Australian media that non-refugee residents were expected to return to their home countries.
Cash said non-refugees not returning voluntarily would be involuntary removed from Manus by the Government of PNG.
But Boochani told The National yesterday that detainees were being treated unfairly because they did not intentionally come to PNG in the first place.
“These people are real refugees because they have endured torture for more than four years,” Boochani said.
Lawyer Ben Lomai who represents the asylum seekers in a compensation case had stated earlier that his clients were still living in a facility similar to a prison.
The Supreme Court on April 26 last year ruled that the detention of asylum seekers on Manus was unconstitutional and illegal.
It advised the Australian and Papua New Guinea governments to take necessary steps to cease and prevent the continued unconstitutional and illegal detention of the asylum seekers on Manus.
Detainees are still at the center which the Australian government is expected to close on Oct 31.
The detainees were sent to Manus under the Refugee Resettlement Agreement negotiated between Prime Minister Peter O’Neill and his Australian counterpart Kevin Rudd in 2013.