Aust told to resolve refugee problem

OPPOSITION Leader Patrick Pruaitch has called on the Australian government to quickly resolve the problem of refugees that have been stranded in Papua New Guinea and Nauru for the past six years.
Pruaitch said details that have emerged about the billion-kina security contract that was awarded to the Paladin Group highlighted the callous way the offshore refugee situation is being treated.
This Paladin security contract was awarded in 2017, a year after the PNG Supreme Court declared that it was unconstitutional and illegal for refugees to be held in a PNG detention centre and after the virtual prison was subsequently shut down.
Pruaitch said: “These refugees came to Manus after perilous boat trips that have taken many lives and 600 of them have been left to languish on the island for the past six years.
“Following a visit there, the Catholic Bishops of PNG have said the mental health of most refugees has deteriorated severely and many are suicidal.”
He said the PNG Government had acted in good faith to allow the Australian government to set up the detention centre as a temporary solution and as a deterrent to other refugees that might attempt to travel to Australia by boat.