Amnesty International Australia has made a submission to the Senate Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs regarding the Migration Amendment (Removal and Other Measures) Bill 2024 (the Bill), recommending that the Australian Government abandon the Bill.
A number of the elements of the Bill risk putting Australia in breach of its international obligations, including:
- the criminalisation of non-cooperation with removal, punishable with up to 5 years’ imprisonment with a mandatory sentence of 12 months;
- the ability of the Minister to arbitrarily reverse a person’s protection finding; and
- the broad prohibition on any type of visa applications from almost all nationals of certain countries.
Amnesty International is particularly concerned that these elements will put Australia at risk of breaching its International obligations with regard to non-discrimination and non-refoulement.
Amnesty International also remains concerned that the overly broad scope of the Bill and the further criminalisation of Australia’s migration system, runs the risk that thousands of people will suddenly face criminal charges and imprisonment, with the potential for a never-ending cycle of imprisonment and detention.
We want a world where human rights are no longer under fire. Governments and people in power everywhere must respect everyone’s basic freedoms, and allow their citizens to live safely, without fear. When human rights are attacked, Amnesty will call on the human rights abusers to be tried and brought to justice. Learn more about what we do and our crisis response work.
