PNG asylum seekers stripped of government-provided housing and healthcare under new deal
By Eden Gillespie
Topic:Refugees
17m ago17 minutes agoThu 12 Dec 2024 at 4:32am
An aerial shot of Koki Village in Port Moresby.
Asylum seekers were moved to Port Moresby in 2016. (ABC News: Tim Swanston)
In short:
The new agreement will force PNG asylum seekers to cover all living expenses with a single allowance.
One prominent advocate is concerned it could drive the men into insecure or unsafe accommodation.
What's next?
Government-provided accommodation is expected to remain until January 18.
Asylum seekers in Papua New Guinea will be stripped of government-provided housing and healthcare under a new deal that forces them to cover all living expenses with a single allowance.
The asylum seekers were sent to PNG more than a decade ago under an offshore processing deal with Australia, which has since ended.
One prominent advocate has labelled the new agreement a "death sentence" and says he is worried it could drive the men into insecure or unsafe accommodation.
The ABC has sighted details of the new agreement, obtained by the Greens spokesperson for Immigration, David Shoebridge.
A fact sheet from the Immigration and Citizenship Service Authority (ICSA).
The new agreement will force PNG asylum seekers to cover all living expenses with a single allowance. (Supplied)
A fact sheet from the Immigration and Citizenship Service Authority (ICSA) says the asylum seekers will receive an 1800-kina fortnightly spend — or 900 kina each week –which equates to about $350 weekly.
This allowance will go towards living costs, "including accommodation, utilities, food and healthcare".
Those with families may also receive "additional allowance support", according to the document.
Valentino*, a Sudani asylum seeker, says he was issued the paperwork last month and told he had until this Friday to sign it.
He says government-provided accommodation is expected to remain until January 18, although those who have signed up have received payments sooner.
"They're trying to push us to sign this but it's such a small amount," he told the ABC.
Valentino alleges some of the men had access to free medication stopped last week.
"After 11 years, most are sick," he says.
"I have kidney stones and chest problems. I cannot sign because I cannot put myself in more situations like this."
Payments dry up amid political tug-of-war
The ABC has also seen a letter from one accommodation provider advising they would stop meals from December 9 and the men would have to pay for the service out of their own pockets.
The PNG government stopped allowances last year after expressing outrage about a lack of Australian funding and millions owed to service providers, following the end of the offshore processing deal.
But Australia's Home Affairs Department said at the time the last payment was made in July 2022, as per the agreement, and no payments were outstanding.
The Australian government has previously stated it has no responsibility for the asylum seekers that it sent to Manus Island in PNG in 2013.
Asylum seekers were moved to Port Moresby after the PNG Supreme Court ruled in 2016 the Australian-run detention centre was unlawful and ordered its closure.
In 2021, the Morrison government ended the offshore processing agreement, but many asylum seekers remained in PNG.
The Australian government struck an agreement this year to provide PNG with "further capability support and funding", but the figure remains confidential and it's unclear whether they have sent the funds.
Valentino* says he'd been receiving an allowance of about 1000 kina a week (about $385), plus housing and healthcare, but the payment dried up in 2023 amid the political tug-of-war.
Advocates label agreement a 'death sentence'
Convenor of the Refugee Action Coalition, Ian Rintoul, says advocates have stepped in and provided funds to help the 42 asylum seekers.
But the new deal also has him concerned.
an older man wearing glasses addressing a crowd and talking into a microphone at a rally
Ian Rintoul says advocates have stepped in and provided funds to help the 42 asylum seekers. (AAP: Russell Freeman)
He says that without secure housing the agreement is a "death sentence", and advocates have been unable to find secure accommodation in PNG for less than 1000 kina a week.
"Asylum seekers are a persistent target for assault and robbery. Even secure housing has seen invasions by rascals," he says.
"Cost of living in Port Moresby is very high. They need guaranteed accommodation, medical care and income."
A fact sheet from the Immigration and Citizenship Service Authority (ICSA).
A fact sheet from the Immigration and Citizenship Service Authority (ICSA) says job and training support of up to 10,000 kina ($3,877) is available. (Supplied)
Additional job and training support of up to 10,000 kina (about $3,860) is available for the men, according to the document.
It says another 10,000 kina can be provided to those wanting to establish a small business in PNG.
But Mr Rintoul says this is an unlikely option for many, with at least 10 asylum seekers so unwell they can't leave their rooms.
"There is no future for them in PNG. Some are already so unwell they cannot look after themselves," he says.
'We just want out of this hell'
Ali*, another asylum seeker from Pakistan, says he suffers from skin and back issues and worries about how he'll pay for healthcare.
"Very tough time for us now," he says. "Mentally we are disturbed, physically we are unwell."
The ICSA document says Canada and the US "are not taking new applications for resettlement" and cases "will only be progressed for those … with existing applications."
"If you wish to make PNG your home, your status officer can assist you with further information … including applying for PNG citizenship, family reunion and support to help you establish yourself permanently in PNG."
Ali and Valentino have applied for resettlement through the New Zealand pathway and are awaiting a response.
"We are the responsibility of the Australian government; they need to send us to a third country so we can build our future," Ali says.
"We are human beings, we have families. We just want out of this hell."
David Shoebridge wearing a navy suit jacket and white shirt.
Senator David Shoebridge met with asylum seekers this week in PNG. (ABC News: Jerry Rickard)
Senator David Shoebridge met with asylum seekers this week in PNG and says the situation is "very troubling".
"What I have been told very clearly is that this new deal … is not nearly enough to cover their medication … safe accommodation and everything else," he says.
"We are hearing that many people already have access to essential medication cut, and that alone is a ticking clock."
The ABC has contacted the PNG and Australian governments for comment.
Posted17m ago17 minutes agoThu 12 Dec 2024 at 4:32am
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