2016-06-21
The Australian Greens have announced that they will introduce a Private Members Bill into the Parliament, allowing media to gain access to Australian detention centres, following the election. The 'Transparency Guarantee Bill' would mandate a reasonable level of access for media to detention centres and amend the migration act to make it illegal for the government to fund offshore detention centres where media are not allowed regular access.
"Last week Bill Shorten conceded that the time has come to lift the lid on the secret torture camps on Manus Island and Nauru," the Greens' immigration spokesperson, Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said.
"Labor need to put their money where their mouth is and commit to legislating for transparency and genuine media access to the detention camps.
"It's easy to say you're committed to transparency, but all of the words in the world mean nothing unless you back them up with action. These detention camps operate under a cloak of secrecy for a reason and it's important that we get this commitment from Labor enshrined in legislation.
"The dark truth of what goes on inside the detention network needs to be aired.
"We know that the secrecy and the ongoing media blackout has allowed an environment of abuse and neglect to fester.
"Sunlight truly is the best disinfectant and, regardless of who wins this election, these camps need to be opened up to proper rigorous scrutiny."
Media Contact: Noah Schultz-Byard 0427 604 760