2016-06-22
The Australian Greens have said that the people on a boat that is stranded off of Indonesia should have their claims for protection assessed fairly and efficiently before being brought to Australia safely, if they are in need of protection.
"Australia should engage with Indonesia and the UNHCR on the stranded boat in Aceh. These people must be allowed to put their claims forward in a safe location, so that they can be assessed fairly and efficiently, and Australia needs to play a role in that," the Greens' Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said.
"The UN should be allowed to assess these people's claims and, if they're found to be in need of protection, Australia should offer to bring them here safely and resettle them.
"It's disappointing to see Malcolm Turnbull stoop to the Abbott style politics of 'stop the boats' just because we're ten days out from an election.
"The selective secrecy of the Abbott/Turnbull government just shows how ridiculous and political this debate has become. Their arguments over blocking transparency have been exposed as a farce."
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