Somalians in Oz may go home
2000-09-28 10:16
Sydney - Three Somali asylum seekers who say they would rather return home to a death sentence than remain in Australia after three years in detention were told by the government Wednesday to go if they want to.
Immigration Minister Philip Ruddock accused them of trying to pressure him by suggesting detention in Australia is worse than
returning to Somalia.
The three wrote to the immigration department saying they want to
return to Somalia after being locked behind razor-wire fences at
Port Hedland detention centre since arriving in Australia in
November 1997.
"Because of the depression, trauma and anxiety and mental pressure,
we are afraid to commit suicide or lose our mind," the letter said.
"Therefore, we do prefer to go back to Somalia and die as innocent
victims."
The Uniting Church, which is trying to help the three by airing
their grievances, says they have already lost members of their
families to violence in Somalia and would face persecution and
death if they returned.
However, Ruddock told ABC radio the men had been through the
Federal Court and the Refugee Tribunal twice, and while there were
no immediate plans to deport them, they could leave Australia if
they wished.
He said if the suggestion was that circumstances in Somalia were
preferable to detention in Australia then it appeared an obvious
effort to pressure him in to allowing them to stay.
"It's not a nice place to be, I would be the first to acknowledge
that, because essentially governments as we know it don't exist in
Somalia," he said.
"But whether or not individuals returning to Somalia would be targeted is a separate issue." - Sapa-AFP
- SAPA