"Ban Exports of Live People to Malaysia"

What an embarrassing and shameful policy Australia is currently pursuing in relation to 'boat people' who attempt to seek asylum here by travelling from Asia or the sub-continent on leaky boats. We have set up funded 'detention centres' on various island nations [as well as here in Oz] and more recently signed a deal with Malaysia to take 900 people [in an exchange]. This after a pre-emptive announcement about a deal with East Timor went quickly sour. The logic is we'll stop the trade for 'people smugglers' and choke off the demand...

What it really represents is a government which has lost control of the 'politics' in the situation and teeters on the brink as a minority government trying to plug huge holes in policy to appease middle voters.

Colleague and friend Craig has found a creative outlet for his opposition to this idea and you too can purchase one of his t-shirt designs [subtle or not so] and show support for another option here.

I don't think we fully understand the long term negatives of:

- children in detention

- anyone in detention

- how 'terrorists' win every time we deprive someone of basic freedoms

- the long term harm to these nations as we prop up their economy to pay for this

What would be so wrong with releasing people into the community, testing their claims and allowing them to stay if they are genuinely under threat elsewhere? The economic arguments that "they'll take our jobs" are without basis... you mean they'll start out doing the jobs we don't stoop to do and by becoming contributors and consumers they create demand for products and services just like the rest of us... each person who consumes, creates a job for those who supply...