3 May 2006
Last month's decision by the Immigration Minister to have all unauthorised boat arrivals' claims for asylum assessed at an offshore processing centre will be discussed by Australian barrister and refugee advocate Mr Julian Burnside QC and Mr David Manne, Coordinator of the Victorian Refugee and Immigration Legal Centre, on Friday 5 May at a Monash University Law School forum.
They will analyse the proposed changes and their impact on human rights, the right of review and the right to legal representation.
The legislative changes could cause all asylum seekers who arrive by boat without valid documentation to lose their right to review at the Refugee Review Tribunal.
The Refugee Review Tribunal has found Department of Immigration determinations on asylum claims wrong in 7,885 cases over the past 13 years.
Mr Burnside, a Monash Law graduate, is widely respected for his advocacy for human rights and his involvement in the arts, education and the community. Mr Manne acts as the legal representative for the West Papuan Refugees who sought asylum in Australia in January 2006.
The forum is being hosted by the Law School's Castan Centre for Human Rights Law.
What: Castan Centre lecture: 'Boatloads of extinguishment?' A forum on the proposed offshore processing of 'boat people'
When: Friday 5 May, 5.30 pm for 6 pm
Where: Monash University Law Chambers, 472 Bourke St, Melbourne
RSVP: Contact +61 3 9905 3327 or email castan.centre@law.monash.edu.au. Entry is free.
For further information contact Ms Natasha Whalley, Media Communications, on +61 3 9905 9201 or 0437 458 457.
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