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Repeal of medevac laws a ‘dark day’ say human rights lawyers
The federal government has “stripped away a humane, transparent and doctor-led process for the refugees in its care”, which amounts to a shameful act, says the Human Rights Law Centre.
Jerome Doraisamy
Last week, the Morrison government passed the Migration Amendment (Repairing Medical Transfers) Bill 2019, which had the effect of repealing the Medevac laws.
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HRLC legal director David Burke said the repeal was a “dark day” for Australian politics.
“This is a shameful day for the Morrison government and all of the members of Parliament who voted to repeal these lifesaving laws. Fear and lies have dominated at the expense of men and women who need medical care,” he said.
“Peter Dutton and the Morrison government have today played cruel, bloody-minded politics with peoples’ lives. The Morrison government has stripped away the basic shred of humanity that meant that when someone was sick they could get the care they needed.
“Before the Medevac laws, the Morrison government failed over and over in their duty to provide proper medical care to children, women and men in offshore detention. The government repeatedly ignored medical advice, including from its own doctors on the islands.
“Now we have seen our politicians once again disregard the safety of the women and men it has deliberately kept trapped in offshore detention for more than six years.”
Since the Medevac laws came into effect in March 2019, almost 200 people have been evacuated to Australia to get the medical care they need, HRLC said in a statement. However, over 500 people remain languishing in offshore detention in the Morrison government’s care in PNG and Nauru.
“Now that the government has robbed these people of the Medevac laws, it is more urgent than ever that they ensure every single person is resettled to safety. We will continue to challenge these cruel policies,” Mr Burke concluded.
