FED: Curtin Air Base re-opened for asylum seekers

AAP General News (Australia)
04-18-2010
FED: Curtin Air Base re-opened for asylum seekers

By Cortlan Bennett

PERTH, April 18 AAP - The federal government will re-open a detention facility at WA's
Curtin Air Base in a bid to ease overcrowding and potential conflicts at Christmas Island.

Federal Immigration Minister Chris Evans on Sunday said the base, 40km southeast of
Derby in Western Australia's far north, would be readied immediately to hold 200-300 Sri
Lankan and Afghan asylum seekers whose applications for refugee status have been suspended.

"As a result of (last week's decision to suspend) applications for asylum seekers from
Sri Lanka and Afghanistan, we'll be opening a new immigration facility at the Curtin Air
Base," Senator Evans said.

"Previously it's been used for this purpose and initially we'll be upgrading the facility
to accommodate that cohort of persons who have had their asylum claims suspended.

"We need to find an appropriate secure facility to deal with these asylum-seekers.

"I expect the centre to be operational following completion of the initial upgrade."

Senator Evans said the first group of asylum-seekers, who are subject to a three-month
suspension for Sri Lankans and a six-month suspension for Afghans, would be moved from
Christmas Island detention centre to Curtin as soon as the upgrades were finished.

Meanwhile, more asylum-seekers would be moved off Christmas Island to other detention
centres on the mainland to ease overcrowding at the north-west facility.

"We will be moving (60) single males on a positive pathway to the immigration centre
in Darwin," Senator Evans said.

"We're also moving off the island a group of unaccompanied minors - they'll be going
to the immigration facility at Port Augusta (South Australia)."

Senator Evans said "a couple of hundred or so" people would be moved off Christmas
Island "in the next week or two".

"We have had an increase in numbers, that has put pressure on us in terms of timeliness
of decision-making, just by weight of numbers," he said.

Sri Lankan and Afghan asylum-seekers moved to Curtin would remain there until the current
suspension of their claims was reviewed, according to Senator Evans, who did not rule
out them being granted refugee status later.

"We'll continue to process the people not subject to the suspension," her said.

Senator Evans said he did not know the final cost of expanding Curtin, but said it
would be "considerable".

"We will have to invest considerably in the centre," he said.

Initially, Curtin would be able to hold 200-300 asylum-seekers, Senator Evans said,
and would open "within weeks, rather than months".

AAP csb/it

KEYWORD: BOAT CURTIN UPDATE

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