Posted on December 18, 2009
Australia Network News
Australian government figures on people using the Torres Strait to illegally enter the country have been questioned by the head of a Senate committee inquiry.
An Immigration Department official says there are fewer than 10 people illegally overstaying their entry rights in the Torres Strait region, fronting Australia's northern coast.
But the Torres Strait Regional Authority told Australia Network's Jeff Waters this week that foreigners of various nationalities had crossed into Australia undetected, and that a large number of PNG "over-stayers" were causing a strain on regional resources.
And Senate committee chairman Russell Trood said of the department claim: "I'm not persuaded they are accurate figures."
He said: "There's a lot of anecdotal evidence coming from people who live in the Torres Strait, who watch events all the time, who say the numbers are far greater than that."
Reviewing
Senator Trood's committee is reviewing a treaty that allows freedom of movement in the region for traditional purposes.
Torres Strait communities are concerned about risks from illegal immigrants including diseases like HIV-AIDS and tuberculosis in PNG, as well as a drain on health services.
Crime is also a major issue. Australian customs officials admit drug runners have been caught in the area but they say the extent of the problem should not be exaggerated.
Australia Network reported that residents of 13 villages along the coast of PNG's remote Western Province have special rights to visit Australia without passports or normal border security checks under a cultural exchange treaty.
But cultural exchange is taking second place to the appeal of Australian infrastructure in the Torres Strait islands, such as hospitals, shops and fresh water.
The Torres Strait Regional Authority said an increase in visits is causing strain.
Authority chairman John Toshi Kris told the network it is time for the treaty to be revisited.
Monitoring
"We're now seeing a huge amount of people coming across," Mr Kris told Jeff Waters in his office on Thursday Island.
The Immigration Department employs "movement monitoring officers" to watch comings and goings among the islands.
Department Spokesman Sandi Logan told the network: "It is a rarity that unlawful movements do occur and when they do they are detected and in some instances reported and action is taken immediately."
But Mr Kris doubts the effectiveness of the monitoring.
He says most of the officers are formerly unemployed people trained under the community development employment program, or CDEP - "which is work-for-the-dole".
The Senate committee plans to travel to the Torres Strait early in the new year to gather evidence for its report on the treaty.