Australia says Cambodia could resettle refugees

[Robertt S]

 

 

CANBERRA, Australia - Refugees living on the Pacific atoll of Nauru could be resettled in Cambodia under an agreement being negotiated between the Australian and Cambodian governments, Australia's immigration minister said Thursday. Australia pays Nauru and the impoverished South Pacific island nation of Papua New Guinea to house asylum seekers who attempt to reach Australia by boat. The tough policy has resulted in no new asylum seekers reaching Australia this year in people smugglers' boats from Indonesian ports. Immigration Minister Scott Morrison said Thursday that the first asylum seekers held in the Nauru detention camp had their claims processed, with nine Iranians and four Pakistanis found to be genuine refugees. Another four Iranians, two Pakistanis and one person from Cameroon had their claims rejected. Morrison did not know how long the asylum seekers spent on Nauru. The genuine refugees were given five-year visas to live in Nauru outside the detention camp. Morrison said Cambodia's response to Australia's efforts to strike a resettlement agreement were "very, very positive.'' "The arrangement would enable persons to be settled from Nauru into Cambodia,'' Morrison told reporters. "To be able to achieve that in a country which at one time was producing refugees, and now being able to take refugees and properly resettle them - I think that's a very worthy objective and its one we're working very closely with them on achieving.'' Morrison would not give a time frame for the agreement being finalized. Cambodian Foreign Ministry Secretary of State Ouch Borith confirmed last month that an in-principle agreement had been reached. Human rights advocates have criticized the deal, saying such an impoverished country as Cambodia with a poor human rights record was not a suitable place for refugees to be resettled. Australia is separately negotiating a deal with Papua New Guinea to have refugees held in a detention camp in that country eventually resettled there. http://www.chinadailyasia.com/news/2014-05/22/content_15136549.html I am happy to see at least one country using common sense to deal with illegal immigrants.