Australia continues plans to keep illegal migrants off-shore amid the usual complaints

The complaints, of course, mostly come from the humanitarian industrial complex and its henchmen at the UN.

We haven’t written much about Australia lately, but most Australians were so angered by those migrants arriving on boats and demanding asylum that they voted for a get-tough policy represented by Tony Abbott in the elections last year.

Here is some recent news, from the Irish Independent (that obviously leans left on immigration):

Australia will shut four mainland immigration detention centres, the government said on today, as it pushes ahead with controversial policies to turn back refugee boats and detain asylum seekers in remote centres offshore.

Immigration Minister Scott Morrison said in a statement the decision to shutter the facilities, which are run by British outsourcing company Serco Group Plc, would save at least A$88.8 million ($80.41 million) a year.

“These sites are remote, relatively small and expensive,” Morrison’s statement said. “These facilities were never envisaged as being permanent and due to the rationalisation of the immigration detention network they are no longer required.”

Australia’s conservative government routinely does not answer questions about its immigration policy, which was a central plank of its election victory last year, saying it does not comment on “operational matters”.

The number of would-be refugees reaching Australia pales in comparison with other countries but it remains a polarising political issue that also stokes tensions with neighbour Indonesia over border policies criticised by the United Nations.

Tuesday’s announcement comes amid growing scrutiny of Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s asylum seeker policies.   [Of course opinion lines like this are in here to bias the reader!—ed]

The government has refused to confirm widespread reports that the Australian Navy has started implementing a controversial policy of returning intercepted vessels carrying asylum seekers to Indonesia.

Guess where most of the illegal migrants are coming from?

Most of those held in offshore centres have fled conflict zones such as Afghanistan, Darfur, Pakistan, Somalia and Syria.

I’ll betcha even those coming from Darfur are Muslims!

Thanks to our visitors from Australia which consistently number second or third behind the US in visitor stats.  This is our 121st post in our Australia category.