Asylum seekers riot, torch buildings in Australia
0 views
Skip to first unread message
Pastor Dale Morgan
Apr 21, 2011, 1:25:18 AM4/21/11
to Bible-Pro...@googlegroups.com
Perilous
Times
Asylum seekers riot, torch buildings in Australia
April 21, 2011 - 1:19PM
Asylum seekers torched nine buildings at a Sydney detention centre in a night of wild riots with a handful of protesters remaining on rooftops Thursday as police worked to regain control.
The riots kicked off late Wednesday at the Villawood Detention Centre with an estimated 100 detainees involved at the height of the drama.
At one stage firefighters were pelted with roof tiles and pieces of furniture as they tried to tackle the blazes, with riot police called in to protect them.
Advertisement: Story continues below
Among the buildings destroyed were a computer room, kitchen, medical facilities and a laundry.
The immigration department said the fires had been contained but an AFP photographer said several people remained on the roof, sitting beside a large white sign that read "We need help".
"Emergency services have been working throughout the morning to restore order following a major disturbance at Villawood Immigration Detention Centre," the department said in a statement.
"About 100 detainees were believed to be involved in the disturbance, in which nine buildings within the Fowler complex were set alight."
Immigration spokesman Sandi Logan condemned the "appalling" behaviour of protesters.
"At one stage many of the protesters were hurling roof tiles and pieces of furniture, and other clumps of wood at the firefighters," he said, adding that "miraculously" no injuries had been reported.
The protest started with just two inmates, apparently upset at the immigration department denying their applications for visas to remain in Australia.
Those still on the roof reportedly want a meeting with the immigration department, but Logan told reporters this would not happen.
"Until they come down, we won't be negotiating, but we are working and managing to get them down from the roof," he said.
Australia has a policy of mandatory detention for asylum seekers while their claims are processed, and generally holds detainees on remote Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean.
But the increasing number of people arriving by boat has seen mainland centres also being used, including Villawood, which houses about 400 people.
Last month the Christmas Island facility endured days of riots, with about 250 inmates setting fire to accommodation tents and hurling makeshift explosives at police, prompting them to respond with tear gas.
Scores of inmates also escaped the complex, although most quickly returned.
Brami Jegan, from the Refugee Action Coalition, told ABC radio she believed stress and frustration were behind the riots.
"What's happened is an absolute act of desperation. It's a cry out for help," Jegan said, adding that some people had been in Villawood for nearly two years.
"It's so obvious the profound psychological effects that mandatory and prolonged detention is having on these people, these human beings," she said.
Asylum seekers riot, torch buildings in Australia
April 21, 2011 - 1:19PM
Asylum seekers torched nine buildings at a Sydney detention centre in a night of wild riots with a handful of protesters remaining on rooftops Thursday as police worked to regain control.
The riots kicked off late Wednesday at the Villawood Detention Centre with an estimated 100 detainees involved at the height of the drama.
At one stage firefighters were pelted with roof tiles and pieces of furniture as they tried to tackle the blazes, with riot police called in to protect them.
Advertisement: Story continues below
Among the buildings destroyed were a computer room, kitchen, medical facilities and a laundry.
The immigration department said the fires had been contained but an AFP photographer said several people remained on the roof, sitting beside a large white sign that read "We need help".
"Emergency services have been working throughout the morning to restore order following a major disturbance at Villawood Immigration Detention Centre," the department said in a statement.
"About 100 detainees were believed to be involved in the disturbance, in which nine buildings within the Fowler complex were set alight."
Immigration spokesman Sandi Logan condemned the "appalling" behaviour of protesters.
"At one stage many of the protesters were hurling roof tiles and pieces of furniture, and other clumps of wood at the firefighters," he said, adding that "miraculously" no injuries had been reported.
The protest started with just two inmates, apparently upset at the immigration department denying their applications for visas to remain in Australia.
Those still on the roof reportedly want a meeting with the immigration department, but Logan told reporters this would not happen.
"Until they come down, we won't be negotiating, but we are working and managing to get them down from the roof," he said.
Australia has a policy of mandatory detention for asylum seekers while their claims are processed, and generally holds detainees on remote Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean.
But the increasing number of people arriving by boat has seen mainland centres also being used, including Villawood, which houses about 400 people.
Last month the Christmas Island facility endured days of riots, with about 250 inmates setting fire to accommodation tents and hurling makeshift explosives at police, prompting them to respond with tear gas.
Scores of inmates also escaped the complex, although most quickly returned.
Brami Jegan, from the Refugee Action Coalition, told ABC radio she believed stress and frustration were behind the riots.
"What's happened is an absolute act of desperation. It's a cry out for help," Jegan said, adding that some people had been in Villawood for nearly two years.
"It's so obvious the profound psychological effects that mandatory and prolonged detention is having on these people, these human beings," she said.
Reply all
Reply to author
Forward
0 new messages