Why Australia is closing its refugee detention centre in Papua New Guinea
IN ITS short, on-off existence, the regional processing centre on Manus Island in Papua New Guinea has witnessed an extraordinary amount of unhappiness. Its inhabitants, who number around 900, exist in an isolated limbo. They fled a variety of poor and war-torn countries to find safety in Australia, trusting people-smugglers and their ramshackle operations to get them there. Most have never touched Australian land. Instead, they were intercepted by naval vessels and transported to Manus Island, which is funded by the Australian government. Under the terms of the deal that re-established the centre in 2012, those granted refugee status were due to be resettled in Papua New Guinea. So far, only a handful have been released into the community; and there have been reports that some of those have returned to the centre seeking shelter. On April 26th the Supreme Court of Papua New Guinea ruled that the centre was unconstitutional and ordered its closure.
▻http://www.economist.com/blogs/economist-explains/2016/04/economist-explains-20?fsrc=scn/tw_ec/why_australia_is_closing_its_refugee_detention_centre_in_papua_new_guinea
