Bruce Hawker writing in The Australian provides commentary on Tony Abbott’s refusal to negotiate on asylum seeker policy. He qoutes CPD founder and former head of Department of Immigration John… more
Refugee policy
John Menadue & Arja Keski-Nummi | No man is an island, they say. So why the sea of heartbreak?
Opponents of the Gillard government’s so-called Malaysian solution need to think again, writes John Menadue and Arja Keski-Nummi in The Age here. They look back at the agreement, the opportunities… more
Kate Gauthier | Take more asylum seekers to ensure fewer boats
Writing in The Punch, CPD fellow Kate Gauthier criticises the narr0w-minded policies put forward by both parties on the asylum seeker issue. A fair and equitable debate is being called for.… more
John Menadue | Fraser and Whitlam’s fruitful rivalry
Fred Daly, the irrepressible ALP Member for Grayndler whose first campaign slogan was ‘Give us this day our Daly Fred’, once said that today’s political enemies may turn out to… more
John Menadue | Media Missing the Boat on Asylum-Seeker Coverage
There is a real myth surrounding the public’s warped perception on asylum seekers arriving by boat, and CPD’s Director John Menadue holds Australia’s media highly responsible. With asylum seekers arriving by boat being caught up… more
John Menadue | Refugees Arriving by Boat Deserve Equal Rules
After years of locking up asylum seekers who arrive by boat, but allowing those who arrive by air to live in the community while their refugee claims are being processed,… more
Green Left Weekly | Bipartisan Bill Attacks Refugees
A prospective amendment to the Migration Act that is about to be heard by the Senate, makes it an offence to be a ‘people smuggler’ and may harm the cases of up to 350 Indonesian… more
John Menadue & Arja Keski-Nummi | Hysterical Political Debate Ignores the Fears of Vulnerable People
Now is the time for leadership, not focus groups. However it seems that leadership on the matter of asylum seeker policy is strikingly absent on both sides of the political spectrum. We have a government… more
John Menadue | Rethinking Asylum Seeker Policy
The toxicity of the current asylum seeker debate has left both sides of politics lost at sea. Whilst the opposition exploits our fear of foreigners, the government fumbles from one policy to another, afraid of… more