Sample HDS310 Human Rights and Advocacy Assignment

HDS310 Human Rights and Advocacy Assignment Sample

Assignment Task: Policy brief

A Policy Brief should:

- Have a clear and specific purpose or focus - You choose one of the topics below and assume you are writing the brief as a human rights advocate to influence government and other stakeholders about the need for advancement of rights in your area of focus.

- Your policy brief should be practical and based on evidence. The evidence should be used to indicate that there is a gap in existing policy and/or practice, and to support the recommendations you make. A policy brief is a practical tool that has real world implications.

Assignment Instructions

Your Policy Brief will contain the following elements:

- An Executive Summary (It should include a brief description of the issue being addressed, a key message stating why the current policy or situation needs to be improved, and key recommendations)

- A Purpose (Why are you writing this brief? This section aims to convince the target audience of the importance of the issue being addressed and why it requires action. It usually will include a brief description of the issues or problems, , a short overview of the causes, and how this relates to current policy or legislation.)

- A Critical Analysis (describes the current policy or legislative environment, and identify gaps in policy, legislation, or practice, using evidence to highlight the areas that need development for this group in terms of human rights.)

- A Recommendations section (listing the policy, legislative, and/or practical actions required to improve the human rights situation in your topic area)
These 4 sections will make up the whole policy brief – there is no need for an introduction or conclusion

Assignment Topics

Choose one of the following topics:

a. Advancing the Rights of Asylum Seekers and Refugees in the Australian context with reference to Asylum Seekers and Refugees with disability

b. A Human Rights Act/Charter for Australia? (Present the arguments for and against and make recommendations according to your view)

Solution

Purpose

Importance of the issue

The purpose of this study is to analyse the current position of the asylum seekers in Australia and the legislation that the Australian Government has passed for their protection. An asylum seeker is one who has taken a flight from the home country and has taken shelter in another country in the form of a refugee. Australia has a significant history of accepting refugees and offering them shelter in the nation along with employment and payments for their sustenance. It is significant to note that most of the asylum seekers in Australia are unlawful citizens as they arrive in Australia without any valid visa (Blackmore et al., 2020). However, as per the laws of Australia, it is not a criminal offence by seeking shelter in Australia as a refugee. Earlier, refugees used to arrive in Australia with the help of boats without having valid authorisation in entering the country. Moreover, in the present scenario, all the unauthorised asylum seekers are taken to Christmas Island and interrogated about the reason behind their arrival. It is to note that if the government official found that the claims of the asylum seeker may be involved in the protection regulations of Australia then, the refugee is examined based on the non-statutory status assessment of the nation (Satinsky et al., 2019).

Action plans

The Australian Government has formed an association named Asylum Seeker Resource Centre with the help of which the asylum seekers and the refugees are getting food. As per a report, ASRC is presently offering food to around 1,000 refugees daily. The government is also trying to offer accommodations to asylum seekers and employment opportunities so that refugees can sustain their lives (Mukumbang, Ambe & Adebiyi, 2020). Both the government and non-governmental organisations in Australia are developing and adopting national coordinated obligations and procedures for offering comprehensive health care opportunities to asylum seekers and refugees.
Problems of the issue

There are several problems that asylum seekers are facing in the current circumstances. One of the biggest challenges is that of settlement. For assignment help it is important to note that as the refugees leave their homeland and come to other countries, accommodation becomes one of the biggest issues. Moreover, finding suitable employment in the host land is another challenge that asylum seekers face. Even young asylum seekers also face certain challenges due to their ages as they carry the scars of displacement and wear along with them. As a result, they are affected by psychological trauma and have issues of identity crisis (Campomori & Ambrosini, 2020). Moreover, asylum seekers are also facing huge challenges of cultural gaps and language barriers. Financial scarcity and separation from their family members due to displacement lead to the development of mental and physical trauma among the refugees. However, the government of Australia is trying to offer to counsel to the students of asylum seekers regarding a settlement. Trauma Rehabilitation Centres are also established for providing proper treatment to asylum seekers and refugees in Australia. Furthermore, there is complexity in the requirements of healthcare facilities for the asylum seekers and they live in a holistic condition without financial support, in hunger, lack of education, accommodation and healthcare amenities (Mukumbang, 2020).

Overview of The causes

There are various reasons due to why a refugee is bound to leave the homeland and flee another country. One of the persisting reasons behind their plight is the violence and atrocity of war. Even on grounds of religious violence and racial slurs are also some of the reasons why people fled their own nations and settled to seek shelter in another country. Furthermore, the seekers with disabilities generally flee their own countries as a result of violence and they seek refuge in other nations by receiving protection through certain legal actions and material abetment (Silove & Mares, 2018).

Figure 1: Australia Refugee Population from other countries
Source: (Aph, 2022)

Referring to the records of the United Nations it is observed that in Australia there are a total of 1.7 million asylum seekers. It is also observed that most of the asylum seekers in Australia were migrated from Syria and Afghanistan due to terrorism and 1.1 million people also fled away from Myanmar (Ziersch, Due & Walsh, 2020).

Relation with The Current Legislation

Australia has formulated a Refugee Law for protecting the rights and interests of the refugees and Asylum seekers. It is a key fundamental regulation that helps in protecting the refugees fleeing from the process of persecution. Moreover, Act 1(2) of this act is concerned with the protection of the rights of the asylum seekers and offering them food, shelter, education, healthcare and other basic amenities. Another important law is the Migration Act which is concerned with the obligation that the country must not send any refugee back from the nation and the country is responsible to save their lives from threats irrespective of their colour, creed, race and nationality (Smith-Khan, 2020). Moreover, Article 36(2) describes that the refugees and asylum seekers are also given visas to protect them from persecution. Article 91R (2) of the Migration Act relies on the fact that asylum seekers must be given significant facilities for treatment and to protect them from financial hardship that threatens the capacities of these people for subsistence. There is legislation associated with the assessment of the refugee status and providing them with a visa on the humanitarian background. The asylum seekers with disability have certain rights which the Australian Government has provided them to protect them from the hands of several harms like discrimination, racial slur and right to speech, information, education and many more.

Critical analysis

Description of the Legislation

According to the Migration Act of 1958, Australian ministers generally issue visas for refugees with disabilities. However, they can even refuse to provide if they are not satisfied after assessing the refugees through a character test. As per the Refugee Convention of 1967, Australia is concerned with non-refulgent that is none of the asylum seekers and refugees must be returned to the nation (Smith-Khan, 2020). Moreover, it is described in the Convention that it is difficult in processing and settling refugees. Under this Convention, refugees enjoy certain rights which are quite helpful for their sustenance in the hostand.

Figure 2: Asylum seekers in Australia
Source: (Tradingeconomics, 2022)

According to this law, it is important to note that refugees with disabilities enjoy a special position in international Law in recognising the facts that they once have lost after leaving their homeland. As per this convention, whenever an asylum seeker puts foot in a country they are able to enjoy certain rights (Briskman, 2020). Article 3 of this convention has stated that asylum seekers do not face discrimination in the host countries. As per article 17, refugees and asylum seekers are allowed to do work in the nations in which they are seeking shelter after their plight (Smith-Khan, 2020). Article 4 of the same convention has included a point that in the hostland a refugee can be able to propagate any religion without any restriction. Moreover, there are other articles as well in this convention as well that help in protecting the interests of the asylum seekers and refugees in Australia. It is observed from the Convention that Article 21 has given these refugees the right to accommodate anywhere in the country.

Gaps in the Policy

Apart from all such rights, the Convention also has certain gaps. One such gap is that the Convention has not allowed these asylum seekers to take the nationality of the host country in which they seek shelter. However, at times there is tightened control and patrolling over the borders that prevent the entry of asylum seekers into Australia (Roberts, Ong & Raftery, 2018). Hence, the nation must receive the refugees and must offer them all the basic amenities for their subsistence. It is also significant to note that there are meagre Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of Australia and the Non-Governmental Organisations in protecting the refugees and their interests. The Government is also not providing enough financial help to the refugees so that they can improve their living conditions and give better education to their wards.

Areas that require Development

The 1951 Convention of Refugee provides a narrow concern for the term refugee and asylum seekers with disabilities. Development required in one area, that is the Government must make certain amendments in the Convention and must allow the refugees to enter other states of the nation. Article 91R (1) talks about persecution which refers to discrimination and harm to the refugees and hence this Article must be amended for the betterment of disabled asylum seekers (Gleeson et al., 2020)

Recommendations

Following are the recommendations with which the condition of the asylum seekers and refugees in Australia can be improved:

- The Australian Government must bring more legislation that will help in protecting the rights and interests of disabled seekers and refugees in the country. The legislation must bring certain laws that will help the seekers in receiving better civic amenities in the hostland so that they can be able to fulfil their essential requirements (Sheikh, Koc, & Anderson, 2019). Moreover, legislation must be formulated so that the disabled seekers can get nationality of Australia so that they can be able to participate in the electorate procedure of the country, and receive various government schemes of educational and healthcare facilities.

- Moreover, there must be an interlink age between refugee protection and international migration. Hence, it is necessary for the Australian Government to provide better accommodation facilities and better employment opportunities to the asylum seekers so that they can earn a livelihood that will help them in fulfilling their basic requirements in life (Führer et al., 2020). The government must provide certain approaches that help in looking for suitable durable options for refugees in the arena of international protection (Sheikh, Koc, & Anderson, 2019). The Australian Government must also provide facts and advice to the refugees regarding the condition of the country so that if there will be any political turmoil in the country they can leave the country and seek shelter in another nation.

- A proper monitoring of the expatriates and the process of resettlement must be properly administered by the Australian Government so that the asylum seekers can be able to live out of the atrocious condition and can get relief from the traumatic condition of war, terrorism and violence. It is important to note that proper healthcare facilities must also be provided so that they can be able to shed their trauma (Due, Aldam, & Ziersch, 2020).

Reference List