Almost exactly five years ago, then Immigration Minister Peter Dutton tried, and failed, to deport the Tamil family from Biloela to Sri Lanka. Last minute court action and airport protests forced the plane to land in Darwin. A week later the family was in the Christmas Island detention centre.
Tony Burke, who was a former immigration minister, forcefully declared that, “it was in the national interest for the family to stay in Australia”. Burke told Sky News, “You’ve got a town that says this family is good for our town in Biloela. You’ve got a business that says ‘I don’t want to lose my employee’. You don’t even need to get to compassionate arguments before you have a national interest case. That’s what there is right now.”
Today, scores (and sometimes hundreds) of such “national interest cases” can be found protesting outside the electorate office of Tony Burke, who is now Home Affairs Minister. Wednesday 13 November will be the 100th day of the 24/7 Sydney protest.
Burke now has the power to grant permanent visas to the around 10,000 asylum seekers, who, just like the Tamil family, are all victims of the fast track process. Five years ago, Burke and the Labor party recognised the injustice. When Labor was elected in 2022, the Tamil family were granted permanent visas.
Labor finally abolished the fast track system in October. But Labor is yet to establish a pathway to permanent visas for its victims.
At Labor’s early federal election love-in in Adelaide, Anthony Albanese trotted out the same catchphrase he used on the election night in 2022. “No-one held back, and no-one left behind. This principle has guided me my whole life,” he proclaimed.
The phrase is meant to sound compassionate, but for 10,000 fast track victims it’s empty.
By Ian Rintoul
