Horrific conditions in Australia’s refugee centers intended to scare off migrants – doctor

Source: RT - Russia Today

The Australian government is creating unbearable conditions at its offshore processing centers to send a message to other migrants not to come to the country, Dr John-Paul Sanggaran, a medical officer, who worked at one of such facilities, told RT.
Sanggaran is the co-author of the paper, entitled “Is Australia engaged in torturing asylum seekers? A cautionary tale for Europe,” which was published in the Journal of Medical Ethics last week, once again attracting public attention to the country’s controversial asylum policy.

Refugees, who were “often victims of violence and abuse” in their home countries, are “placed onto remote islands… essentially, denied their freedom for an indefinite period of time,” he told RT.

The people are forced to live in tents, with “very-very poor medical services there. Especially, in terms of mental health” provided to them, the doctor said.

Australia is “taking these people (asylum seekers) and treating them in a terrible way to send a message to other people that they shouldn’t come here: ‘Please, don’t come to Australia to seek asylum,” he stressed.

“And to the people that are already trapped within the system to make their lives so difficult and so intolerable that they choose to return often to countries where they’ll face prosecutions," Sanggaran added.

Read more: https://www.rt.com/news/349066-australia-refugees-detention-torture/

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This sad story has fallen from the mainstream media lately, but clearly has not gone away. I am so very disappointed in Australia for their inhumane treatment of these poor people.

And just in case the article's source, Russia Today, bothers some people, here are addition links that back up this story.

Australia’s Hidden, Deadly Migrant Crisis
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/australia-migrant-crisis-deaths_us_572d01abe4b096e9f0917807

How Australia's Twisted Racial Politics Created Horrific Detention Camps For Immigrants
http://www.filmsforaction.org/articles/how-australias-twisted-racial-politics-created-horrific-detention-camps-for-immigrants/

Papua New Guinea: The camps where Australia sends asylum seekers
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-33114230

Driven to suicide – treatment by Australia tips asylum seekers over the edge
http://www.smh.com.au/comment/comment-tim-dick-on-selfharm-20160117-gm7jry.html