Oxfam criticises Australia over asylum

Naura has taken more than 1,000 asylum seekers

By Phil Mercer in Sydney

Australia is treating its Pacific neighbours "like prostitutes" by paying them to house its unwanted asylum seekers, the international relief agency, Oxfam Community Aid Abroad has said.

The report came as Australian Immigration Minister Philip Ruddock completed a two-day tour of his country's detention camps in Papua New Guinea and Nauru.

Around 1,500 illegal migrants are being held in them while their applications for refugee status are processed.

Oxfam says the so-called Pacific Solution damages Australia's reputation and adds to regional instability.

The aid agency's report likens Australia's sponsorship of the detention camps to offering money to a prostitute, who accepts out of desperation.

Prime Minister John Howard has dismissed the criticism as absurd, and said the policy would not be altered.

Asylum crackdown

Australia has established camps on Manus Island in Papua New Guinea, where 446, mainly Iraqi detainees, are housed. In a multi-million-dollar aid deal, the tiny island state of Nauru has taken in 1,100 illegal migrants.

Ruddock: Thanked Papua New Guinea for its help

Under tough border controls, introduced by the Howard government six months ago, the navy has been intercepting asylum seekers trying to reach Australia by boat from Indonesia. They are either turned back or sent to processing camps in the Pacific.

This has led to a gradual reduction in the numbers locked up in detention camps in Australia.

The Immigration Minister Philip Ruddock has thanked Papua New Guinea for its help in addressing a regional problem.

Speaking in the capital Port Moresby Mr Ruddock said being able to accommodate people in processing centres outside Australia, was an important factor in disrupting the criminal gangs trying to smuggle refugees into the country.

The government of Papua New Guinea says it is willing to take in more boat people, and will accept a further 800 asylum seekers at the centre on Manus Island.

Australia's refugee policy is likely to be criticised during a meeting in Geneva on Tuesday, between the Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer and the United Nations Human Rights Commissioner Mary Robinson.

The UN has been a constant critic of Australia's mandatory detention of asylum seekers.