Does the Government Have a Detaining Refugees at Sea Without Telling Us Problem?

For the second time in under a year, the Australian government has secretly detained a group of refugees at sea—both times lasting almost a month. The newly-appointed head of Operation Sovereign Borders, Major General Andrew Bottrell confirmed this at a Senate estimates meeting this week. Forty six Vietnamese asylum seekers were intercepted on March 20, then held on the navy ship HMAS Choules, only to be sent back on April 18.

Not one of the refugees were offered Australia's protection, as Bottrell outlined that face-to-face interviews onboard "screened out" refugees, including women and children. According to him, Australia had not contravened any of its international obligations by returning them.

Australia has a long history of welcoming Vietnamese refugees, the majority of which arrived between the late 70s and mid-80s. Dr. Tien Manh Nguyen fled Vietnam after having spent three years in a government-run concentration camp. He arrived in Australia in 1980 and remembers being greeted by a generous society, but things have changed.

According to Nguyen, the detainment of the Vietnamese asylum seekers was a violation of the principles of the UN Refugee Convention and it's shameful they were turned back. "If a person risks their lives no matter by what means, especially on the sea, they must have a reason and therefore must have a decent chance for their cases to be heard properly," he said.

Behind the glossy veneer of modern Vietnam, people are still oppressed and living in poverty, explained Nguyen. People flee because they're being dispossessed from their land and the government is cracking down on political dissidents. The Human Rights Watch World Report 2014 outlines that human rights in Vietnam deteriorated significantly in 2013, worsening a trend over recent years.

The Vietnamese government had given Australia a written assurance that "no retribution for their illegal departure" would be carried out after their return. However, under questioning Bottrell admitted that this could only be taken on trust. People like Nguyen are sure these refugees will face retribution.

"The general in charge of border security said, 'We don't follow up on them.' So do you believe a promise from a dictatorial regime? I don't," he said.

Over the four week period ending July 27 last year, Australian authorities held a group of 157 Tamil asylum seekers incommunicado on a customs boat. Prior to interception some detainees were able to make contact with people in Australia and a case was brought before the High Court of Australia challenging the legality of the detention.

This led the government to break its silence on the situation. The refugees were taken to the mainland and then secretly flown to the Australian detention center on Nauru, where they're now being held.

This was a blow to Operation Sovereign Borders—the government's strategy of pushing back the boats—as no refugee boats had reached Australian shores since December 2013.

But the government kept its silence surrounding the Vietnamese detainees as they were returned to the port city of Vung Tau in southern Vietnam, despite reports of the operation. It was not until early this month that Australian immigration minister Peter Dutton confirmed the operation had been carried out.

Two major developments have changed the political climate surrounding refugees since the Tamils were brought ashore. On January 28 this year, the High Court found that the 157 Tamil refugees were lawfully detained at sea. An amendment bill passed through federal parliament on December 5 last year preceded this decision, drastically changing the government's powers when dealing with refugees.

The Migration and Maritime Powers Legislation Amendment Bill (2014) means that Australia no longer has to comply with the UN Refugee Convention. The basis of international refugee law is the principle of non-refoulement: meaning it is illegal to send a person back to a country where they may face persecution or torture. But this new law provides that Australia's international obligations are irrelevant when it comes to an "unlawful non-citizen."

"The government's making full use of the changes it made to the law at the end of last year," said Ian Rintoul, spokesperson for the Refugee Action Coalition, adding that this change meant that, "the government has the right to intercept and hold people on the high seas, even though it violates international protocol."

More VICE coverage of the global refugee crisis: Immigrants Are Walking Hundreds of Miles from Greece to Germany

At the senate meeting last Monday, Bottrell stated 18 "people-smuggling ventures" had been successfully turned back, since Operation Sovereign Borders commenced in September 2013. He conceded another vessel was turned back on March 22, but could not go into the details because of the operation being military-led.

Due to the secrecy surrounding the government's operations, not just on the water but detention as a whole, Rintoul said, "There may well be more instances of what's happened to the Vietnamese. There's no transparency, accountability or even announcements."

The Human Rights Law Centre provided part of the legal representation for the High Court case. Daniel Webb, director of center, said despite the outcome of the case and the amendments to legislation, "there may have been serious legal questions about whether Vietnam was a safe place for these asylum seekers." He explained the High Court made it clear that the government can't send asylum seekers to a place unless there are reasonable grounds they'll be safe, citing Section 74 of the Maritime Powers Act 2013, part of the act that wasn't amended.

Webb also stressed our screening process needs to remember that people's lives are at stake. "It's vital to get those decisions right. Asking people a few questions on a boat in the middle of the ocean just doesn't cut it."

At the Senate estimates meeting, Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young asked many of the questions that led Bottrell to reveal details about the Vietnamese refugees. She explained holding refugees, including women and children, on a "prison ship" for a month was dangerous and unacceptable.

Hanson-Young said pushing back the boats and sending people back was costing lives. "It also sends a nasty message to the rest of the international community that Australia simply doesn't care what happens to refugees," she told VICE. "The Prime Minister may as well be telling people to, 'bugger off and die somewhere else.'"

Follow Paul on Twitter.