Seventy-Six Asylum Seekers Have Signed a Letter Pleading not to Be Resettled in PNG

In October last year it was announced that all 916 refugees imprisoned on Manus Island would be resettled in Papua New Guinea. Australian immigration minister Peter Dutton welcomed the announcement, insinuating to reporters that this could be a cost effective outcome as "Australian taxpayers provide considerable assistance in terms of the way in which the regional processing centre is run."

Jump forward to March 2016 and PNG's prime minister Peter O'Neill is suggesting the country doesn't have the money or resources to resettle so many people. Not only that, but it seems that detainees themselves are strongly against the plan.

In a letter to the PNG government seen exclusively by VICE, 76 detainees who are awaiting resettlement have declared that they do not want to end up in the country.

"Most of us received our refugee status more than a year ago and we are not willing to be resettled in your country," the letter reads. "We were brought here forcibly and against our will and were forced to participate in the so called 'refugee process' with a lot of threats in a high security facility on Manus."

"By writing this letter we would clearly like to inform you that we are not willing to be your slaves and await… death in poverty, lonelyness [sic] and disease… to be a lesson for the refugees in [the] rest of the world."

Mahmoud*, who wrote the letter, told us he and the other signees hoped the PNG courts would order them back to where they first sought asylum. "I don't think any constitution can forcibly resettle a foreigner in their country against their will," he said.

He added that the men who signed the letter were "absolutely terrified" of being settled in PNG. "Everyone see poverty, loneliness and death out there in PNG. PNG is a terrible nightmare."

Mahmoud also believes the Australia government wanted to "eliminate them once they are out there…to get rid of this headache."

The letter was dated March 31, 2016, the same day the ABC reported that an Iranian refugee had attempted to return to detention after being resettled in PNG.

Yaser Afshar had been sent to Lae, PNG's second largest city, two months ago. He said he'd attempted to return to the processing centre because PNG immigration staff had stopped supporting him, but was told he was not allowed back in detention. According to a report by the ABC there are 448 refugees on Manus Island who still need resettlement under an arrangement between PNG and Australia.

The PNG High Commission in Canberra was approached for comment but has not responded in time for publication. Here's a transcript of the letter. Spelling and punctuation has been left as per the original:

*Note: names in this article have been changed.

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