By Cam Lucadou-Wells
A Dandenong refugee advocate says there’s soaring frustration about the Federal Government’s still-dormant election pledge to upgrade thousands of temporary visas.
Wicki Wickiramasingham, a long-time ALP member and former deputy chair of Southern Migrant and Refugee Centre, said hundreds of asylum seekers in the South East had been expecting “good news” by the new year.
“Still after the election, nothing has been done. They have been disappointed.”
Ahead of the May 2022 election, Labor had promised to end Temporary Protection Visas (TPVs) and Safe Haven Enterprise Visas (SHEVs), and to transition holders onto permanent visas.
The government has since blamed hold-ups on an inherited 1 million visa application backlog. It says it has hired more than 400 extra staff and to have slashed the list to 600,000 by the end of 2022.
Asylum seekers who arrive by boat, otherwise called ‘unauthorised maritime arrivals’, can only apply for a TPV or SHEV.
They must re-apply every three years (TPV) or five years (SHEV) to remain in Australia.
Some have been living in such limbo for up to 16 years, Mr Wickiramasingham says.
Without permanent visas, they find it harder to get work and eke out a living, and are barred from reuniting with loved ones left behind.
Mr Wickiramasingham tells of a Tamil man who has been on a bridging visa for more than a decade while awaiting for a decision on his refugee status.
In the meantime, his prime adult years have been wasted, still unable to reunite with his fiancée left behind in Sri Lanka.
“He’s lonely. He has no family, just other boat people who help each other”, Mr Wickiramsingham says.
In his early 20s, the man was arrested by the Sri Lankan military for supporting “pro-liberation forces”.
A relative paid for his release from the army’s detention camp and then he was “put on a boat” to Australia.
Now in his early 30s, he still dreams of bringing out his parents and fiancée who he left behind.
He has not spoken to them by phone for several months. Family members are too afraid due to Sri Lankan authorities “tapping the calls” and detaining people seen as anti-government.
In Australia, he is hampered by his insecure visa status. Potential employers overlook him in favour of citizens and permanent residents.
Often he relies on low-paid, cash-in-hand jobs, and sometimes on friends and charity for food.
In the meantime, he and four other asylum seekers are crammed into an ‘affordable’ two-bedroom rental, sharing the $2400-a-month rent.
Asylum Seeker Resource Centre has criticised the delay in ending a “cruel and inhumane” system.
Spokesperson Barat Ali Batoor said the system was introduced by the former Abbott Government to stop people arriving by sea from getting permanent residency.
“It was introduced to fail people. It was flawed and gave little opportunity for their claims.”
The wait has been a “very frustrating situation” for 31,000 asylum seekers across Australia and their wider communities.
“There is a lot of stress and anxiety about the delay in the announcement. It should have happened by now. There’s been nothing.”
Greater Dandenong Council’s asylum seeker advisory committee reported in December that TPV and SHEV holders were “experiencing fatigue from waiting”.
Mayor Eden Foster leads the Local Government Mayoral Taskforce Supporting People Seeking Asylum, which comprises mayors from across Australia.
She said the taskforce was continuing to press Federal MPs for an end to TPVs and SHEVs.
While understanding the causes for the delays, she said it was “cold comfort” for temporary visa holders.
Bruce Labor MP Julian Hill said that “I share the community’s frustration at the delay to be frank, and have numerous friends and local constituents affected.”
“Details will be announced as soon as possible.
“Unfortunately it is not a simple matter to clean up 10 years of utter mess that the Liberals left in Home Affairs including a backlog over 1 million visa and citizenship applications but 500 new staff are now making progress.”
A Department of Home Affairs spokesperson said the Government “intends to meet this commitment as soon as possible”.
“The resolution of these visa holders needs to be carefully managed.”
