Asylum, border control and detention

Boat people who arrive in Australia and request refugee status are detained while their claims are evaluated. Most objections to this practice concern the length of detention, not the policy itself. Since early1992, requests have usually been evaluated within five weeks. But many unsuccessful applicants then appeal. Appeals from detainees to the Refugee Review Tribunal (RRT) are given priority but, if applicants go to the Federal Court, long delays are inevitable. We need to ensure that primary decisions and the work of the RRT are of high quality, and we need to limit appeals to the Federal Court. Copyright. Monash University and the author/s