Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk slammed for baby Asha comments

UPDATE: Premier Palaszczuk said the PM told her he wanted “zero children in detention centres”. But said Peter Dutton has been “missing in action” on the baby Asha issue while busy “playing politics with human lives”.

PREMIER Annastacia Palaszczuk has called out the federal immigration minister for “playing politics” over people smuggling.

Responding to claims that she was encouraging people smuggling, Ms Palaszczuk said she and other state premiers had said they were willing to house the families currently in Australia.

“First and foremost I believe that Peter Dutton is playing politics,” she said.

“I have not had a single phonecall from the Immigration Minister, I have not had a single phonecall from the Prime Minister concerned whatsoever about the comments I have made.”

She said the Prime Minister had told her he wanted zero children in detention centres, a belief she shared.

“We do not want to see, at all, illegal people smuggling crossing treacherous waters which results in deaths in the ocean. I don’t want to see that ... And no decent human being across the nation wants to see it,” she said.

“I am sick and tired of people playing politics with human lives.”

Speaking at a press conference, held in front of a building site with a sign “Let Them Stay”, Ms Palaszczuk said the issue was a humanitarian one.

She said the Immigration Minister had been “missing in action” over the Baby Asha controversy.

“Peter Dutton, the Immigration Minister, was silent for weeks over Baby Asha,” she said.

“The right outcome has been achieved here over Baby Asha.

“The doctors in question, the nurses, made clinical decisions in relation to her medical care and now she is in a fit state to be discharged to community detention.”

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk.

Immigration Minister Peter Dutton.

OVERNIGHT: Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has been accused of inciting people smugglers and encouraging them to send refugees to Australia illegally.

Immigration Minister Peter Dutton yesterday slammed Ms Palaszczuk for sending a message to smugglers in Indonesia that Australia’s tough policy would soon be changed.

The comments came as authorities prepared to move asylum-seeker baby “Asha” from a Brisbane hospital to community detention.

“We are going to have a consistency of approach here because I can tell you that ­intelligence out of Indonesia recently was that people smugglers were reporting the comments of Premiers, including Palaszczuk … to say that there was going to be a change in the policy,” Mr Dutton said.

“People had prepaid deposits and all sorts of things to get on boats. We know there are about 14,000 people in Indonesia today who would get on boats tomorrow.”

Ms Palaszczuk wrote to Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull two weeks ago, saying she stood ready to accept asylum seekers into the state. Yesterday, she reiterated her stance.

“The fact it took a hospitalised baby girl, hundreds of people from across our community taking a principled stand in front of the hospital and expressions of disappointment from thousands more to finally move Immigration Minister Peter Dutton speaks volumes about his lack of character and compassion,” she said.

Mr Dutton yesterday said the Federal Government would not deviate in its policies, saying placing Asha and her family in community detention was not a long-term solution.

Protesters outside Lady Cilento Children's Hospital. Pic: Darren England

“ I’m not going to allow a situation where we have ­people harmed to come to our country to receive medical ­assistance and then they think there’s a formula for them to be released into the community. That is not going to happen,” Mr Dutton said.

In response to advocacy groups claiming victory after it was announced Asha would be moved by the end of Monday to community detention, Mr Dutton said community detention first was what “we’ve proposed all along”, before the family’s case is considered and a decision is made on whether they be returned to Nauru.

As reported by The Courier-Mail last Wednesday, doctors at Brisbane’s Lady Cilento Children’s Hospital agreed with immigration officers the 13-month-old could be moved into community detention, possibly at Pinkenba.

Medical staff had refused to discharge her if she was to be sent back to the island detention centre on Nauru.

Authorities had planned to move Asha yesterday but the decision was delayed, with Queensland Police stepping up their role in the operation.

Officers from the Public Safety Response Team and police negotiators descended on the hospital.

Mr Dutton did not rule out the family being sent back to Nauru or to their home country if they were found to not have a legitimate asylum claim.

The child has been at the hospital since January 26, after burning herself with boiling water at the detention centre in Nauru.

Mr Dutton said a bed shortage also played into doctors’ decision to agree to community detention.

“I understand there are some pressures at the hospital in terms of bed space and the rest of it but that is an issue for the Queensland Government.”

Darwin Asylum Seeker and Support Advocacy Network co-ordinator Natasha Blucher had been in contact with Asha’s parents and said they were pleased with the decision to be moved to community detention.

Asha’s father was relocated to the Pinkenba site when his family was taken to the hospital.

Originally published as Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk slammed for baby Asha comments