Marise Payne won’t visit detention centres while on Nauru
AUSTRALIA’S Foreign Affairs Minister has no plans to visit controversial asylum seeker processing centres on Nauru while attending this week’s forum on the tiny island nation because she has a “pretty oacked” schedule.
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AUSTRALIA’S Foreign Affairs Minister has no plans to visit controversial asylum seeker processing centres on Nauru while attending this week’s forum on the tiny island nation.
Marise Payne, who replaced Julie Bishop in the job last week, said she had a “pretty packed” schedule including a number of announcements but visiting the three centres was not on the itinerary.
Some Pacific Island leaders are treating Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s decision to skip the forum Malcolm Turnbull had planned to attend as a snub.
Ms Payne was also expected to face criticism from leaders of the other 17 nations over the government’s decision to walk away from legislating its commitment to the Paris Agreement on emissions reduction targets.
New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern, whose offer to accept 150 refugees for resettlement was rejected by Australia, has not ruled out visiting a processing centre this week.
“I have a hope, an expectation at least, that I will at least be given an opportunity to be exposed to some of the issues around refugees on the island,” she said.
About 1000 refugees and asylum seekers live on the island but most live in small settlements around the coast. The camps continue to house about 220 people, including more than a dozen children, who have tried to reach Australia by boat.
The leaders will sign a security pact at the end of the week-long Pacific Islands Forum, which is expected to list climate change as one of the key threats to the region.
Some of the small Pacific Island nations fear their land will sink beneath rising seas, while others were battered by devastating storms.
RELATED: Exclusive images of children in detention on Nauru
“Climate change represents the single greatest threat to the livelihoods, security and wellbeing of our people,” forum secretary-general Meg Taylor said.
Ms Payne said the declaration was going to be a “really important foundation” for collective action to strengthen regional security including tackling cyber security and transnational crime. “There are very good opportunities for me to learn from my counterparts in the region of where they might see vulnerabilities,” she said.