Broadmeadows detention centre: guards accused of violence

An Iraqi refugee detained at a high-security Broadmeadows detention centre says he has twice been attacked by guards and had his hands broken, with one tussle caught on camera.

A detainee at a high-security detention centre in Broadmeadows says up to 13 security guards attacked him after a request to open a door led to a verbal argument, leaving the Iraqi refugee with a broken right hand.

Ali Yousuf, 27, says the assault occurred on the evening of April 24 when he returned from the medical compound to the Melbourne Immigration Transit Accommodation north compound.

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“I said, ‘I just want to go to my room, just open the door and let me in.’,” Mr Yousuf said.

“They said, ‘Don’t tell me what to do, I tell you what to do.’ I said, ‘And where’s the attitude coming from? What have I done to you to give me that kind of attitude … to treat me like a slave.’

“Next minute I was on the floor and my hand is twisted on my back … I hear a crack … and then I said, ‘my hand, my hand.’ No one listened.”

Mr Yousuf said it took four days before he was seen by a doctor who he said confirmed the fracture.

Ali Yousuf nursing his broken hand, which he says happened after he was set upon by up to 13 guards. Picture: Supplied

He said the assault led to the 120 detainees going on a hunger strike for a day and was part of the growing brutalisation.

An Australian Border Force spokeswoman denied there was a hunger strike and said the use of force only occurred when necessary to “protect” the safety and security of everyone and was within the law.

She said all detainees had access to medical care.

Mr Yousuf said the guards had also attacked him five months ago, leaving him with a broken left hand.

In a video, which Mr Yousuf said was filmed by another detainee, a man can be seen screaming “my hand, my hand” while a group of five guards pin him down.

Guards tussle with a man believed to be Mr Yousuf in another incident at the centre five months ago.

The man can be heard screaming as he is pinned to the ground.

In a letter seen by Leader Newspapers, Serco, who manages the facility on behalf of the Federal Government, acknowledged it received a written complaint signed by all detainees in the MITA north centre saying there was “a lot of force and violence, and the security guards “love to provoke us to make us angry”.

Refugee Action Collective spokesman Chris Breen said the detainees were demanding an end to the violence against them.

“Ali’s account has been corroborated by several other detainees who were witnesses,” Mr Breen said.

“ … The situation in Broadmeadows is cruel and unsustainable.

“The … staff accused by detainees of the assault were temporarily replaced by other staff at the centre. However, none of the issues have been resolved.”