Returned traveller ‘didn't feel welcomed in own country’, opens up about public scrutiny to close international borders

An Australian who was living in London says he ‘didn’t feel welcome’ to come home amid increased hostility to returned travellers.

A recently returned Australian has weighed in on the federal government’s decision to stop repatriation flights from India, saying he “didn’t feel welcome” to return home.

Stefan Centofanti, 24, arrived back in Australia from London on a DFAT flight on March 9.

He moved to the UK in August 2019 to live with Iida Korhonen, 22, his girlfriend of three and a half years who was accepted to study a Bachelor of Management and Marketing at the Royal Holloway University.

Looking back on his own experience, Mr Centofanti, of Athelstone, said it was “quite concerning” stranded Australians had been temporarily banned from coming home.

“I understand where the government’s coming from, but as a citizen who was stuck overseas I believe no matter what country you live in, no matter what country you migrated to, if you want to come home to Australia, you should always be allowed to,” Mr Centofanti told NCA NewsWire.

Stefan Centofanti and Iida Korhonen recently returned to Australia from the UK on DFAT flight in May. Picture: Supplied

“Whether it’s India, London, Italy – where there are major hot spots – if you’re an Australian citizen, you should never be denied entry to your own country.”

Mr Centofanti said it was a “difficult” process to return home to Australia even without a flight ban.

He had his name registered on the DFAT flight list, would check the monthly email that showed available flights and repeatedly found they were already full.

But he said Ms Korhonen’s proactivity on social media led to the couple finding valuable information that got them home.

One particular Facebook post suggested that stranded Australians check the flight information daily in case seats because available.

To Mr Centofanti’s luck, two seats opened up on the flight in March so the couple flew into Darwin and quarantined in Howard Springs before returning to South Australia.

After being stranded overseas and comparing his own experience, Mr Centofanti weighed in on the federal government’s decision to suspend flights from India. Picture: Supplied

“I felt excited, but also worried about how the public would react to us coming back, and if we’d be welcomed home given that we were gone for the whole of 2020.

“You always see comments on social media saying: ‘you should have come back earlier’, ‘you should never have left in the first place’, ‘why would you leave Australia?’, but people don’t understand the other side. They don’t have empathy.

“Even when we got onto the flights, and landed in the quarantine facility, I still didn't feel welcomed in my own country.”

Mr Centofanti described the public scrutiny towards returned travellers as “civilians turning against their fellow neighbours” and believed fear, education and not being able to relate was the cause.

“It all makes you feel unwelcome,” he said of the furious rhetoric coming from both politicians and ordinary Australians.

“I don‘t tell a lot of people that I travelled unless they’re close family or friends because I don’t know how they are going to react, or if they’ll look at me differently.

“Because I’m a returned traveller during a pandemic, I’m being blamed for certain cases coming back home when everyone has a right to come back to their homeland.”

Mr Centofanti, 24, said he was concerned about the public security of being a returned traveller. Picture: Supplied

He said it was a ‘difficult’ process to come home and that he ‘didn’t feel welcomed’ in his own country. Picture: Supplied

Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced on Tuesday that flights arriving from India would be suspended until May 15 as the country grapples with its growing outbreak of COVID-19 cases.

Fronting the media on Tuesday, he said the suspension would be effective immediately.

His decision has left up to 9,000 Australians stuck in India.

“This will give some breathing space to the NSW arrangements and allow people from other countries to come back,” Mr Morrison said.

The Prime Minister said those future travellers wanting to come to Australia from India must return a negative PCR test and rapid antigen test prior to flying.

He added that indirect flights from India via Doha, Dubai, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur have also been paused by their respective governments.

Perth was plunged into a three-day lockdown last Friday after possible community transmission was linked to a man who had returned from India and tested positive to COVID-19 after leaving hotel quarantine.

After the lockdown lifted, WA Premier Mark McGowan said he backed the federal government's decision to halt flights.

“What we're finding is large numbers of people are arriving who are COVID-positive, so clearly the system is not working as intended,” Mr McGowan said on Tuesday.

“We obviously have enormous sympathy for India at the moment. It's obviously a diabolical situation that is going on in India at the moment, but it does put extreme pressure on our systems here in Western Australia and indeed in other states.”