Peter Dutton urged to reveal how many Commonwealth Games athletes overstayed visas

The Greens want Peter Dutton to reveal how many Commonwealth Games overstayers are seeking asylum.

The Greens are calling on Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton to reveal how many people who came to Australia for the Commonwealth Games remain here having overstayed their visas.

The ABC reported yesterday that the number could be as high as 100 — based on information from lawyers and advocates who claim to be representing the overstayers — but Mr Dutton would neither confirm nor deny the figure.

Athletes and other Commonwealth Games team members had until May 15 to leave Australia or apply for another visa.

It is believed those who remain are from African countries including Cameroon, Uganda, Rwanda and Sierra Leone.

Asked repeatedly whether it was true that the number remaining here is as high as 100, Mr Dutton said he was aware of such reports, but did not directly answer the question.

“There were about 13,500 visas that were issued to start with,” Mr Dutton told 2GB yesterday.

“Look, there’s an operation underway at the moment and whether it’s Olympic Games in Sydney or whether it’s Commonwealth Games in Melbourne or the Gold Coast or whether there’s a big conference, we get people who overstay.

“If people have made a claim for protection that is they claim they’re being persecuted, they will generally be put on to a bridging visa until their claim can be assessed and then if they’re found not to be owed protection then they’re on a plane out of here.”

Pressed again on the number, Mr Dutton said there could be some people who may have got visa extensions for other reasons, such as business or family reasons.

Mr Dutton conceded that once visa overstayers were on Australian soil they were entitled to legal protections.

“Like most Australians, I shake my head sometimes when you look at the conditions and the protections,” he said.

“Some of these people have more legal rights than Australian citizens themselves.”

Missing athlete, Simplice Fotsala, a 29-year-old boxer from Cameroon, poses in a series of photos posted on his Facebook page. Picture: Facebook.

Greens spokesman Nick McKim this morning demanded that Mr Dutton reveal how many overstayers the Home Affairs department is dealing with.

“It’s time for Peter Dutton to come clean here,” Senator McKim told ABC radio.

“We know that he’s been overturned by the courts and the Administrative Appeals Tribunal on a regular basis for decisions he has made, and the less we and ultimately the Australian people know how many people have overstayed the games, how many have applied for asylum in Australia, unless we know those numbers it’s going to be very hard for us to hold Peter Dutton to account in terms of the way that he deals with the applications for asylum, so it’s a simple matter of government transparency, but it’s also really important in terms of us being able to hold Peter Dutton to account for any decisions he might make.”

Asked whether it was possible that the government did not know what the numbers were, Senator McKim said it was not.

“I think the government knows exactly how many people fall into various categories,” he said.

“I don’t often agree with Peter Dutton, but he’s right that some people might be staying in Australia for longer due to other visa arrangements, but the government will know what those arrangements are because they’re the ones who have granted the visas.

“They will also know exactly at any given time how many of these athletes have applied for asylum in Australia, and as I said we need to know these figures so that he can be held to account for the decisions that he’s made, because quite frankly I and many other Australians simply don’t trust Peter Dutton to act appropriately, humanely and lawfully in this situation.”

Senator McKim said he intended to use Senate Estimates next week to interrogate Mr Dutton’s department about how many people were seeking asylum in Australia having come here for the Commonwealth Games.

“Not every question we ask is answered and often the department will claim what’s called public interest immunity to refuse to answer the questions, but I can’t see a legitimate claim for public interest immunity here in terms of simple questions about numbers,” he said.