The government knows the facts yet continues to lie to the public because fear and hatred keeps people loyal to the party. 

They know we are not being swamped

“REALITY: The number of people arriving in Australia to claim asylum jumped by more than a third last year to 15,800 people, driven by an increase in arrivals from Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Australia resettles the third largest number of refugees of any country per capita, but actual Australia’s asylum seeker numbers, while politically sensitive, remain numerically small. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) says Australia receives about three per cent of the total asylum claims made in industrialised countries around the world and, “by comparison, asylum levels in Australia continue to remain below those recorded by many other industrialised and non-industrialised countries”.”

They know there is no queue

“REALITY: Asylum seekers who arrive in Australia by boat are neither engaging in illegal activity, nor are they immigrants. The UN Refugee Convention (to which Australia is a signatory) recognises that refugees have a right to enter a country for the purposes of seeking asylum, regardless of how they arrive or whether they hold valid travel or identity documents. Australian law also permits unauthorised entry into Australia for the purposes of seeking asylum. Asylum seekers do not break any Australian laws simply by arriving on boats or without authorisation. Australia has a proud history of boat people and other asylum seekers becoming good citizens.”

They know it is not illegal to seek asylum

“The Facts: Under the UN Refugee Convention, which Australia has signed, it is not illegal to arrive by boat and seek asylum in Australia. The Convention states that everyone has the right to seek asylum in Australia.”

They know it is not illegal to seek asylum via boat

“The Facts: Under the UN Refugee Convention, which Australia has signed, it is not illegal to arrive by boat and seek asylum in Australia. The Convention states that everyone has the right to seek asylum in Australia.”

They know the majority of refugees arriving by boat are genuine refugees

“The Facts: More than 90 per cent of asylum seekers who arrived by boat were found to be genuine refugees.”

They know that imprisoning children in offshore detention camps is no deterrent

Our Australian Government declared under oath and on record in the Royal Commission Report into child abuse in offshore detention centres that they KNEW that putting children and babies in offshore detention was NO DETERRENT to future asylum seekers getting on boats:

They know refugees are not terrorists, liars or criminals

“In reality, approximately 90% of those who arrive by boat are legitimate refugees, and no refugee has ever been convicted of a terrorist offence in Australia.”

They know the offshore detention centres are mental illness factories where child abuse is systemic

“The report found that more than 300 children committed or threatened self-harm in a 15-month period in Australian immigration detention, 30 reported sexual assault, nearly 30 went on hunger strike, and more than 200 were victims of assaults”.

They know it is far more expensive to process refugee claims offshore than in Australia

“Detaining a single asylum seeker on Manus or Nauru costs $400,000 per year. Detention in Australia costs $239,000 per year. By contrast, allowing asylum seekers to live in the community while their claims are processed costs just $12,000 per year, one twentieth of the cost of the offshore camps, and even less if they are allowed the right to work.”