How asylum seekers became a political weapon in Australia
In the tumultuous landscape of Australian politics, few issues have been as consistently wielded as a potent tool for electoral advantage as the question of asylum seekers. From the handling of Vietnamese refugees in the 1970’s to the more recent atrocities surrounding the Nadesalingam family, the treatment of asylum seekers has shaped electoral narratives and policy decisions alike.
An unrecognisable past
You might not believe it, but Australia’s attitude towards asylum seekers was significantly different in the 70’s and 80’s. During this time, Australia faced a significant influx of 80,000 Vietnamese refugees fleeing persecution and conflict in their homeland.
The crew of the RAN Majestic aircraft carrier HMAS Melbourne II rescuing 99 Vietnamese men, women and children from a leaking, overcrowded boat in the South China Sea. C/O Australian War Memorial NAVYG1614/21
Despite concerns among the public, the Fraser government did not take the hard stance characteristic of modern politics. In fact, one of the defining features of the Fraser government's approach was its emphasis on the positive contributions of refugees, and the recognition of their resilience and determination to build better lives for themselves and their families.
This is exemplified in one of his statements, "If you embrace a positive view and embrace the courage of the people who are prepared to try and get a better life for themselves and their families, I think the political pressure starts to diminish."
Did a full 180
This approach saw a drastic shift in 2001 with what became to be known as the Tampa Affair. On 24 August 2001, A Norwegian container ship, the MV Tampa, rescued 433 asylum seekers, mostly Hazaras fleeing the Taliban from a sinking fishing boat.
In an interview about the incident, Captain Rinnan said, "when we arrived, several of the refugees were obviously in a bad state and 10 to 12 of them were unconscious, several had dysentery and a pregnant woman was suffering abdominal pains".
The asylum seekers onboard the Norwegian cargo ship
The asylum seekers requested to be taken to Christmas Island, and captain Rinnan agreed, but Australian government authorities denied permission, threatening force and prosecution if he continued.
“Christmas Island has a no guns policy. You're not allowed to own guns on Christmas Island,” says Christmas island local Robyn. “The only guns are the Australian Federal Police and Border Force. And in those days, the AFP did not carry guns. There were no guns seen in the community, they were locked in the cupboard.”
But this was not the case as soon as the Tampa incident started. “We had helicopters arriving. We had armoured tanks. On our recreational swimming area, we had guards with machine guns.”
The standoff precipitated the Liberal-National Party (LNP) government proposing a "Pacific Solution" a few hours later – the establishment of offshore processing centres on Nauru and Manus Island. The Labor party who initially opposed the bill witnessed a swift drop in its poll standings overnight, eventually forcing them to accede to the bill's passing.
Fear and distrust of Afghan refugees grew in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks just a couple of weeks later, combined with more high profile asylum seeker boats. A carefully orchestrated narrative was presented to the public: asylum seekers were potential terrorists.
"We don't have asylum seekers arriving in Australia. We have 'illegals'. We don't have an immigration department, we have a 'border force'," says Ben Doherty, Journalist for The Guardian, highlighting the drastic change in the language around asylum seeking. “All of this militarised securitised language, the issue of asylum seeking being framed as an issue of national security, all of these terms are very powerful in shaping people's understandings of what we are talking about.”
This shift in language marks the beginning of a transition towards seeing asylum seekers as a potential threat, rather than individuals seeking help.
Just political footballs
Asylum seeker fear has continued to be utilised by both major political parties since. A hard stance against asylum seekers has generally been seen as favourable, with parties accusing each other of going soft or not doing enough to “protect” our borders. Policies have also developed and evolved to align with this ideology.
Scott Morrison, as reported back in 2013, directly instructed custom officials to label asylum seekers arriving by boat as "illegal." Such deliberate manipulation of public perception has been integral to the government's policy on asylum seekers. These developments made policy changes, such as indefinite detention and off-shore processing, more acceptable.
Moreover, the narrative around asylum seekers is continually exploited. On the day of the 2022 Australian Federal Election, in a seemingly timed coincidence, a boat from Sri Lanka was intercepted by Australian Border Forces after another boat had arrived days earlier.
“The government is notoriously reluctant to speak about the interception of boats,” says Karen Middleton, The Saturday Paper's chief political correspondent. “They always have told us, particularly the coalition government under Scott Morrison as immigration minister and then certainly under him as prime minister, that these are "on-water matters" and we are not allowed to ask about them.”
Uncharacteristically, then Prime Minister Scott Morrison held a press conference mentioning this incident. The LNP even sent a mass text message that afternoon alerting them to the boat, and urging them to vote Liberal.
The text message sent out on the day of the 2023 federal election
“The Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, spoke about it. They were attempting to get journalists to ask them about it. It was clear that they saw this as some kind of politically advantageous issue to be out in the public domain on the day that people were going to vote,” says Middleton.
It was later uncovered that Scott Morrison pressured a press statement to be released, despite resistance from several public servants.
Now
Despite the Labor Party’s victory at the 2023 election and the subsequent granting of the Nadesalingam family’s permanent visas, the majority of the policies that make it difficult for asylum seekers to arrive to Australia and subsequently stay are still around.
Once perceived as individuals in pursuit of a better life, the shift in perception has not only impacted the lives of asylum seekers but has also set a concerning precedent for the handling of asylum seekers, which risks dehumanising these individuals, turning them into mere pawns for political gains.
