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This submission aims to highlight a number of issues for children in immigration detention arising from the Department of Human Services' (DHS) involvement in child protection, health service provision to children and their families, settlement support and care of unattached minors.

“I saw an Afghani guy cut his own throat in my compound – he was working with me in the kitchen that day, and after work, he went outside and he cut himself up everywhere. It was really hard. Even the officers started crying when this happened”. [17–year–old asylum-seeker]

The Australian National Committee of the United Nation's Children's Fund, ('UNICEF Australia'), welcomes the opportunity to present a written submission to the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, ('HREOC'), in regard to their national inquiry into children in immigration detention, ('the Inquiry').

States Parties shall take appropriate measures to ensure that a child who is seeking refugee status or who is considered a refugee in accordance with applicable international or domestic law and procedures shall, whether unaccompanied or accompanied by his or her parents or by any other person, receive appropriate protection and humanitarian assistance in the enjoyment of applicable rights set forth in the present Convention and in other international human rights or humanitarian instruments to which the said States are Parties.

This is a paper prepared by Amnesty International for the HREOC Inquiry into children in immigration detention centres. In particular, this paper sets out Amnesty International's concerns with the detention of children, having regard to the international human rights treaties to which Australia has committed itself.

The Ethnic Communities Council of Western Australia commends the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission and Human Rights Commissioner Sev Ozdowski in particular, for instituting the Children in Immigration Detention Inquiry.

"There have been times in our history when Australia has been generous and open hearted and times when it has been very mean. In 1938 at the Evian Conference about dealing with Jewish and other refugees from Hitler, Australia took a flint hearted position, saying that we did not want to import Europe's problems, or to increase racial differences, and that refugees should get back in the queue.

1. The provisions made by Australia to implement its international human rights obligations regarding child asylum seekers, including unaccompanied minors

HREOC plays a significant role in monitoring legislation and policy in Australia to assess compliance with human rights principles. This monitoring role includes:

1. BACKGROUND TO UNAA's CONCERN 2. THIS INQUIRY 3. AUSTRALIA'S INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS OBLIGATIONS 4. MANDATORY DETENTION OF CHILDREN, and ALTERNATIVES 5. CHILD ASYLUM SEEKERS IN DETENTION AND THE COMMUNITY 6. IMPACT OF DETENTION ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHILDREN 7. MEASURES REQUIRED TO PROTECT INTERESTS OF CHILDREN 8. MEASURES FOR PROTECTING INTERESTS OF CHILD ASYLUM SEEKERS AND REFUGEES 9. CONCLUSION 10. RECOMMENDATIONS

ACDE is the national peak organisation representing deans of faculties of education and heads of schools of education in Australian universities, and in other institutions providing recognised teacher education qualifications. ACDE members are responsible for initial and post-initial teacher education (schools, VET, early childhood, tertiary, some other instructors/educators), education research and scholarship, and education research training.

[This is an extract from my honours thesis analysing Australia’s Mandatory Detention Policy giving special attention to the implications on refugee children.]

My name is Keysar Trad. I am the Vice President of the Lebanese Muslims Association in Sydney. The Lebanese Muslims Association was established in 1961 by a group of Lebanese Muslim citizens to advocate on behalf of Lebanese and other Muslims in the Australian community. We have over 1100 financial members and over tens of thousands who use our facilities on festive occasions, many or our members (financial and non financial) meet at our mosques five times a day to offer worship and over 5000 members meet every Friday at midday for worship services.

The Convention on the Rights of the Child states that unaccompanied children - particularly those seeking asylum - need special protection and assistance. Where unaccompanied children have a legal guardian, their best interests must be the guardian's 'basic concern'.

If you have any queries about the National Inquiry into Children in Immigration Detention, please contact the Commission by emailing paffairs@humanrights.gov.au.

Submissions to the National Inquiry into Children in Immigration Detention