Rohingyas and Australia’s Isolationist Stance on Asylum

A major chunk of people travelling to Australia belong to Rohingya community who are a tormented ethnic minority hailing from Burma. Their ordeal is painful as they have been victimised by their own ruling government and have not been granted any basic civic rights. Australia has detached itself from the agony of Rohingyas  and has consistently stopped their entry into their lands.

• Australia has an agreement in place with Burmese government to “boost Myanmar’s immigration and border control”. This was mainly done to prevent Rohingya exit from Burmese territory.
• Australian policies stand in stark denial of its obligations to UN refugee convention which mandates it to offer protection to those who need it.
• Australian government has presented evidence of the successful stopping of boats from reaching its coasts and has remained contended with the fact that it has been able to control people smuggling. However, it has turned a deaf ear to the known fact that boats have not stopped and there are people who need help and have lost their lives for want of a safe lands.

The world is inching closer to help the people in distress as 2015 is witness to the largest refugee crisis in recent history. Developed nations need to be more empathetic and considerate to the displaced populations. Australia cannot remain oblivious to the fact that sweeping the problem under the rug cannot mitigate its obligations. The fact remains that boats may not be able to reach Australian shores but they are there and people are drowning in seas for want of shelters.