Australia has secretly deported two more men to Nauru, infuriating human rights advocates who say the practice is opaque and unfair. The deportation process, which was touted as a way for Australia to "close its borders" on refugees, has been shrouded in secrecy, with details of the agreement between Australia and Nauru remaining unknown.
The two men, one Sudanese national and another from Vietnam, were detained at separate facilities in Western Australia before being chartered to Nauru. They join a growing number of asylum seekers who have been deported to the tiny Pacific island nation under a deal worth $2.5 billion, which was meant to last 30 years.
Critics say that the deal allows Australia to avoid its international obligations to provide protection to refugees and instead sends them to Nauru, where they face indefinite detention without access to justice or proper health assessments. Human rights advocates claim that the process is opaque and that people are being deported in secret, with limited information available about their treatment on Nauru.
"The government seems to be trying to 'replace' indefinite detention in Australia with 'indefinite detention on Nauru'," said Ian Rintoul of Refugee Action Coalition Sydney. "This is a cynical attempt to avoid accountability and ensure that people are sent back without any chance of justice or resolution."
The Australian government has denied allegations of secrecy, saying that those deported will be able to live freely within the community in Nauru. However, human rights advocates say that this claim is undermined by reports of people being locked up on the remote island with limited access to basic services.
Nauru's president, David Adeang, claims that refugees who were resettled under the deal have "served their time" and are no longer a threat. But critics argue that this ignores the trauma and harm caused by the asylum seekers' experiences in Australian detention centers.
The situation has sparked outrage among human rights advocates, with many calling for greater transparency and accountability from the Australian government. As one of the deported men told Guardian Australia, "I am not a young man – I cannot keep rebuilding my life. I do not know why Australia has selected me for this terrible punishment."
The two men, one Sudanese national and another from Vietnam, were detained at separate facilities in Western Australia before being chartered to Nauru. They join a growing number of asylum seekers who have been deported to the tiny Pacific island nation under a deal worth $2.5 billion, which was meant to last 30 years.
Critics say that the deal allows Australia to avoid its international obligations to provide protection to refugees and instead sends them to Nauru, where they face indefinite detention without access to justice or proper health assessments. Human rights advocates claim that the process is opaque and that people are being deported in secret, with limited information available about their treatment on Nauru.
"The government seems to be trying to 'replace' indefinite detention in Australia with 'indefinite detention on Nauru'," said Ian Rintoul of Refugee Action Coalition Sydney. "This is a cynical attempt to avoid accountability and ensure that people are sent back without any chance of justice or resolution."
The Australian government has denied allegations of secrecy, saying that those deported will be able to live freely within the community in Nauru. However, human rights advocates say that this claim is undermined by reports of people being locked up on the remote island with limited access to basic services.
Nauru's president, David Adeang, claims that refugees who were resettled under the deal have "served their time" and are no longer a threat. But critics argue that this ignores the trauma and harm caused by the asylum seekers' experiences in Australian detention centers.
The situation has sparked outrage among human rights advocates, with many calling for greater transparency and accountability from the Australian government. As one of the deported men told Guardian Australia, "I am not a young man – I cannot keep rebuilding my life. I do not know why Australia has selected me for this terrible punishment."
its so unfair how australia is doing this to ppl like these two guys from sudan and vietnam they rnt even young anymore 
nauru doesnt have the resources 2 handle ppl like dis & australia just sent them there 4 indefinite detention w/o access 2 justice or proper health assessments its like a big experiment 2 see wht happens 2 ppl whn dey r left in ths kinda situation 
The whole thing about Australia deporting asylum seekers to Nauru is still super shady 
. Like, what's the actual deal? Who gets to decide who goes and stays? It's not like they're transparent about it 
. And yeah, indefinite detention without any real justice or healthcare options on Nauru doesn't sound like a great way to treat people 
. I mean, if Australia can't handle its own refugees, why can't they just take in more? It's all about politics and avoiding accountability 
.
that's like 1% of the budget 
we spent on healthcare in one year 
2025 is supposed to be all about innovation & progress, yet these ppl are still stuck in limbo 
what's the real cost of this policy? 
did you know that Nauru has a life expectancy of just 58 yrs ? 
This is just getting ridiculous. Deporting people to Nauru without even bothering to tell them what's going on? It's like they're trying to avoid accountability, but really they're just avoiding having a real conversation about refugees. And don't even get me started on the whole "serving their time" thing - like who gets sent to a tiny island for "serving their time"? 
this whole situation is so messed up 
.
. The government's trying to spin this as some kind of "solution" but really they're just avoiding their international obligations and perpetuating a system that's all about punishment over protection 
. It's like they're trying to recreate the whole Manus Island debacle, but in a smaller package 
. And what's with Nauru, anyway? It's like a tiny Pacific island with zero resources, no thanks for taking people there 
just saw that 2 more ppl got sent back to Nauru like, what's the deal? AUSTRALIA'S $2.5 BILLION DEAL TO SEND ASYLUM SEEKERS TO NAURU IS JUST SO OPAQUE 
and now they're left to pick up the pieces of their shattered lives 
? And the fact that these guys are being locked up without access to proper healthcare or justice is straight-up unacceptable 
. I don't care if it's "indefinite detention" – that's just a fancy way of saying "we're not gonna let you go" 
. It's all so messed up 
Deportations are getting outta control... just found out that 2 more dudes got sent to Nauru without even tellin' their fams or lawyers 
. The Aussie gov's all like "hey, they'll be fine" but human rights advocates are all like "nope, not gonna happen" 
. And the fact that Nauru's got its own set of problems with basic services and justice is just icing on the cake... I mean, how can u expect ppl to 'live freely' when they're basically locked up in a remote island without any support? 
.
meanwhile, i'm over here thinking of all the times i visited my cousins in sydney when i was a kid and they had to deal with all the stress of being stuck in limbo... anyway, this whole situation just feels so wrong on so many levels 
? This whole Nauru deal is just a huge mess, and the gov's trying to sweep it under the rug. They're basically saying "oh, we've let these guys go, they must be fine" while knowing full well that they're stuck on some tiny island with no rights 
just heard that 2 more ppl were deported to Nauru without any transparency or info... 1 from Sudan & 1 from Vietnam