The Australian Government Announces A "One-Off" Asylum Seeker Resettlement Deal With The US (But Details Are Still Patchy)

Yesterday it was announced that Australia had been negotiating a one-off US resettlement deal for asylum seekers currently held on Manus and Nauru detention centres.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull confirmed the agreement in Canberra, alongside Immigration Minister Peter Dutton.

According to the ABC, Mr Turnbull said the deal would only apply to asylum seekers currently in detention, but not for any new boat arrivals.

"It is a one-off agreement—it will not be repeated," he said.

The news was initially met with relief, but patchy details and unconfirmed time-frames have fast paved way towards skepticism.

This 'deal' with the US makes no sense. Even if refugees on Manus and Nauru are resettled overseas, what happens to future boat arrivals?

— Osman Faruqi (@oz_f) November 13, 2016

Firstly, the resettlement deal will not apply to everyone on the island. The ABC confirms some men may be deported back to their home country, while others will be forcibly settled in Papua New Guinea.

Asylum seekers on Manus and Nauru are cautious of the announcement. Having been confined to indefinite detention for several years, many are feeling hopeless and despondent.

One detainee—who wished to remain anonymous—spoke with an ABC reporter.

"We don't believe. We don't believe because we have been here more than three and a half years," they said.

The actual number of refugees that will be resettled under the arrangement has yet to be confirmed.

Mr Turnbull has said the priority was "very much on the most vulnerable," namely children, women and families. According to Mr Dutton, people who "aren't owed protection need to return back to their country of origin".

The United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) says the Federal Government must find a solution for all asylum seekers held on Manus Island and Nauru.

They have reminded politicians of how all those sent offshore have been "immensely damaged" by the process, and need help.

"It's important that they don't remain in Nauru and Papua New Guinea, where they've stayed for far too long and indeed languished in limbo," said UNHCR's external relations officer, Catherine Stubberfield.

Ms Stubberfield has insisted that time is of the essence, and has called for both countries to act quickly in finalising the deal.

Developments have also been made regarding the Coalition's proposed Bill to ban all asylum seekers—regardless of their refugee status—from entering Australia.

Last week the Bill passed the House of Representatives, and is currently being debated in the Senate.

Turnbull has now turned to Labor, calling on support in the Senate for changes to the Migration Act #auspol

— Stephanie Anderson (@stephanieando) November 13, 2016

Photo: Facebook (@NoLifeBan4Refugees)