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9 February 2007

IRAQI REFUGEE FINALLY OFFERED PROTECTION AFTER FIVE YEARS 

The last remaining refugee held on Nauru as part of the so-called “Pacific Solution” was granted permission to live lawfully in Australia at the end of last month.

Muhammad Faisal (26) was detained on Nauru for five years after fleeing from Iraq because the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) made an adverse security finding against him.

No information was ever provided to Faisal or his fellow detainee Mohammed Sagar (who was recently accepted for resettlement in Scandinavia) as to the reasons for the security concerns. They had no access to evidence and could not challenge the findings.

During 2006, Faisal’s mental health had deteriorated to the point that he had to be hospitalized in Brisbane and early this year ASIO announced it had dropped its concerns against him.

The decision was welcomed by a spokesman for Amnesty International Australia who said “Offshore, remote and indefinite detention needs to be abolished. Security checks are necessary but clearly the system has failed and has gravely affected an individual's life,"

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