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Crowe, Aileen --- "Refugee case study: TPVs" [2002] HRightsDef 16; (2002) 11(2) Human Rights Defender 11

Refugee case study: TPVs

From a Refugee Caseworker in Sydney

Sr Aileen Crowe

For a family on Temporary Protection Visas (TPV), particularly with children, two big issues emerge. The most difficult is the temporary nature of the visa. The family have been living in limbo in the detention centre, sometimes for more than three years, not knowing if they will ever be granted permission to stay. If they are found to be refugees, they are then released and given a further three years of uncertainty, not knowing if they will ever be granted citizenship.

The second difficulty is no government-funded access to English classes. Without a level of fluency it is virtually impossible to get employment. Community groups offer free classes but these are often limited to a couple of times a week for only two to three hours. This is insufficient time for a person to become fluent. There is often no regular child-care so the mother often suffers by having even less opportunity for English classes. They can only receive eighty-three per cent of the normal unemployment benefits and cannot get community housing. If they make a special application, they may be able to get some rental assistance.

There is no access to family reunion processes and therefore a constant emotional stress on young husbands and fathers who often do not know the whereabouts of the rest of their family.

If, for urgent family matters, a person has to leave Australia temporarily, there is no possibility of them being accepted back into the country - a further strain on the psychological well-being of the family.

Another problem arises when the family have to apply for recognition of permanent status three years down the track. There is no policy of legal assistance given by the Government in representing their cases. They have to go through the legal process again without any guarantee that there will be a change in status. The psychological effect of this is worrying to say the least.

Aileen Crowe is a Franciscan Missionary of Mary Sister and the Social Justice Coordinator of the Arch Diocese of Sydney. She travelled to Geneva as a member of the Australian Refugee Rights Alliance team.

This case study is taken from a document prepared by SfS entitled: Australia’s Mandatory Immigration Detention System. It is reproduced with permission of the author.