Transcript
Nauru's Justice Minister David Adeang called for help to resettle the hundreds of refugees living in limbo on the island. He described Nauru's offshore regional processing system with Australia as an innovative model which had avoided thousands of deaths at sea. The camps on Nauru and in Papua New Guinea have been widely criticised but Mr Adeang says Nauru is proud of the system which had been effective apart from a crucial missing element.
"Nauru invites other countries to assist in finding durable resettlement solutions for our refugees. This is the critical missing component. Remote processing is one part of what needs to be a comprehensive migration strategy. I encourage states today to assist us find permanent homes for the 924 refugee men, women and children currently on Nauru."
Mr Adeang even appeared to put out a bid for more processing business saying it had the infrastructure and systems in place now and was well-placed to address migration flows. Papua New Guinea's Foreign Minister Rimbink Pato took a forthright stand, suggesting countries be held accountable for the mass exodus of people fleeing strife. He says PNG's experience of the global refugee crisis included seeing Carteret Islanders forced to migrate internally because of rising seas and an asylum seeker processing centre on Manus Island. He says that was set up with Australia as a gesture of goodwill and is now being closed after being found unconstitutional, showing it's not a simple issue.
"Papua New Guinea's experience from hosting and providing migrants and refugee needs call for a shared global responsibility. This is why my country is serious and committed to be part of the global solution."
Mr Pato recounted the low numbers wanting to resettle in PNG from the centre and he recommended innovative methods like his country's waiver of a $US3000 fee for citizenship for refugees. Fiji's Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama says the world must approach the grave crisis in a way that puts human rights and dignity above all else. He says countries must make a more concerted effort to work together to deal with it.
"And we hear the cries of those that are unfairly treated in detention centres including in our own region with no hope and no way out. Excellencies, our common humanity demands that we must heed these cries and work together more holistically and more effectively to address this crisis."
Mr Bainimarama says Fiji has offered refuge to climate change migrants from Kiribati and Tuvalu but he says that will need international help. Meanwhile Australia defended its border protection policies, saying it's a world leader in investing in refugees.
"Australia's immigration policies have focussed on finding a balance between population growth, nation building and economic needs while sharing the responsibility for resettling the most vulnerable refugees. The Australian story demonstrates how societies can benefit from safe, orderly and well-managed migration."
He says Australia has had a long history of managed migration and reiterated that people smugglers do not offer a path to the country.
