The Greens bill on Children in Detention: media stunt with no real change

The Social Justice Network joins its voice with other human rights group of deep disappointment with the Greens bill on Children in detention, introduced today. The bill has introduced nothing different from Labor’s disappointing commitments towards the children in detention.

While the group is yet to give detailed comments on the Greens bill, but the initial reading is not positive. The bill will not legislate ending the mandatory detention of children, minors and their parents/guardians. This is total departure from the Greens election slogans of fighting to scrap mandatory detention altogether.

“Today’s bill is exposing without doubt the real nature of the Greens party: party that have politics totally different rom policies. The policies which are designed to fool voters are totally different from Greens stances inside the parliament” said Jamal Daoud, spokesperson for SJN. “The Greens votes’ jump from 2.5% prior to 2001 election to massive 12.5% in the last election was due for large party to their slogans of opposing inhumane mandatory detention system altogether”

“The bill leaves mostly everything for minister to decide on. This includes the time frame and definition of “housing”. Practically, there is nothing different between the Greens bill and the policies implemented by Liberals and promised recently by Labor”

“Every decent Australians who voted for the Greens in the last election has thousand reasons to ask the Greens to clarify this total departure from policies published on the Greens website and in election material since 2001 lection”

The Greens today give more example that it is a party that cannot be trusted on any issue. The opposition to harsh treatment of asylum seekers was in the heart of the Greens empty rhetoric for the last decade. If they cannot honour simple promise, how they can deliver on larger issues of economic management, foreign affairs, welfare system, public sector management and other huge issues that need reforms.

“Today’s disappointing bill is no different from the other Greens action of not honour election policies and promises. We all remember how the Greens swallowed their commitments to abolish government’s rebate on private health insurance, abolish the “Anti-Terrorism” legislations and many other policies. But in parliament they did just the opposite”

“Today’s bill should be an eye opener for anyone who wrongly put their bit on the Greens to make the society more just and fairer. It is very clear that the Greens is part of the problem and cannot be part of any solution”

“The Greens, if they were serious on ending the harsh inhumane mandatory detention system, they would have put it in their agreement with Labor to form the minority government. The Labor then was desperate to form a government, and they could have accepted releasing 700 children from detention”

The network declared rightly that the role of the Greens in this government would not be more than opportunistic voice to get more exposure by spreading more empty rhetoric, with no actual actions.

The network will continue to expose the true face of political forces, especially the ones that claim to be “progressive”. Progressiveness means for us not only a set of code words, but practical steps to achieve better society.

The SJN vows to continue fighting against the inhumane mandatory dentition system until the release of all asylum seekers to community until their claims finalised.

For more information, you can contact Jamal Daoud on 0404 447 272.