Monday 20 April 2015

Australia has the solution to the boat people crisis – Europe should follow its eminently sensible lead

Between 2012 and 2013, 18,000 immigrants arrived illegally in Australia, up from 7,300 in the previous two years. The “asylum-seekers” were mainly from Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Iraq, Iran and Myanmar, and had paid trafficking gangs to get themselves on boats out of Indonesia. When Australian politicians realised that voters had lost patience with this mini-invasion, and alarmed by a spate of sinkings and drowning just like those now happening with increasing frequency in the Mediterranean, they acted by cutting a deal with Papua New Guinea. Anyone trying to enter Australia illegally by boat who is judged to be a genuine refugee is now processed by independent contractors offshore and sent to the independent Melanesian state. Once settled there, they lose all rights to ever settle in Australia. Of course, the Aussies pay the Papuans for their trouble.

The Australian government has now cut a similar deal with Cambodia.  In addition to these measures, Australian naval vessels intercept boats full of immigrants and tow them back to Indonesia. As a result, not a single refugee boat has reached Australia so far this year.

Of course,  Aussie bleeding hearts are up in arms, accusing the government of heartlessness and (yes, you guessed it) racism. But, from here, it all looks pretty damned sensible – at the least the Australians have a workable, affordable policy which seems to be achieving the two most important objectives, i.e.  preventing immigrants it doesn’t want from entering the country, and drying up the vile human trafficking trade in their part of the world – there doesn’t seem to be much point in risking life and limb just to end up somewhere as poor, primitve and crime-infested as Papua New Guinea (it’s the rape capital of the world, apparently).

Our television news has been full of  professional compassion-mongers and preening politicians demanding that we, the Italians, the EU etc. ramp up search-and-rescue missions in the Mediterranean to stem the rising death toll caused by sinking boats and deliberate murder on the high seas. Obviously, this would lead to a massive increase in people-trafficking, and would therefore be both counter-productive and immoral. In other words, it’s a classic left-liberal solution - it would make its proponents feel really good about themselves, cost tax-payers a fortune, and be of enormous benefit to criminals.

The other thing the compassionistas are demanding, inevitably, is that Europe throws open its borders (as if they aren’t open enough already) to anyone who fancies a better life. Yup, just what we need – more immigrants brought up by their religion and government to despise the West and its values. What could possibly go wrong? It’s likely that many of those currently fleeing Libya are decent people who might end up benefitting the societies being urged to accept them. There’s also no doubt that many of them are ignorant religious maniacs – including the swine who last week threw twelve Christian refugees into the sea for refusing to pray to Allah. Italians are a generous, warm-hearted people living in a country with a perenially weak economy, and yet they’re being forced initially to bear the brunt of this illegal migration. Thanks to our ludicrously generous benefits system, we're next in the firing line. The majority of migrants skulking in Calais looking for a chance to share their talent, inventiveness, work ethic and religious tolerance with the British people are Eritreans. Oh goody! You can bet your bottom dollar that a sizable portion of the illegal immigrants battling their way into Italy will end up here. Call me a jaded old cynic, but that doesn’t necessarily strike me as cause for celebration.

The practical and moral thing to do would be for Europe to accept all Christian refugees – on the grounds that they’ll probably be slaughtered by Muslims if they return to an Islamic country, and that they probably won’t be in favour of female genital mutilation, the murder of homosexuals, stoning adulterers to death, or the violent imposition of a global caliphate – and those Muslim refugees who actually have some skills to offer and who are therefore less likely to end up becoming a burden on the tax-payer. As for the rest of the would-be escapees, the EU should look for the nearest equivalent to Papua New Guinea – preferably an island state – and cut a deal with its government.

France and Britain should take a lead in getting this policy off the ground, and should pay a disproportionate share of the eventual costs, because, after all, their military interference in Libya did so much create this crisis in the first place.

1 comment:

  1. The facilities at Manus Island PNG are very good indeed.Brand new trainers for every refugee and clean towels every day.
    Jo'burg may just pip Port Moresby as "the rape capital of the world."
    Australia has put in place a very sensible policy;you're right Britain and France especially should take note.

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