Face of Nation : Labor says the government can uphold Australia’s borders and deal compassionately with a Sri Lankan Tamil family at the same time.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton are refusing to entertain the idea of intervening to stop the deportation of the family, who had settled in the Queensland town of Biloela.
Former deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce says the children are Australian as far as the community is concerned. Labor’s home affairs spokeswoman Kristina Keneally says her party supports Operation Sovereign Borders.
And the government could do much more to stop people smuggling, including posting more federal police officers to source countries and ordering more sea patrols. But she says the “cruelty” faced by the Sri Lankan family could end “with the stroke of a pen” from Immigration Minister David Coleman.
The government says the family has been assessed several times and ruled not to be refugees.
