<
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/jan/14/australia-exposed-iranian-asylum-seeker-to-torture-on-manus-un-says>
"Australia exposed an Iranian asylum seeker to torture and ill-treatment during
his years in detention, a UN committee has found, amounting to a breach of
international obligations.
On Wednesday evening, the UN committee against torture released its decision on
the case of an asylum seeker who arrived on Christmas Island by boat in 2013
after fleeing Iran in fear of persecution.
He was transferred by authorities to Manus Island in Papua New Guinea where he
remained for about three years, in “harsh conditions and subjected to serious
violence”, the committee found, including having his throat slit by a security
guard.
In 2019, he was evacuated to Australia for medical treatment but remained in
immigration detention for a further three years despite “serious physical and
mental health conditions” the committee found, before being released into the
community on a bridging visa in 2022.
In its refutation of the complaint, Australia argued it did not exercise
effective control over detention facilities in Papua New Guinea and said the
complainant received appropriate medical and mental health care.
It further argued that his detention in Australia was lawful and subject to
review, and that he was no longer detained at the time the committee considered
the case.
The committee rejected the arguments, contending Australia’s funding,
management and contracting of services at Manus were sufficient to establish
jurisdiction under the convention, in line with the UN human rights committee’s
decisions on another two cases regarding Australia’s processing centre on the
island of Nauru.
Last week, a UN watchdog ruled that Australia violated the rights of asylum
seekers arbitrarily detained on Nauru, in a warning to other countries intent
on outsourcing asylum processing.
Jorge Contesse, a committee member said human rights protection and
international law obligations “do not disappear when detention facilities are
relocated offshore”.
“Geography is not the test, but whether a state has placed a person in a
situation where it has the power to prevent harm and fails to do so,” he said.
“Where a state creates and maintains a system of offshore detention and retains
decisive influence over the conditions, it remains responsible under
international law.”"
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
