Abstract
A series of recent decisions by the High Court of Australia upholding, and arguably considerably extending, the power of the Executive Government to detain people without trial has generated serious' concerns about the impact of these rulings on basic democratic rights and civil liberties. Such concerns have already been registered in the Alternative Law Journal, with attention being drawn to the ominous implications of these decisions for the 'war on terrorism'¹. These early warnings may have underestimated the scope of the shift undertaken by the High Court. A further examination of the judicial reasoning involved suggests that it is now appropriate to ask what, if any, limits exist on Executive detention without trial. This question is by no means confined to the immediate context of the mandatory detention of so-called 'unlawful non-citizens'. In three sets of judgments handed down on 6 August 2004, the High Court declared that the Federal Government can detain rejected asylum seekers indefinitely - perhaps for life - regardless of their inability to be deported to any other country and irrespective of the intolerable conditions inside the government's immigration detention centres.
Original language | English |
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Number of pages | 34 |
Journal | Alternative law journal |
Publication status | Published - 2005 |
Keywords
- Australia
- asylum, right of
- detention of persons
- human rights
- law and legislation
- refugees